Last week I had the good fortune to spend a few days with friends in Sea Ranch, a Sonoma County planned community known for its dramatic coastline, secluded beaches, as well as its characteristic architecture. A design review process ensures that homes don't dominate the beautiful natural landscape. While the homes certainly aren't cookie-cutter replicas, they do share key characteristics including unpainted wood siding/shingles, and many large windows that bring the landscape and natural light into the home and often help form comfortable interior nooks which are ideal for reading or napping.
One of the most intriguing structures is the Sea Ranch Chapel. This small non-denominational sanctuary, which resembles a hat with a feather protruding from the top, was completed in 1985 and is open to the public. Local materials such as redwood, stones and seashells help ground the chapel in the surrounding environment. The small size creates a very intimate interior where magnificent stained glass windows admit light from different angles and cast exquisite light patterns on the stone floor and redwood seating. The Sea Ranch Chapel, which is also frequently empty and very quiet, is not only something to behold, but is also highly conducive to personal reflection.
Redwood seats and floral mosaic
Prie-dieu (prayer desk) with embedded shells and wrought iron prayer screen
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