629 West Smuggler

629 Smuggler is a multi-award-winning and internationally published residence that entailed a complete restoration/renovation of an historic Victorian home and shed in Aspen’s West End District. The original home, while leaving the exterior as it existed when constructed in 1886, was reimagined from the inside out by completely opening the historic structure to create a two-story great room area of approximately 750 sq ft. To maintain a sense of mass and scale within the new space, a paneled maple “cube” was formed that serves as a loft, an entry foyer and coat closet, and a harboring area for the living room fireplace. A contemporary addition playfully responding to the vibrant historical context of the surrounding neighborhood was integrated into the home housing the remaining living amenity functions and program. Conceptual design and aesthetic for 629 were driven by the property’s small shed outbuilding and its multi-faceted siding detailing, which differs on three of its four respective sides, a detail that still remains. The design response for the addition resulted in a “patchwork” approach executed by utilizing modern detailing methods in the roofing and siding applications of the new, directly harking back to the shed’s historic applications. By creating a dialogue between the old and new architectures through similar forms, massing and materials, the addition is purposeful in its intent to read as compatible to the 1886 Victorian, but clearly a product of its own time. Construction of the 5,200 sq ft project was completed in December of 2007.