Desert Clipper

2002

Desert Clipper started when Chip Rock, a realtor friend of Rae Douglass, informed him of a sweet fixer-upper deal in central Tucson. At the time Rae was based in Hawaii, but had lived in Tucson previous to this and had an ongoing consulting relationship with Architecture One of Tucson. Knowing that there was not much chance that he would be able to afford real estate in Hawaii, Rae purchased the house on Blanton Drive in 1997 as an investment. Shortly after this Rae decided to relocate to Tucson and inhabit the house, so that he would have a base of operations more convenient to its increasing number of commissions on the mainland.

After living in the house for a few years Rae started construction on a major addition and renovation to the house that would give him a live work space that he could call his own. Rae has developed a deep sense of the way that good architecture must be a direct expression of the lifestyle of its inhabitants. A structure must relate to its context, and a sense of economy rooted in a fi rm understanding of craft and the abilities of a region. Living in the Blanton house for 3 years prior to construction gave Rae a unique understanding of his property and La Madera Neighborhood.

The addition was placed to maximize usable open space and protect the property from the harsh afternoon sun. The plan is arranged to have a seamless fl ow of interior and exterior space with a large summer kitchen at its heart. The summer kitchen stitches the front house together with the studio space in the rear, all of which are sheltered by a continuous roof. The plan of the addition is that of an elongated Dog Trot, with most windows oriented to the north and south. If the name Desert Clipper sounds more appropriate for a boat or motor home this is no accident; Rae’s love of trains and ships along with the RV parked in the driveway of the typical suburban Tucson home, were influential.

Due to limited funds, Rae acted as the general contractor, and employed various skilled artist and craftsmen many of which he had known from previous projects. The large glass, redwood and steel pivot doors of the summer kitchen, were designed and built by Rae in collaboration with Brian Horton who is a sculptor and skilled metal worker. The pivot doors are essential to the flow of space and when fully open act as an acoustic band-shell when the space is used as a stage during parties. They weigh over 800 lbs each, but open effortlessly due to lead counterweights and ball bearing pivots.

The ceiling and eastern wall are paneled in rough sawn planks that came from old growth Ponderosa Pine trees that had previously died in place due to fire or disease. The paneling was provided by a one man lumber mill located near the Gila National forest of New Mexico. Brian Meyers of Sun Bear construction who was hired to frame the house knew of this lumber mill. Ted Springer who is another sculptor and skilled concrete worker helped pour the slab, and create the sculptural island counter in the kitchen. The rough wood sculptures around the house are by Mr. Springer. The HVAC system is a dual unit system utilizing ozone friendly Puron refrigerant. When Ron Hull of Able Refrigeration came over to give an estimate for the system he was so impressed with the architecture that he offered to provide it in trade for an architectural design for he and his wife Carol’s house. These along with many other close working relationships created a design build team that was instrumental in creating a piece of architecture for under $100,000.