The house has been placed along an existing footpath (an old logging road). The first floor has been raised five feet above the low site to improve the view. The design ritualizes the movement from road to parking area, through the house, out to the deck, and down the ramp to a small beach.

The building’s form is understated in keeping with the tradition of rustic, pond-side cabins. Materials are ordinary and readily available. There are four primary components to the house: the anchoring cast-in-place concrete foundation, the exposed wood frame structure, the sheltering galvalume roof, and the thin skin of glazing and siding.

The AIA Pennsylvania jury included these words in their award statement: “The jury had a great deal of affection for this project. Although this is unbuilt, this design achieves a remarkable elegance in its simplicity, integrity and integration of the structure and how the space is planned. Within a single roof form, it integrates the interior and exterior spaces. The design is very lucid and engaging. You want to be there, and wish it were built.”

The Residential Architect jury comments included the following: “It has all the beauty of Shinto shrines.”