Welcome to our gallery featuring the refreshing Linear House, a home crafted by Patkau Architects.

This spectacular home design comes courtesy of a Vancouver based firm with over 30 years of experience in both Canada and the United States. Patkau Architects have designed a dazzling range of building types for a diverse clientele, with projects scaling from simple installations, to complete homes, to major urban libraries.

Linear House is located on a sixteen acre farm on Salt Spring Island, between Vancouver Island and the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. A long row of Douglas fir trees bisect the property for a truly unique effect.

The new house fits into a lane between the line of fir trees to the north and wooded pockets to the south. The entire structure is never directly apparent from a distance, obscured by the natural landscape, like a stealthy figure sliding in and out of the trees. The exterior facade of the house is clad in charcoal toned fiber-cement panels, rendering the home nearly invisible when placed against the dark surrounding foliage.

The interior is highlighted by a rich inner lining of translucent acrylic panels, which define the modules that comprise the structure. Over forty fixed and operable skylights allow sunlight into the home, allowing the acrylic liner to gently glow. During the night, florescent lights mounted within these ceiling openings turn the entire interior of the home into a luminous shroud.

The areas within the home are divided by the insertion of reinforced concrete segments and cabinet-like service spaces. With 78 feet of glazed openings and 28 foot cantilevered roof canopies at either end of the house, the interior experience positively hums with natural light and outdoor views.

Numerous sliding aluminum glazed door panels are suspended from exposed structural beams. These panels are fully retractable, allowing the home to be transformed into an open-air pavilion during the prolonged fair weather spring and summer months.

This distant shot highlights the dynamic interplay between the home and surrounding Douglas firs. The dark hued structure manages to partially retreat into the shadows from every angle, emerging in subtle fashion beneath the sunlight.

This open-air centerpiece of the structure acts as a roofed patio area, buffered by the home itself on either side. Views over the surrounding foliage to the lake and beyond are available nearly everywhere within the property.

Viewed down the length of the home, we see the tree line hugging the structure, offering shade and privacy to the modern home.

Here’s a close look at the dramatic louvers covering the side of the home. These offer highly specific angles of sunlight and views, further granting privacy and a customized look.

Here’s a glimpse of what the home looks like with the top-opening aluminum door panels full retracted. The kitchen is completely exposed to the elements, blurring the line between indoors and out.

Here’s a close look at the glazing that covers most of the actual home exterior, offering expansive views and sleekly modern style. The louvers, seen at right, create a buffer between the elements and the interior.

Now we move inside the home, witnessing the subtle glow of the acrylic wall panels and the interplay between sleek modern structures and rich natural wood materials. The kitchen centers on this massive island, boasting a sink, cooktop, and extensive dining space.

The sleek natural wood helps the ultra-modern interior blend with its natural surroundings, offering a warm touch to the minimalist structure. A slim line of lights are wire-hung down the length of the room.

A raised stainless steel portion of the island houses the “working” area of the kitchen, with a large sink at center. From here we see one of the concrete fireplace segments, dividing the home into smaller pieces.

The massive kitchen island flaunts its modern construction, with sleek natural wood cabinetry and stainless steel interplaying. Over the countertop, we see the seamless expanse of nature brought into view by the large opening panels.

Among the lengthy kitchen, we also see the full height wood panels at right and a large matching wood shelving system lining the exterior wall.

The acrylic wall panels surrounding this space positively glow in contrast to the neutral concrete and warm natural wood tones.

The open-plan design allows spaces like this sprawling hallway to connect seamlessly to every other space in the home. More of the cubic bookshelves run the length of the structure, providing ample storage and display opportunities.

Here’s a bathroom within the home, showcasing the innovative layering of the structure at its most complex. The interplay between steel, natural wood, concrete, and glass can be opened so that even a shower feels like it’s taking place outdoors.

Even the primary bedroom can be opened completely to nature, with the hardwood flooring spanning a blurred gap between the bed and the surrounding tree line. With the glowing acrylic wall inserts above, the image of indoor comfort appearing outdoors is strengthened.

With abundant storage built-in, the complex dynamic between acrylic wall panels and rich hardwood flooring features utility and beauty in equal measure.

With the large panels completely opening the interior to the outdoors, pavilion-style, we see the concrete structural buffers separating the various segments of the home.

Pulling back to the exterior once again, we see straight through the home, courtesy of retractible panels and an utterly open-plan design that favors the nebulous space between indoors and out.