VIRGIN ISLAND residence

St. Thomas, USVI

Located on a high promenade 800 feet above the Caribbean Sea, the 3,000 sf Sandbank Residence is a play of opposites.  The epoxy coated steel girders and I-columns are juxtaposed against the natural Caribbean setting of tropical plants, rock, and vast skies. The plan is simple and straightforward.  Based on a 4-square grid, the steel structural members provide the framework for the play of interior and exterior spaces. The ship-like detailing further blurs the distinction between industrial and residential architecture – a modernist approach.  On the North and West facades, the steel-framed exterior panels are glazed with white ceramic tiles and stucco.  Cantilevered window boxes are clad with painted stainless sheet metal.

Featured in Tropical Modern, Rizzoli Press, 2003