Mike Kurokawa and Paul Fishman set out for the beach from their house in the Puna region of Hawaii. A bridge leads from street level to the upper floor of the house, which is situated in a natural depression, or kipuka.

Though seemingly whimsical and freewheeling, Sottsass was exacting in his designs: He had forbidden the Olabuenagas from repainting the home’s stucco facade, insisting that they let it “metamorph into what it wants to be,” but the couple ultimately decided to restore its faded colors last fall, using new elastomeric Behr paints that were blended to original specifications.

For an escape from bustling San Francisco, architect Craig Steely and his wife Cathy have created a modernist getaway on a lava field next to a black sand beach on Hawaii’s Big Island. Fitted with floor-to-ceiling windows that look out over the ocean, the steel-framed home is one of several homes that Steely built on the recently active lava field.

The original house was a single-story structure, not robust enough to carry a second floor. Fritz’s solution was to build an upper level that functions like a bridge, spanning the original structure without compromising it.

Fritz explains, “The primary inspiration was Dutch International Style design. The clients have roots in Holland and it started out looking more De Stijl than it does now, but ultimately, they wanted something that drew as much from their present in Hawaii as their past in Europe.”

Into the Fold A pair of Slovakian expats open the doors (and enormous roof!) to their airy Hawaiian home. Photos by: Cristobal Palma

The pool juts out perpendicularly from the main house; the land was bulldozed to become level with the concrete pavers.

All-vinyl siding on the original shell was replaced with natural plywood T1-11 cladding. The second story features engineered brushbox wood plank, as well as Batu decking for the railing and lanai (a sheltered, open-sided patio).

The couple entertain friends on one of several lanais that Steely added. The chaises are from Target.

A vintage chaise lounge on the upper floor patio is one of few unnamed designs to be found throughout the residence.

The defining gesture of a house on the Big Island of Hawaii by architect Craig Steely is a 139-foot-long, four-foot-tall concrete beam spanning the roof.

The pool continues inward past the guest wing and runs beneath a small concrete bridge separating the public and private spaces. Steely credits contractor Mike Lynch with helping to engineer this feat of site-poured concrete.

A hanging chair takes up a corner of the lounge–guest room.

A large deck coated with Cetol finish from Behr extends into the home’s sloped site.

The couple gather in the central dining room, with a bamboo table by Greenington and chairs from West Elm. The pendants are by Mark Chai Arts; the tapestry is by Máximo Laura.

Made from wooden pallets, the tree house was a requirement for the kids in this Hawaiian home. Photo by: Linny Morris

To accommodate a second story, the ground-level had to be completely reconfigured in favor of a more open floor plan. A vintage 1930s Belgian desk acts as a versatile table for the downstairs.

Lava Flow 7 Floor Plan: A Carport B Master Bathroom C Master Bedroom D Kitchen E Dining Room F Living Room G Lanai H Lounge–Guest Room I Bathroom J Bedroom K Pool L Outdoor Shower

Images are printed by an American manufacturer on a sandstone aggregate.

The bathroom’s glass block partition is just one example of the extensive list of repurposed materials used for this project. The sinks are from IKEA and bathtub is from Home Depot.

A bowl of saimin and skewers of chicken satay at Palace Saimin are a tribute to Hawaii’s multiculturalism.

The existing partitions were tongue-and-groove redwood. To update the interior, each panel was painstakingly removed, refinished in a darker hue, and replaced. The centerpiece, a four-strand rattan couch, is complimented by other wooden pieces, like this original Cherner chair, also a Craigslist purchase.

The dining room table is made from recycled teak railroad ties from Indonesia. The blue armchairs were a Craigslist purchase. IKEA pendant lights contrast nicely with the dark wood.

Located on Hawaii’s Big Island, the Lavaflow 1 - Robert Trickey House was designed by San Francisco-based architect, Craig Steely. Captured by architectural photographer Mike Kelley, this home and studio was built on hardened lava from the 1955 Kilauea eruption.

Surfers await the perfect wave off Waikiki Beach in Honolulu, Hawaii’s biggest tourist destination since the 1960s.

Built in 1969, the Hawaii State Capitol is rich in symbolism: The columns recall native coconut palms and refer to the eight major Hawaiian islands.

Inspired by a Julius Schulman shot of the Los Angeles Case Study House, the upstairs seeks to embody a sense of expansiveness. Another second-hand piece, a red Gispen chair, is a classic 1930s Dutch piece bought by the homeowners from a flea market in Amsterdam.

Cornuelle, who’s from Hawaii, chose both older and contemporary Hawaiian art for the walls.

Architect Craig Steely designed this house for himself, his wife Cathy Liu, a painter, and their son, Zane, that looks out to the Pacific Ocean from a lava flow on the big island of Hawaii.

When Vladimir Ossipoff’s six-story Hawaiian Life Insurance Building was built in 1951, it was Hawaii’s tallest building. The aluminum fins, originally a pale blue-green but painted in rainbow shades in the ’60s, were designed to reduce sun glare.

The senate chambers in the State Capitol Building were inspired by the volcanoes that formed the Hawaiian chain

A Hawaiian mango wood counter and shelving add texture and warmth in the bathroom.

Clad in western red cedar, a studio called Mauka, Hawaiian for “inland toward the mountains,” anchors a getaway in Maui that architect Erin Moore designed to honor the owner’s connection to the land. Maui, Hawaii Dwell Magazine : September / October 2017

Maui, Hawaii Dwell Magazine : September / October 2017

Guest room with bespoke Hawaiian Koa wood bed