The house was designed keeping in mind its visual relation with the landscape and the spatial relation of its interiors with the impressive nature of the English countryside. Behind it the dense forest, gloomy and protective. To the front the countryside, the light and the opening to the open space, thanks to the transparency of the enclosures in glass.
Richard Meier has become a classic, and his works are recognizable and identifiable. The relationship of his more known houses like the Douglas House, and especially the question of style pervive and still recognizable in the work of this architect New York, the unique one of the members of the group of the Five Architects, better known as the "White Architects", which has maintained its style as a trademark of his works.

As if it were a classic, the design follows a set of spatial compressions and decompressions that dramatize the perception of space in a baroque way, in the best sense of the term.
 

Description of project by Richard Meier

The siting of the Oxfordshire Residence is notable not only for the views afforded and the expansiveness of the landscape, but also the richness of the spatial experience which begins before one even enters the property and was the primary inspiration for the design; The relationships of openness and compression, light and shadow evinced by the area surrounding the site and the purity, beauty, and natural resources of this particular location in Oxfordshire are truly compelling.

This country residence has been created based on three guiding principles: an engaging response to the site, a resonant connection with the history of the place, and a vital progression toward sustainability.

It would be impossible to conceive of a residence in this part of the United Kingdom without considering the typology of the English Manor House. This design espouses many of the tenets behind this ideal: this is a family home which honors the woodlands and topography, drawing the occupant into a relationship with the natural world while creating space for comfortable living. Specific to the site of the house and the related buildings, the design seeks to integrate the landscape and views as part of its identity, bringing a natural balance between building and landscape.

The structure and orientation of the house symbolize a direct response to the makeup of the site. The solidity of the back of the house effectively mirrors the density of the woodlands, while the lucidity of the glass in front embraces the openness of the landscape beyond. Similarly, the layering of program, walls and columns that dictate the interior layout are designed to complement the light and views specific to every vantage point, creating breathtaking common spaces.

The design scheme for the Oxfordshire Residence placed an emphasis on sustainability, both in its contemporary meaning, which is to say mechanisms for conservation, emission reduction and renewable energy are employed wherever possible, and its traditional meaning, which is to say that this home is intended to stand the test of time.

The house is anchored to its site, and has been carefully designed based in the human scale, the purity of the aesthetic, peerless construction methods and materials, and the conservation and utilization of natural resources.

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Architects
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Richard Meier & Partners. Principal-in-charge.- Richard Meier. Project architect.- Kevin B Baker
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Project team
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David Bench, Maria E Cumella, Kevin Hamlett, Bori Kang, Hans Put, Heejoo Shi, Sangmin You.
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Collaborators
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Executive architect.- Berman Guedes Stretton. Executive principle-in-charge.- Roger Stretton. Executive project architects.- Jon Du Croz and Trevor Taw. Landscape architect.- Tom Stuart-Smith. MEP engineer.- CBG Consultants. Structural engineer.- Price & Myers
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General contractor
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Sizebreed Construction
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Richard Meier is well known and respected around the world for his architecture and designs. He has been awarded major commissions in the United States and Europe including courthouses, city halls, museums, corporate headquarters, housing and private residences. Some of his best-known projects include The Getty Center in Los Angeles, the High Museum in Atlanta, the Frankfurt Museum for Decorative Arts in Germany, the Canal Plus Television Headquarters in Paris, the Barcelona Museum of Contemporary Art, The Hartford Seminary in Connecticut, and the Atheneum in New Harmony, Indiana.

Recognized with the highest honors available in architecture, in 1997 he received the AIA Gold Medal from the American Institute of Architects as well as the Praemium Imperiale from the Japanese Government, in recognition of a lifetime achievement in the arts. In 1995, he was elected Fellow to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He received the Deutscher Architekture Preis in 1993 and in 1992 the French Government awarded him with the honor of Officier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, and in 1989, the Royal Institute of British Architects, of which he is a Fellow, awarded him the Royal Gold Medal.

In 1984, Mr. Meier was awarded the Pritzker Prize for Architecture, considered the field's highest honor. He was the youngest recipient of this award in the history of the prize. In the same year, Mr. Meier was selected architect for the prestigious commission to design the $1 billion Getty Center in Los Angeles, California.

Since receiving his architectural education at Cornell University, he has been awarded honorary degrees from the University of Naples, New Jersey Institute of Technology, The New School for Social Research, Pratt Institute and the University of Bucharest.

Mr. Meier has given numerous lectures throughout the world and participated in many juries. He has written and been the subject of many books and monographs and innumerable newspaper and magazine articles. In addition to being on the Board of Directors of the Cooper Hewitt National Design Museum and the American Academy in Rome, he is also a Fellow of the French and Belgian Academies d'Architecture, and a member of the Bund Deutscher Architekten and the American Academy of Arts & Letters, from which he received the Brunner Prize for Architecture in 1976.

Mr. Meier has taught at Cooper Union, Princeton University, Pratt Institute, Harvard University, Yale University and UCLA. He currently holds the Frank T. Rhodes Class of 1956 University Professorship at Cornell University. He is a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects and received a Medal of Honor from the New York Chapter in 1980 and the Gold Medal from the Los Angeles Chapter in 1998. His numerous design awards include 29 National AIA Honor Awards and 53 Regional AIA Design Awards.

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