Thomas Gluck, of GLUCK+, has built himself one heck of a vacation home in upstate New York. The glassy residence, known as the Tower House, is separated into two main volumes: a transparent, three-story vertical column that is defined by a bright, yellow stairwell, and a horizontal living space that cantilevers 30 feet above the ground. The firm described the project as “a stairway to the treetops.”

To minimize the home’s footprint, Gluck kept the vertical column narrow quite narrow, only allowing space for a small bedroom and bathroom on each floor. The larger living area is placed up within the horizontal section, which offers panoramic views of the Catskills. To further camouflage the structure within the surrounding environment, its exterior is partially clad in a “dark green enameled back-painted glass” that reflects the trees. “Tower house is part of the canopy,” explained the firm in a video about the project. “A gesture as whimsical as it is rational.”

[ht 6sqft.]