Where something begins and ends | The liminal is a transformational state between the position where something meets, mixes, and merges. The Liminal House straddles a similar threshold between West Vancouver’s natural stony seashore and its suburban residential neighborhood. Courtyards, cantilevers, and the extension of floor area over exterior space dismantles boundaries between the house and the natural environment in which it exists and a strategy of mixing and merging, where light is reflected and landscapes are invited towards the interior of the home, collapses a normal reading of interior space. The house is animated by the ever-changing outdoor atmosphere; expansive walls of sliding glass open to a dark pool that reflects and extends the environment near the ocean. Concrete, black stained Accoya wood, and coated aluminum plate are the only exterior materials as they are tough and long-wearing in harsh and everchanging environments.

Aaron Betsky was a Professor at Virginia Tech. Previously, he was President of the School of Architecture at Taliesin. Botanica Design is a landscape design/build studio founded in 1998 and located in Vancouver British Columbia.