leckie studio's rural retreat in british columbia channels light and vistas like a camera lens

Designed by Leckie Studio as a rural retreat for a young family, ‘Camera House’ is located on a five-acre forested site in British Columbia‘s Pemberton Valley, between the Lillooet and Garibaldi mountain ranges. The architects envisioned the dwelling as an optical camera, a spatial device that heightens perception by capturing incoming light and guiding the inhabitants to live in close connection with their surroundings.

The family worked closely with Leckie Studio to select the sloping, south-facing site, identifying a program that would enable them to spend long periods of time at the ‘Camera House’ during the summer. Private spaces are situated against the densely forested upper level of the slope, and public spaces run parallel below, following a program that includes two bedrooms, a flex room, a swimming pool, an outdoor dining area, and a detached workshop; the secondary central space is designed for circulation, utilities, and storage. ‘The intention was to minimize site disturbance during design and construction, and the house’s ground plane follows the landscape’s natural topography,’ note the architects.

Imagined as an optical camera, the house invites the family to experience three distinct fields of vision as they move through its spaces. Upon entering, the forest foreground is framed by the wide aperture of the dining room. Descending the lower level, the distant Garibaldi Range becomes visible via the top of the glazed gap, shifting the perspective from foreground to background. The clerestory windows, meanwhile, alternate between revealing the most prominent midground feature –the dramatic crags of Owl Ridge –and abstract glimpses of treetops and sky. Beyond that, the interior spaces have been sculpted with sloping ceilings to channel light and sightlines, and at any one point in time, the layers of foreground, midground, and background may be obscured or revealed by swiftly changing weather conditions.

According to Leckie Studio, the striking visual and experiential qualities of ‘Camera House’ reflect deep sensitivity to the environment, intending to optimize sustainability and minimize intrusive impact. Clad primarily in a flat-sawn and brushed Western Red Cedar with a dark stain finish, the dwelling appears to recede into the surrounding forest. Indeed, the grain of the wood is emphasized in relation to tree textures, and phase shifts in the cladding accentuate the visual weight of the upper volumes.

Lastly, the architects developed the massing and glazing locations using passive heating and cooling strategies; most of the glazing along the south side of the house sits beneath a prominent overhang, while the clerestories are oriented to avoid heat gain from direct sunlight. Photovoltaic panels are located on the sloping roofs of large volumes, providing power for household use and an electric car charging station.