Located in Vancouver, Canada, this residential project by Arno Matis Architecture features façade openings that are programmed to provide passive shading and act like an Aperture: opening and closing in response to the unique solar exposure of each façade. Apertures are deeper on the south elevation to provide increased sun shading, and more shallow and open to the North, to allow for additional light.
Photography: Michael Elkan
Each aperture is framed with natural wood-in-glass; a building skin that is the first of its kind. A mahogany veneer encapsulated between two glass layers, the system allows the wood to be preserved in its natural form without staining or color treatment; the richness of the natural wood grain is enhanced through a refracted light.
Encapsulated UV glass protects wood from weather exposure, eliminating the need for wood maintenance and staining. The insulated panel also reduces solar gain and increases the thermal resistance of the façade.
Photography: Michael Elkan
Stratigraphic architectural themes echo the area’s mid-century modern architectural vocabulary. Cantilever decks and strong horizontal lines and create a sense of lightness and lower the missing profile.

A full city-block located in a “single-family-transitioning-to-urban” neighborhood, the building responds to this context by stepping-down in scale from 6-story midrise blocks on the busy arterial, down to two-story villas, sensitive to the si...