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An overview of a number of residential projects we've designed since the mid-1990's.
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595 Elm Place, Suite 225Highland Park, IL 60035
t 847.433.6600f 847.433.6787W beckerarcchitects.com
SELECTED PROJECTS
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IntroductionBECK
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Your House Could Be Better
We’ve tackled an interesting variety of
projects in recent years, from rehabs to ad-
ditions to new construction. The following
projects are just a few of the hundreds we
have designed since 1982.
Every client has different goals and prefer-
ences. Each project you’ll see here has
been built by different general contractors
and designed by different teams within our
firm. But there are common themes that
unite all of them: A clear, straight-forward
plan. Simple, but elegant detailing, whether
traditional, transitional or modern. Beauti-
ful materials that will endure. Well chosen
fixtures (Yes we do most of our interiors,
sometimes collaborating with interior
design firms). Some of these projects were
done in the 90’s but we think all of them
have aged well.
Good design involves listening to clients
and helping them prioritize goals and refine
the design collaboratively so that the final
product is as much about them as it is
about us. We believe a successful project
is one that not only looks good, inside
and out, but one that exceeds our client’s
expectations.
Great design = A more valuable house. And
provides an environment that will enrich
you and your family’s lives.
RB
Copyright © 2008
Becker Architects Limited. All Rights Reserved.
Brochure is Set in Erik Spiekermann’s Meta
Graphic Design: Jack Becker
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Gabled AdditionHIGHLAND PARK, IL
3this formerly non-descript single
gable home for this family of four had
a one-car garage, a cramped kitchen
and breakfast area and a tight entrance.
After securing a zoning variation for side
yard relief, the old garage was removed
and a two car garage added to rein-
vent the front elevation with a series of
gables, one of them upstairs for a child’s
bathroom. The wood trellis signifies the
new entry. A rear yard addition allowed
for a new Kitchen, Breakfast Room
and Mud Room/Laundry Room. Interior
reconfiguration as part of the front yard
addition created an Entrance Gallery and
enlarged Powder Room.
Credits: Richard Becker AIA, Nancy Becker AIA, John Crittenden General Contractor: Basil Crittenden LLC Cabinetry: Lamico Woodworking Photography: HNK Architectural Photography
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A GarageB KitchenC Entry
A GarageB Laundry Room/MudroomC Kitchend Breakfast Roome Entry
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Ravine RetreatHIGHLAND PARK, IL
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6 7conceived as a ranch house for an
empty nester couple, this home has
a second level with two bedroms and
a playroom for their many grandchil-
dren. The Master Suite features a
home office, two walk-in closets, a
master bathroom and a bedroom with
views of Lake Michigan.
The home is comprised of a series of
interlocking pieces: one and two-story
masonry elements and a glass and
steel pavilion. The irregular plan is the
result of restrictive ravine setbacks
(which had made the site “unbuild-
able” and kept it on the market for
years prior to our involvement). The
jogs in plan create corner views from
nearly every room.
Our clients wanted a low-maintenance
home so materials were selected with
that in mind: brick, stone, architectur-
al, concrete, structural steel, standing
seam metal roofing, an anodized alu-
minum glazing system and stainless
steel railings. Inside, major finishes
include brick, limestone and oak
flooring, plaster and wood paneling.
Credits: Richard Becker AIA, Nancy Becker AIA, John JacobsGeneral Contractor: Becker Builders Cabinetry: Exclusive Woodworking Photography: Hedrich Blessing Photographers & HNK Architectural Photography
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A PlayroomB Guest Room 1C Guest Room 2
A GarageB Family Room/Informal DiningC Kitchend Livinge Diningf OfficeG Master BathroomH Master Bedroom
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Modern MakeoverHIGHLAND PARK, IL
issues of accessibility plagued this
1960’s home. One of their children
used a wheelchair so the rehab and
addition was designed to make her life
easier: an elevator, an accessible bath-
room, an Endless Pool™ for therapy
and a kitchen with low counters so
she could help with food prep. This
project improved the quality of her
home life in many ways. This is one
of a half dozen projects we’ve done
for families with special needs. These
types of projects involve integrating a
lot of technical details. But they have
to look good too.
The entire rear portion of the first level
was reworked into a series of con-
nected spaces including the Kitchen, a
Breakfast Area, a Home Office, a Fam-
ily Room and a Dining Room. These
spaces are all open to one another,
with separation defined by cabinetry,
ceiling heights and in one area, a
series of floor to ceiling glass panels
hung from a recessed track. The front
Living Room is an adult space with a
new polished plaster fireplace and bar.
Also in the project, included expand-
ing the bedroom areas on the second
floor to provide a new Master Suite.
Credits: Bert Boldizsar AIA, Richard Becker AIA, Nancy Becker AIAGeneral Contractor: TLC ConstructionCabinetry: Ayre Woodworking Photography: HNK Architectural Photography
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A GarageB Study/Informal DiningC Kitchend Family Roome Dining Roomf Living Room
A GarageB KitchenC Family Roomd Foyere Dining Roomf Living Room
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empty NesterHIGHLAND PARK, IL
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this 60’s home was tired, from its
mirrored foyer to its unimaginative and
awkward floor plan. We reworked the
plan, creating a Library with glass pock-
et doors in the location of the former
Dining Room. We blew out the ceiling
in the back inserting a tall transom over
the once-short glass doors flooding the
space with light. Now there is drama
where there was once the standard 8
foot ceilng. Freestanding cabinets of
koa veneer divide the various areas cre-
ating separate Entry, Dining and Family
zones. The Kitchen and Bathrooms were
also gutted and rehabbed with a total
recon-figuration of the Master Suite.
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A EntryB Dining RoomC Kitchend Breakfast Roome Family Roomf Living RoomG Master Bedroom
A EntryB LibraryC Kitchen/Breakfast Roomd Family Areae Dining Areaf Master Bedroom
Credits: Richard Becker AIA, Nancy Becker AIA, Sheree Dittmer AIAGeneral Contractor: Rizzolo Buildersexclusive Interior designer: Linda StrusiverCabinetry: Ayre Woodworking Photography: HNK Architectural Photography
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HGtV dream HouseRIVERSIDE, IL
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featured as a 13-episode reality
show on hgtv, this series chronicled
the adventures of our clients as well as
our firm and builder in the design and
construction of their Dream House. They
had spent a year working with another
architecture firm and weren’t able to
arrive at a design that was buildable (or
affordable). We came up with a new plan,
a new look and a way to respect their
budget. Millions of viewers nationwide
followed along, all the way to moving
day.
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Credits: John Crittenden, Richard Becker AIA, Nancy Becker AIAGeneral Contractor: Creber BuildersPhotography: HNK Architectural Photography
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A Covered EntryB Dining RoomC Kichen/Breakfastd Family Roome Studiof StudyG Garage
A Roof DeckB Master BedroomC Laundryd Children’s Bedrooms
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this lake michigan home was built on
a double parcel and designed so that
virtually every room has a lake view.
It features an undulating ten-foot high
glass wall that mirrors the contours of
the bluff; as well, these panels define
a series of public spaces including
Family, Dining, Kitchen, Informal Dining
and Study. This continuous space runs
north-south with dramatic vistas in
multiple directions.
A sixty-foot indoor pool and spa
structure anchors the south end of the
home. The north end of the ground
floor contains two master suites for the
owner’s teenage children. Upstairs, the
main Master Suite features a dramatic
sleeping porch on the lake as well as
a Yoga room with private roof terrace.
A guest suite anchors the south end of
this floor.
The home features maintenance-free
materials: brick, 3 coat-stucco, alumi-
num clad fir windows, copper metal-
work and aircraft cable railings. This
house is fully accessible, including ADA-
compliant bathrooms and a three-stop
elevator.
Modern lakefrontHIGHLAND PARK, IL
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Credits: Bert Boldizsar AIA, Richard Becker AIA, Nancy Becker AIAGeneral Contractor: Tiedmann EnterprisesCabinetry: Artcraft KitchensPhotography: HNK Architectural Photography
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A GarageB FoyerC Diningd Kitchen/ Breakfast e Great Roomf PoolG Master Suites
A DeckB MeditationC Master Bedroomd Screened Porche Guest Suite
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Big Red on VineHIGHLAND PARK, IL
23we demolished a rear two-story
bump-out which had contained a
kitchen and garage as well as bedroom
and two baths above. In its place, we
built a two storey addition perpendicu-
lar to the remaining house in order to
maximize natural light as well as views
of the front and rear yards. The wings
extend as a backdrop to the original
home, highlighting the new versus old.
The new portion contains a Mud Room
and two-car garage as well as Kitchen/
Informal Eating/Family Area at the west
end with glass exposures on three
sides. Upstairs the addition has a Mas-
ter Suite (also with three exposures),
two children’s bedrooms, a bathroom
and laundry room.
The front portion (the original home
from the late 19th century) was reno-
vated including a new loft space in the
existing attic; the exterior 2nd floor was
re-clad in cement shingles creating a
positive-negative color play between
the old and new portions of the home.
Other major building materials include
HardieBoard ™ cement panels and bat-
ten strips, standing seam metal roofing
and new color-coordinated half round
gutters and downspouts. The rear deck
is constructed of Trex™, a recycled
material.
The entire house has new finishes,
electrical, plumbing and zoned HVAC
systems.
Credits: Richard Becker AIA, Nancy Becker AIASheree Dittmer AIA, Omar GutiérrezGeneral Contractor: Becker ArchitectsCabinetry: McNulty KitchensPhotography: Richard Becker
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1998 Traditional Home1997 House Beautiful
1999 Better Homes &Gardens
2000 Home Plan Ideas
2007 Builder/Architect 2007 Shelter
2002 Chicago Home2001 Traditional Home2001 Better Homes
2004 Bedroom & Bath
2001 Beautiful Baths
595 Elm Place, Suite 225Highland Park, il 60035
t 847.433.6600f 847.433.6787W beckerarchitects.com
595 Elm Place, Suite 225Highland Park, IL 60035
t 847.433.6600f 847.433.6787W beckerarcchitects.com
SELECTED PROJECTS
BECKER ARCHITECTS
