“a response to cosmetic design; completion through removal; completion through collapse; completion through emptiness”
-Gordon Matta Clark
Through a process of strategic removal, the brownstone is reduced in square footage while being simultaneously expanded in terms of spatial volume and openness to light; a ground-floor light-blocking rear addition is demolished, and a new vertical volume is carved out of the interior. This new central space floods the center of the urban block with light, becoming the focus of family life. The house is reprogrammed around the new void: the family table, living room and kitchen are located at its base, while the bedrooms and main stair overlook it.