inside su casa
outside the box
Inside the front door at David and Christie Waszak’s home, a cabinet painted by local artist Krysteen Waszak, David’s sister, holds a tray full of pottery fragments found on the property. The Puebloan shards predate Spanish colonial times.
This article first appeared in Spring 2010 Su Casa
We like to celebrate the great outdoors in our Spring issue of Su Casa. And here in New Mexico we’ve got a high sky-to-ceiling ratio that makes the outdoors hard to resist. The backyards we feature in “Heaven can wait” (page 54) know all about luring people outside. At Chris Donaldson’s private playland in the Altura Park neighborhood of Albuquerque, the focus is on active recreation. He can practice board stunts on the trampoline, sink a few putts on the green, take a quick dip to cool off in the pool, then sip a margarita on the shady patio. Our other featured outdoor oasis in Albuquerque’s Nob Hill area lends itself to quieter pursuits—a family breakfast, say, or a quiet evening coddling tomatoes and basil in the garden. Either way, the point is made: life’s good outside.
That’s what Kira Sowanick focused on as she designed her new modernist home (page 48). Satisfying her husband’s wish to re-create a California-desert lifestyle in the Sandia Mountain foothills, she started the design from the farthest corner of the yard, letting first the outdoor spaces then the house unfold from that perspective. An elegant series of discrete, interlocked exterior zones makes the place feel like a vacation. The same goes for Bill and Connie Goodwin’s canyon-side home near Placitas, built by Bill Reynolds’ New Haven Homes. (See “Taking the long view,” on page 21.) With a classic entry courtyard and wraparound patios out back, this place engages in a continuous conversation with the stunning surroundings. “View” doesn’t capture the sense of immersion in nature you get here.
David and Christie Waszak’s home in Los Ranchos de Albuquerque likewise makes the fresh-air zones part of daily life. As builder and designer David Waszak says, “It’s a sign of a good home when you feel like you’re at a resort.” With its blend of classic New Mexico design cues, contemporary use of volume and proportion, and exquisite architectural detailing, the spacious yet cozy interiors could keep you occupied inside a long time. See “At ease with tradition” on page 41 for the ins and outs of this wonderful place by Waszak Custom Homes.
Detailing goes to another level entirely at Beverley Magennis’ Dome Lady dwelling in southwestern New Mexico (page 72). A widely acclaimed tile mosaic artist, Bev tiled nearly every inch of the inhabitable dome, which she uses as a guest room accompanied by another freestanding tiled bathroom structure. She also sculpted a towering figure atop the dome and plans on creating another for the bathhouse. It’s a place that lives up to the phrase “work of art” like few others.
And like the best places in New Mexico, it’s as much fun outside as in.