Every spring, a jury of architects comes to town to look at new homes and renovations and to select winners of the Washingtonian Residential Design Awards. This year’s competition, open to registered architects of local houses and second homes owned by Washingtonians, drew 113 entries.

The jury—Henry Smith-Miller, partner in Smith-Miller + Hawkinson Architects in New York City; Erica Broberg, head of her own firm in East Hampton, New York; and Kevin Wagstaff, partner at Perfido Weiskopf Wagstaff + Goettel in Pittsburgh—spent hours poring over photographs and blueprints of the projects.

They were struck by the variety of submissions—from rustic farmhouses to innovative green designs to clever multifamily solutions. The award-winning projects stood out for their creativity, beauty, attention to detail, and execution.

Said Smith-Miller: “There are new giants on the architectural horizon, and they’re right here in Washington.”

All About the View

To get to this second home on central Virginia’s Lake Anna, visitors drive along a winding road through a forest of pine trees. It’s worth the wait.

Designed by Robert M. Gurney, the house sits at the tip of a peninsula, surrounded by water on three sides. It’s organized around two L-shaped brick walls connected by a glass-enclosed bridge. Floor-to-ceiling windows maximize lake views and bathe the house in sunlight.

Jurors loved the way the house seems to change shape from different angles. The slanted roof of the second story, which from certain perspectives looks suspended in the air, is “well executed and delicately handled,” said one judge. “It’s very striking.”

The contractor was Loudin Building Systems in Louisa, Virginia.

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