Over the past 40-plus years, the Albuquerque-based architect has left his singular mark on the built environment and gained a reputation for doing the unusual. It’s hard to pin his houses down, to figure out where they anchor into the ground, where they start, and where they end. Instead, they are more like kinetic sculptures that dip and soar and undulate, punctuated with pockets of space that let in light, create plays of shadow, and establish interesting dialogues between the built and natural environments. And yet in spite of transcending almost all known tropes of modern residential architecture, they still manage to be practical spaces for living. That’s because for all his perceived iconoclasm, Prince sees no difference between his vision and the needs of the client. “I don’t think of it as a compromise,” he says of his process. “I don’t bring preconceived notions to the project, and I get all the information up front. It’s a matter of responding to the climate, the site, and the client.” After walking Geller’s property and talking with him about what he did and did not want, Prince presented him with drawings and a model. Except for minor tweaks, such as where to place the cat boxes and the refrigerator, Geller didn’t have any changes.

Concrete is one of Geller’s favorite materials, but budgetary constraints made its use for the walls impossible. Instead, they reserved cast concrete for the floors. In addition to the angled steel walls, Prince built some of the vertical surfaces from inexpensive slump block, seen here in the living area. The architect also designed the home to give Geller as many options as possible for his eclectic collection of contemporary art and furnishings, including chairs by Ron Arad (left) and Alessandro Mendini.

trendmagazineglobal.com

117