Urban Oasis
In Philadelphia’s Society Hill neighborhood, four new residential townhomes sit behind a veiled façade of carefully crafted brick.
Nestled between a twelve-story contemporary residential tower to the east, and the famed Bookbinders, a significant historic landmark in the city to the west, this project mediates this contextual range first through the form, height, and materiality of the volumes, and then more significantly through the delicate articulation of the brick veil.
“This is beautifully detailed; the rhythm and the animation are nice—it’s a very sophisticated use of the material.”
– Juror, 2016 RADA Award
The concept for the wall began with an affinity for the prevalent use of brick in Philadelphia. While this material provides a human-scaled, tactile quality, it historically led to smaller scale openings in rowhomes. The goal became to re-imagine these openings at a more generous scale, by using the brick as a shading device rather than a solid.
The brick screen walls are forty-five feet tall, single wythe, and reinforced with rebar within each brick. Steel framing behind the brick creates lateral bracing for building.
“The house is very softly, very contemplatively dynamic. Almost meditative.”
– Urban Oasis Homeowner
The interior of the homes feature walnut hardwood and travertine limestone floors, walnut ceilings, custom millwork, and finely detailed stairs and railings.
