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Hillside: A House Nestled Between Rolling Vineyards

Georg van Gass, principal architect at Gass Architecture Studios, designed Hillside, a home located on the hills of Helderberg Mountains in Stellenbosch, Western Cape, South Africa. The house is nestled between rolling vineyards, with a koppie (a small granite hill) on one side and a river below.

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Travel up a steep driveway through the vineyards to reach the home, what appears to be a modern, stone version of a traditional home with farmhouse features.

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When you’re closer to the house, you realize there’s nothing traditional about it. Massive, floor-to-ceiling doors that measure 14.5 meters long slide away to completely open the living room/dining room/kitchen up to the patio deck and pool.

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The interior space doubles when the doors are open making the living room feel like an indoor patio.

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Stacked granite that was harvested from the site covers a good portion of the exterior walls.

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An interior courtyard provides a private green space for the family of five.

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A giant picture window lets you see right through the home to the other side.

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The decked walkway connects the family’s upstairs bedroom wing with the studio/office space.

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The dining room faces the deck and vineyard so you can enjoy wine at dinner while you look out to where said wine comes from.

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Appliances are hidden within the scullery keeping the room nice and clean looking.

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Across the large room is the living room with a cool window that’s cut out from the corner so you can watch the views while enjoying TV.

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Wooden shutters slide open and closed in the master suite to help protect from direct sunlight.

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Photos by Kate Del Fante Scott.

Caroline Williamson is Editor-in-Chief of Design Milk. She has a BFA in photography from SCAD and can usually be found searching for vintage wares, doing New York Times crossword puzzles in pen, or reworking playlists on Spotify.