Historic Boulder Inc. is delighted to be a part of the terrific Month of Modern activities with the ‘Homes by Architects’ tour. When Historic Boulder initiated the “Landmarks of the Future” tours in the 1990’s our goal was to illustrate that in every historic era of the life there are buildings designed and built that embody the spirit of that time. The best of these might become landmarks in the future. Historic preservation is not only about the past but also the present and the future.

It was exciting to have 6 contemporary homes to show to the public that demonstrate important criteria used in the evaluation of historic preservation standards. Historic Boulder was asked by the Month of Modern organizers to give an award to the home that best exemplifies the criteria one would consider when determining whether a building is worthy of being a landmark. For the Month of Modern ‘Homes By Architects’ tour, leaders from Historic Boulder evaluated the homes based and determined that the house known as ‘Ludica’ by Arch11, best exemplifies the qualifications. Please see the evaluation criteria below.

When Tina Scala and EJ Meade, built their home last year, they had more experience than the average homebuilder. Tina has lived and worked across the globe, enabling her to understand that there is plenty of room for playfulness in good design. EJ is the principal and co-founder of award-winning architecture firm Arch11, and has a predilection for the close relationship between art and architecture. The two collaborated on the design and building of two previous projects. The new home sits next to another EJ designed for his family twenty years ago.

Lúdica lies in the heart of Boulder’s historically-influenced Whitter district. The home is designed as a conversation between the architectural fabric of the neighborhood and the space and light indicative of modern architecture. The distilled gable form houses 4 bedrooms and 3.5 baths. The space is both art vessel and a light-filled sculpture. Jerry Wingren’s standing stone greets visitors at the front; works by local and international modern artists grace the walls. The door hardware is mix of designs by EJ and Peter Bohlin.

The playfulness of the home is reflected in a masterful entertaining kitchen and a secret event living beyond a bookcase, which handily performs its day job, and then reveals a powder room magically illuminated by a camera obscura by Colorado Artist, Ethan Jackson. The chic neutral living room rocks a bold statement sofa where the sun-drenched space beckons gathering. Crossing a sculpture-lined bridge to a spiral stair, one is enticed to a private roof deck. The home is a composition of light, line and object, belonging to both its place and time while elevating daily life to sophisticated and lighthearted play.

Landmark of the Future Evaluation Criteria

1. Design – a building that:
   1. embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction.
   2. possesses high artistic values.
   3. has a strong relationship with its location.
   4. has a compelling design concept that is clear to the observer.
   5. has interesting details, materials, and workmanship.
2. History – a building that:
   1. is associated with the life (lives) of significant persons.
   2. has been the setting for events that have made a contribution to the broad patterns of history in Boulder and
      even beyond.
   3. represents the work of an acknowledged, accomplished, and award-winning architect.
3. A property with social values that are important to the Boulder community such as:
   1. Environmental considerations like the reduction of resource consumption (materials, energy, water, etc.).
   2. Affordable Housing.
4. The ‘X” factor – Zeitgeist. A building that strongly communicates the feeling of the time it was designed and built.
   1. In this instance we looked at world, national and local events that are influencing our way of life.