Architect Robert Gurney and builder Darren Kornas have seen their fair share of unusual requests, but this was a first: A client asked for a regulation-sized volleyball court in his new custom home. ?A volleyball court requires an immense amount of height,? relates Kornas. ?I wondered how it would look.?
The client had invited them to tour a site he and his wife had acquired in a Virginia suburb. The three-and-a-half-acre parcel descends gently to mature woods and a sizable pond. While visiting, Gurney had a lightbulb moment. ?I had to find ways to minimize the size of the court,? he recalls. ?This lot would work because we could bury half the court into grade and visually reduce its volume.?
All agreed that the abandoned 1970s-era house on the property had to go, so the architect began designing a new home in its place. Embracing wellness and sustainability, the couple sought a secluded, modern abode with a strong connection to nature, a layout conducive to easy entertaining, and eco-friendly systems that would minimize their carbon footprint. Gurney conjured the residence along an axis, in four distinct, interconnected volumes strung like a necklace of vertical and horizontal gems. On the far left side, the 35-foot-high volleyball court nestles in the hillside?as does a nearby 60-foot-long indoor-outdoor pool. A three-story, perpendicular mass houses a garage at ground level, two ensuite guest rooms above and a gym below. Further west, the main entryway and a screened por...