Disbrow Iannuzzi completes Lakeside, a 4,000 square foot Y-shaped house set on a parklike site in a northern suburb of Detroit, where the River Rouge runs through the property. The home opens outward to a landscape the homeowner has cultivated for more than forty years. A former curator of Asian art and gallery owner, the client sought a residence that could hold her collection of handcrafted objects while drawing from her family’s history in the lumber industry.
HOUSING
The project relies on two primary materials: white ash and black slate. Disbrow Iannuzzi deploys both with precision, using each to reveal its inherent physical qualities. All of the slate originates from a single quarry, then appears throughout the site in multiple forms. The stone becomes roof shingles, wall cladding through cleft and cut applications, and honed slabs for horizontal surfaces. Crushed slate compacts the driveway, while offcuts gather into gabions that form retaining structures.
At certain hours, veining and tonal variation emerge clearly. Under stronger, more direct sun, shadow and relief define the walls, giving the exterior a textured presence that changes without ornament.
Inside, white ash introduces a counterpoint. Boards line ceilings, walls, and floors with a consistent linear rhythm that establishes visual calm. The wood carries warmth without excess, supporting a composed interior atmosphere. Subtle transitions occur within the same four-inch pattern, where boards shift from quarter-sawn to plain-cut to mark moments of change.
One exception appears in a long ash bench created to display bronze castings from the client’s collection. Crafted from a single fifteen-foot plank, the bench reveals cathedral grain with dramatic contrast, offering a different expression drawn from the same species of wood. The piece reads as furniture and display surface at once, grounding art within the architecture.
Openings cut through the slate exterior operate with care. Each one reveals the warm ash interior, creating a consistent relationship between outside and inside. The placement of these openings shields the interior from summer sun while admitting light during colder months. The south-facing front entrance follows the solar path, allowing winter sun to enter deeply while providing shade when needed.
From within, floor-to-ceiling glass walls extend from wall to wall, offering uninterrupted views of the site’s topography. Every room frames a distinct scene shaped by the terrain, plantings, and sculptural elements placed throughout the landscape. Interior volumes remain quiet, allowing views outward to take precedence. The effect recalls the compositional framing found in Japanese woodblock prints, an indirect reference to the client’s collection.
Designed to be experienced from within the house, the landscape uses layered plantings, varied surfaces, and sculptural works as focal points for each space. Through disciplined material use, careful solar response, and a close relationship to the landscape, Disbrow Iannuzzi creates a house where built form and natural setting support one another, shaping a measured and attentive way of living.
Architecture firm: Disbrow Iannuzzi
Project name: Lakeside
Location: Birmingham, Michigan
Size: 4,000 square feet
Status: Construction completed late 2023, ongoing site features through 2025
Photography: Rafael Gamo
