TREE HOUSE
Architectural Digest US|July - August 2023
Bercy Chen Studio engineers a warmly welcoming modernist home in Texas Hill Country
FRED A. BERNSTEIN
TREE HOUSE

After buying 10 wooded acres on a steep slope along a creek in Austin, Mary Mandel and Jaime Delgado had to decide exactly where to put their house. "We didn't want to look out over the trees," Mandel says, explaining, "We wanted to be in the trees. We wanted to see owls nesting on branches and red-tailed hawks bathing in the creek and bobcats chasing rabbits. We wanted to have an intimate relationship with nature."

But, Mandel says, "there was only one place where I knew we would be able to achieve that, and it was the most challenging part of the site to build on"-a limestone shelf, known as the rimrock, 20 feet above the creek and more than a quarter mile from the nearest road. Mandel, a California native, took a while to find an architect daring enough to help her realize her vision. "Most preferred a more conservative approach," she recalls.

But then she met Calvin Chen and Thomas Bercy, who started out designing houses in Austin 22 years ago. Though they now devote much of their time to larger buildings (including affordable housing), they continue to design single-family homes. The firm approaches every project as a fresh creative inquiry. "We provide solutions that take into account the site's constraints and its natural qualities," says Chen. This was just what Mandel and Delgado wanted. After hugely successful careers that took them around the world, the couple had decided to move back to the US with their son, Drake, 12, and build a home suited-aesthetically as well as functionally for the next phase of their lives.

Esta historia es de la edición July - August 2023 de Architectural Digest US.

Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.

Esta historia es de la edición July - August 2023 de Architectural Digest US.

Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.

MÁS HISTORIAS DE ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST USVer todo
Top of the Heap
Architectural Digest US

Top of the Heap

Putting stone scraps to fresh use, Studio Raw Material mines the rich traditions of India’s western plains

time-read
2 minutos  |
December 2024
Raising the Bar
Architectural Digest US

Raising the Bar

With Italian homages and glamour galore, The Manner ushers in a new era of high-end hospitality

time-read
1 min  |
December 2024
Green Acres
Architectural Digest US

Green Acres

At Longwood Gardens, a bold update unearths wisdom old and new

time-read
1 min  |
December 2024
Ahead of the Curves
Architectural Digest US

Ahead of the Curves

A sinuous house by Snøhetta and Nicole Hollis dares to be different

time-read
3 minutos  |
December 2024
Starting From Scratch
Architectural Digest US

Starting From Scratch

At the Manhattan home of designer Shawn Henderson, a blank slate gives way to a masterful mix of marvels, textures, and moods

time-read
2 minutos  |
December 2024
ICONS ONLY
Architectural Digest US

ICONS ONLY

In Bridgehampton, artist Daniel Arsham finds his groove within a rectilinear home designed by Jack Ceglic

time-read
4 minutos  |
December 2024
gaining
Architectural Digest US

gaining

To update an underutilized landscape at Dia Beacon, Sara Zewde is digging into history, championing resiliency, and leaning into beauty

time-read
3 minutos  |
December 2024
STYLE SUMMIT
Architectural Digest US

STYLE SUMMIT

Lauren Santo Domingo enlists Andre Mellone to help fashion a sophisticated ski retreat that defies tired decorative tropes

time-read
4 minutos  |
December 2024
LIVING THE DREAM
Architectural Digest US

LIVING THE DREAM

In a historic London house, a stylish couple turn to Veere Grenney to help bring their vision to life

time-read
4 minutos  |
December 2024
LABOR OF LOVE
Architectural Digest US

LABOR OF LOVE

With heroic help from around the world and an army of outstanding artisans, engineers, and architects, Notre-Dame de Paris prepares to reopen its doors TEXT

time-read
3 minutos  |
December 2024