Design Solution: The architects approached the design of Veil House from the inside-out, rather than by strictly responding to the aesthetics of the surrounding neighborhood. Lower-floor interior spaces have been arranged in a loose nine-square grid, at grade, around a courtyard, while upper floors are accessed via an interior ramp that runs along the perimeter—making the house fit for aging in place.

The house takes its name from a weathering steel veil that cloaks it. CNC cut and welded in situ, the three-dimensional cladding—roughly resembling a hipped roof from some angles—modulates in response to the needs of the room immediately behind it. Panels vary from perforated ones, which permit light to pass through them, to opaque ones. In plan, the veil peels away from the structure to create interstitial spaces at grade and on the upper patio.

Photo © James Brittain Photography

Structure and Materials: In Winnipeg—where snow cover can last six months and the climate is dry—a durable material like weathering steel was preferable, even though it may seem foreign to the neighborhood. Inside, wood walls and ceilings echo the warm tones of the oxidized metal.