Cross Currents(10)

Long and low, the tile-roofed house nestles unobtrusively on basalt rock. Because the house sits on a hill, the architects purposely kept the profile low so it wouldn't seem pretentious. "It was designed for the site," Leslie Ronald says. While the living area is on one level, the incline of the rock dictated that the entry be at the base of the hill, with an enclosed stairway leading upstairs. A garage and storage rooms are also on the lower level, tucked into a natural opening in the rock. Hornbeam trees, grapevines, and other plantings on the front slope provide privacy.