Set within a maple-wooded slope in North Hatley, Perchée by Matière Première Architecture positions itself as a calibrated response to terrain rather than an assertion upon it. The land descends gently toward a river valley, and the house follows that movement with restraint. Instead of clearing extensively or reshaping the ground, the architects suspend the structure along the slope, preserving the density and immersion of the forest as the site’s primary asset.
HOUSING
The name Perchée signals this strategy directly. Meaning “perched,” the term reflects both the house’s elevated stance and the architects’ Francophone roots. The decision to retain the French title underscores the project’s cultural grounding, allowing language and architecture to align without translation. The building expresses its meaning through placement and proportion rather than explanation.
Extended floor plates and roof planes operate as precise spatial instruments. From a distance, the house reads as a measured insertion within the canopy, its horizontal lines tracing the topography. The longitudinal cantilever anchors the project’s environmental logic. By projecting the main volume outward, the team reduced excavation and minimized disruption to the root systems of mature trees. The gesture generates a sheltered zone at garden level and a peripheral walkway that transforms circulation into an inhabitable edge.
Perchée advances the interior-exterior relationship through spatial continuity rather than visual transparency alone. Covered outdoor areas occupy nearly the same footprint as enclosed rooms, producing a gradual transition between tempered interior and naturally ventilated exterior. Overhangs filter light and regulate climate, welcoming low winter sun while moderating summer glare. The result is a dwelling where daily life extends beneath the roof’s reach without surrendering shelter.
Functional elements follow the same logic. The carport operates as a flexible covered volume rather than a sealed garage, shifting from parking space to terrace or threshold as needed. The architecture multiplies usable territory without expanding enclosed area, privileging adaptability over accumulation.
Inside, perceptual generosity emerges through proportion and light control. Ten-foot ceilings and a continuous clerestory band detach partitions from the roof plane, allowing light to wash surfaces and maintain visual continuity. Select spruce from Northern Quebec defines the interior atmosphere with consistent warmth, while exterior red cedar and white cedar, treated to accelerate patina,articulate structure and envelope with clarity.
