A modest rear addition expands the living space of an existing Philadelphia rowhouse while responding to the stepped rear condition and established material character of the surrounding urban fabric.

A modern complementary “puzzle piece,” the rear addition fits within the stepped rear condition typical of Philadelphia’s ubiquitous rowhouse fabric.

The project expands an existing rear bedroom and introduces another. Early studies considered a future green roof and roof deck, but the realized work favors simpler interior spaces wrapped in a warm Corten steel panelized skin.

The weathering steel establishes a deliberate material relationship with the existing brick—warm in color, contemporary in expression, and calibrated to the proportions of the second- and third-floor additions.

Corten panels are dimensioned to resolve cleanly across the new façades, establishing a consistent tectonic order. Windows are set within this system, sized and aligned to maintain a dialogue with the cladding, the existing fenestration, and with one another.

The result is a compact addition whose structure, cladding, and openings are coordinated as one system rather than treated as separate layers.

Measured, fitting, and quietly present, the addition reads as something discovered rather than announced—an object that belongs by virtue of proportion, material, and care.

Owner                                

Architect                                   

General Contractor             

Structural Engineer