Projects by architect Daniel Evan White, a.k.a. Dan White, don’t look like other homes.
That’s plain to see in two properties currently for sale on the North Shore.
The Bjorknas House at 2724 Panorama Dr. in North Vancouver has been listed for just shy of $7 million. And the Máté House at 5934 Marine Dr. in West Vancouver is on the market for just less than $5 million.
While its lot is lithe, the waterfront home on Panorama Drive is deceptively spacious, with nearly 7,000 square feet of interior spread across four floors.
The tiered design of the home almost suggests a child’s block tower par excellence. But its symmetry conveys an elegance that continues through the interior of the home.
Natural light fills the residence through numerous skylights and windows overlooking Deep Cove Marina and the surrounding landscape.
Features include a large indoor pool, sauna, suspended fireplace, elevator and 2,660 square feet of outdoor deck space.
Over in West Van, the Máté House boasts another distinctly geometric design: four rectangular blocks set one in front of the other in ascending order.
Also giving the home’s exterior a distinct look is a platform of patterned tile that covers the foot of the property almost entirely – a sharp contrast to the adjacent rocky beach.
The 3,300-square-foot residence is built so that nearly all the rooms are south facing, with exterior decks to take in the oceanfront views of the Eagleridge neighbourhood.
The home was built in 1980 and won an architectural award in 1982.
Lesser-known architect was first employee of Arthur Erickson and Geoff Massey
White was the first employee of Arthur Erickson and Geoff Massey’s famous firm, but ultimately went down a different path than other West Coast Modern architects.
Notoriously shy from any kind of publicity, White never received the same recognition as peers like Ron Thom and Barry Downs.
Yet his homes, often built on lots considered unbuildable by other architects, speak for themselves.
West Vancouver’s Taylor Residence, for example, was built like a bridge of glass and concrete above a river gully that pours over an oceanfront cliff face.
After a 55-year career designing more than 100 custom homes, White died in 2012. A year later in 2013, Museum of Vancouver hosted an exhibit to highlight the lesser-known architect.
“Daniel Evan White knew exactly how to play with houses,” reads a description of the retrospective show. “The modest Vancouver architect drove innovation along the West Coast from 1960 to 2012, creating homes that his clients claim were life changing.”
