67
AUTUMN
|
EARLY WINTER
2016
ESCARPMENTMAGAZINE
.
CA
|
Frank LloydWright once said, “No house should ever be on a hill. It
shouldbeof thehill,belonging to it.Hillandhouseshould live together,
each thehappier for theother."
TomandEdnaBurri took thissentiment toheart10yearsagowhende-
signingandbuilding theirOwenSoundhome,which theynamed ‘Stone
Phoenix’. Built byJescoBuilders, usingnativeescarpment limestone,
glass, concrete and steel, the couple soughtminimal interruption to
the landonwhich they reside.
In followingFrankLloydWright’s famousminimalistarchitecture,Edna
admits, “Inorder for it to trulybeaFrank LloydWright home, it has to
followcertainrules.Wedesigned thehome toecho theEscarpmentwe
liveon. If you lookclosely, thehouseappears tohavewings.”
For theexterior, HopeBay limestone, from theeastcoastof theBruce
Peninsula,wasusedalmostexclusively, finished threeways;polished,
blocks, and rough cut. Each sculpture, plant and stone are native to
Ontarioand theNiagaraEscarpment.
The oversized landscaping stones came fromManitoulin Island. The
cedargaragedooraddsdepth, textureandcolour to the facade.Match-
ingcedarstrippingalongsidetheporticobreaksupthe limestonewhile
keeping in linewith theorganic feel of thestructure. In fact, everyel-
ementof thebuildwasenvironmentally thought-out.
“WebelieveClimateChange ishereandwhenwedecided tobuild [we
thought it] was imperative for each individual to dowhat they can to
mediate thespeedofclimatechange for futuregenerations.We inves-
tigated thealternativesandwere inaposition toemploymany features
inour lives, homeand transportation.”–TomBurri
Appropriatelynamed ‘StonePhoenix’,Ednaexplains, “Westarted tore-
model theoriginal home, whichwe thoughtwas in reallygoodshape.
After threemonths,wehadencounteredsomanyproblemswedecided
toknock itdown.Thisstonestructurerose, ifyouwill, from theashes,
hence ‘StonePhoenix’wasborn.”
