Kirigami (def.): to fold; the Japanese art of cutting and folding paper in a creative manner; a concept similar to origami from the East Asian tradition.

This 5,740-gross-square-foot home, located at 8,800 feet of elevation within the Powder Mountain ski resort in Eden, Utah, was borne from the extremes of its site and the client’s belief in the concept of “modern heritage.”

The home’s custom, bent-metal exterior wraps around the structure in a mixture of solid and perforated panels. The materiality of the standing seam zinc pleats anchors the home against its wild, white backdrop.

The program for the home includes a primary suite with a private deck and steam shower on the upper level, which is stepped up from the main level by five feet and can be fully separated from the rest of the home. A windowless media room with a low-throw projector, which is acoustically isolated from the rest of the home and especially from the primary suite, complements the main level. A dining room features an expansive multi-slide door system that opens onto the wedge-shaped courtyard, which faces west to the sunset and ski run and contains a linear gas fireplace for indoor-outdoor living when weather permits.

The main kitchen is completely open with no ceiling-based cabinetry, fixtures or fittings to allow for the uninterrupted flow of energy and vistas, while a scullery with a small built-in bar is also located adjacent to the kitchen and media room. Amenities include Thermador and Wolf appliances, a recessed induction cooktop in the main kitchen, a panel-ready and built-in sub-zero refrigerator, and a gas cooktop in the scullery, with designated space in the scullery for smaller countertop appliances.

The lower level provides the home’s public functions and communal entertaining spaces and comprises two bedrooms, a bunk room, spa — or onsen in the Japanese custom — and mudroom/ski landing in blackened steel. Importantly, the house facilitates aging in place and multi-generational living. It features an elevator because the clients considered their current and forthcoming needs as well as those of their parents, who may also need to reside in the home in the near future. 

Owner: Private

Architect: Anne Mooney, FAIA, LEED AP; John Sparano, FAIA; Seth Striefel, RA; and Mark James, M.Arch, Sparano + Mooney Architecture

Structural Engineer: Luke Balling, PE, SE, TBSE

Interior Design: Meagan Westhoven, Westhoven Design

Builder: Garth Hare and Justin Darrow, Benchmark Modern

Photography: Matt Winquist