Interview with Architect Janine Glatt, USA
What made you know you wanted to be an architect? I am fourth generation Hoboken born and raised. I became interested in architecture after touring the Baroque castles of Germany, Austria, and Switzerland in high school. When I went to college at NYU I took an Architecture history class and decided to become an Architect. I transferred to Pratt to begin my studies and then went to NJIT upon discovering their growing computer department. It was at NJIT that I finished my degree. Can you talk a bit about the Jersey City townhouse featured in Cottages and Bungalows? The Jersey City Townhouse that was in Cottages and Bungalows was a historic building in a historic district. We could only renovate the interior. The only thing we left unchanged in the interior was the stairs, the skylight, and some doors. I thought it would be interesting to go with something classical like a Palladian villa plan by incorporating a circular room in the center of the floor plan. The kitchen opens up to the yard with a small deck for outdoor dining. I worked closely with the owner in the design of the kitchen. She was a trained chef and wanted to make that space open, filled with light and yet functional. With the Jersey City roof deck project, what was different about focusing on an outdoor space vs. interior when you did a roof deck? The Jersey City Roof Deck had a backyard that was very quiet and lush. There were a lot of trees that were close to the roof so there was a lot of privacy. The couple wanted a trellis with a swing and a seating area. The footprint was based on the actual space that was there. Designing outdoor spaces are very similar to interior spaces. You always want some connection to the outside. Ideally, you would want the outdoor spaces to be integrated to the interior spaces even in the city. I recently designed a hallway that framed the rear yard trees on one side and visually connected it to the front room with a barrel vaulted ceiling. The house was very shallow so it did make a difference on the interior. Another house that’s be-ing built now has a kitchen in the rear of the building that has a window wall that entirely opens up to the rear yard with a small deck. Light is also a natural element so having it in strategic places also makes a reference to nature in the inside of the home. Source: Jersey Digs
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