Architect Mark Markiewicz received coveted recognition last year from the American Institute of Architects for the recent additions he made to his mid-century home… The dwelling’s most recent work yielded a self-contained two-bedroom studio with kitchenette, bathroom and living/dining area, attached to the existing “low-slung horizontal house” by way of a 50-foot “entry gallery” running the length of both sections. A separate entrance on the addition’s north side is ramped and wide enough to permit wheelchair access for his parents, though that is not currently necessary.
Markiewicz: Interest and appreciation and affection for modern architecture is on the rise. As with any evolution and growth of ideas, new values such as environmental concerns will have a transforming impact on these houses. You see more architects taking on that kind of vocabulary, using issues of environmental conservation (and) green additions. In recent years, houses tended to be very excessive, and just this appetite for huge size and amenities. We may be going into a slightly more modest phase where people find it unrealistic and unpractical. Maybe the scale will diminish slightly. Before people would take the zoning envelope and develop to the max. But now maybe there will be a more sober approach, and not just with houses.