Barcode House: A modern home on an unbuildable Bouldin Creek lot
New constructionAustin, TexasBarcode House is a 1,700-square-foot modern home in Austin’s Bouldin Creek, on a lot everyone had written off as unbuildable. Architect David Webber of Webber + Studio designed it around two large live oaks and their root zones. Cravotta Interiors did the interiors on a tight budget, with humble materials put together carefully.
The brief
The client owns the IT company that has served both Cravotta Interiors and Webber + Studio for close to twenty years. When he told both firms he couldn’t possibly afford them, neither wanted him to go anywhere else. So the budget became part of the design. The house had to be warm, durable and specific to the family, built from materials chosen for honest origin and assembly rather than prestige.
Scope
New construction for a family of four. Cravotta Interiors set the interior envelope, including the wall and floor materials, and designed the furnishings plan for the living, dining and private rooms.
The design
The outside is white metal cladding with raised vertical strips of different widths, the pattern that gave the house its name. It stands out against the oak canopy, with an orange front door. The street side has little glass. The back opens up with large windows to pull in light.
Inside, budget constraints became design decisions. Baltic birch plywood, coated in a clear glaze, replaces sheetrock on the walls. Poured concrete runs underfoot. Materials were chosen for honest origin and thoughtful assembly, not for prestige.
The surprise is the sound. A house of concrete and glass could easily ring. This one doesn’t. “Because of all the wood, such a pleasant acoustic material, it feels and sounds nice,” Mark Cravotta says. The warmth you see inside is also the warmth you hear.
The house drew international attention. Dezeen published it in 2017, and Modern Luxury Interiors Texas featured it in 2021. Dwell and Sharp also covered it.
- Collaborators
- Architect: Webber + Studio (David Webber). Photography: Ryann Ford.
- Press
- Dezeen, September 2017. Modern Luxury Interiors Texas, April 2021. Also Dwell and Sharp.