Canadian architectural studios Oyama and Julia Manaćas Architecte have completed Waterhouse, an innovative woodland residence in Sutton, Quebec, that seamlessly integrates three distinct architectural volumes into the surrounding forest landscape. The 2,800-square-foot home sits within a natural clearing, surrounded by a pond, ferns, boulders, wildflowers, and rolling hills that stretch toward the distant Green Mountains.
Both Montreal-based studios collaborated under the name An Architecture Capsule to create what they describe as a multi-form house designed as "a series of monuments that alternate between closed interiors and open spaces." The architects explain that the project offers "an uncanny yet delightful experience" where "the clear sculptural form dissolves into a continuously morphing collection of bodies."
The design process began with a unified mass that was strategically separated into three distinct programs to respond to the site's various views and natural features. Through an iterative process using both physical and digital models, the architects developed the relationship between volumes to achieve a more intimate scale and create what they call "a finer, more porous interaction between objects and site." The singular house evolved into three forms: the Atelier, the Great Room, and the Tower.
The Atelier presents a blind wall to approaching visitors from the road, housed within a pyramidal-shaped structure that contains a workshop and parking space. A storage mezzanine is cleverly tucked into the steep slope of the roof, maximizing the use of the compact square footprint while maintaining the sculptural integrity of the form.
The Great Room comprises the majority of the main floor and houses the home's essential living spaces. This rectangular block has been rotated to face due south for optimal sun exposure and contains a combined kitchen, living, and dining room that opens to the landscape through an expansive wall of windows. A thickened wall houses the fireplace, storage, and ventilation system while separating the public areas from the eastern primary suite, which features a large deck that opens directly to the surrounding landscape.
The westernmost structure, known as the Tower, rises three stories and contains individual guest suites on each level. The ground floor is partially submerged into the site and accommodates a home office space, while the third floor features a unique footbridge that passes over a green roof to connect with the roof of the Great Room, where a terrace offers panoramic views of the surrounding wilderness.
All three volumes are unified by a single vernacular material: cedar shingles that clad the exterior surfaces. The architects describe this approach as creating "strange bodies in familiar clothing," referencing the unconventional forms wrapped in traditional regional materials. The negative space between the three structures forms an internal courtyard whose walls are finished with oak paneling, extending the wood cladding theme to the interior spaces.
A central vestibule connects the three volumes and houses essential service spaces, including a laundry room and bathroom. The architects explain that this "programmed transitional space organizes movement in and out of each volume, rejecting a rigid, linear sequence for a more fluid and natural circulation" that encourages exploration throughout the complex.
The project represents a thoughtful response to its natural setting, with the architects noting that "the forms are an invitation to wander in, around and even on top of the house, leveraging all the site has to offer." The innovative design joins other recent residential projects in Quebec, including works by LAMAS and Naturehumaine, demonstrating the region's commitment to thoughtful, site-responsive architecture that celebrates both modern design principles and traditional materials.
