A Stunning House Attuned to its Ecosystem

Considerate Design

Words by Janine Stankus Photos by Chris Diaz

Crouched amid the protected oaks on a corner of East Austin’s Holly neighborhood is a modern, single-story home dubbed ‘Frog Legs.’ According to architect François Lévy, the name was bequeathed by the builders at Austin Newcastle Home, but he was never sure why.

Perhaps it’s the long, zigzag line of the triple-gabled roof that runs north to south, like the stretched-out limb of a leaping amphibian. But this unconventional roof line is more than just a “cool shape.” Like all elements of this project, it was a very carefully considered choice on the part of François and his then-partner, Kimberly Kohlhaas. 

François, who has lived and run his practice in East Austin for over 20 years, has an ecosystemic approach to design. “As an architect, I have to remind myself to step back from the page and not think about the project as isolated.” He continues, “It’s about understanding your connection to the larger environment and having something that fits, [ensuring] it’s appropriate to its time, its place, its culture.”

The roof alone reflects a series of decisions built on such considerations of whether to build long instead of tall, in a way that doesn’t dwarf other houses on the street, to honor the sun’s path and design for solar power, with several longitudinal planes exposed to the sunlight, and even to facilitate rainfall irrigation by designing a series of culverts into the metal panels.

While the home is a 2-bedroom, 2-bath, its north-south orientation renders it “essentially one long room” that welcomes light and creates different temperaments throughout the day. High ceiling peaks open the space and stratify heat, while high-set windows and deep overhangs manage the incoming light. Creating a lean structure also left room for a glowing, glass-enclosed porch and side yard, where the owners sunk wells for geothermal energy. The board and batten siding was a nod to the 1920s-style houses on the block in which it resides.

Built in 2015, the home represents a movement toward modern design, which François says local architects were eager to embrace, perhaps too eager, in some cases. While he empathizes with the challenges of the local design environments, he admits wishing some of it were more thoughtful. “Whether you’re building new or reinventing something old,” he asserts, “you’re hopefully doing it in a sensitive way that acknowledges the history, the fabric, the context, the scale, and what draws people to live here in the first place.” 

Contact: 
François Lévy Architecture + Interiors
2124 E 6th St., Suite 107
francois@francoislevy.com
francoislevy.com