Sorg Architects

The Visio & Murano

Washington, DC

The Visio and Murano are situated on a quiet street in the Greater U-Street Corridor, a residential area complemented by a rich quasi-industrial fabric that is fast becoming the epicenter of Washington’s contemporary and cutting-edge music and visual arts scenes. Acknowledging and incorporating elements from its historic context, the Visio and Murano were conceived as a modern interpretation of traditional Washington “infill” row housing.

Sorg Architects deconstructed the typical bay front Washington row house, transforming it into a modern and contextual sculptural piece. The Visio and Murano’s height, mass, proportion, materials, and “cut-away” elements subtly and elegantly relate to the context, offering a modernism that is germane to this complex urban neighborhood and speaks to the consumer.

Designed as a two phase development, the Visio consists of 8 units on four floors. Mezzanines on the top two floors give the upper units 19-foot ceilings and living spaces. The Murano houses 8 additional units that span the length of the building. Totaling 22,000 SF, the buildings have served to catalyze development of the remaining infill sites in this changing neighborhood.

The Visio and Murano have received multiple awards, including an AIA Honor Award for Architectural Excellence, AIA Washingtonian Residential Design Award, Brick in Architecture – Bronze Award, and Builder’s Choice Design & Planning Award.

Awards
Brick in Architecture Award, Bronze Award, Residential-Multi-Family, 2010
AIA Potomac Valley Chapter, Honor Award for Architectural Excellence, 2007
AIA Potomac Valley Chapter, Award for Architectural Excellence, 2006
AIA Washingtonian, Residential Design Award, 2006
Builder’s Choice Design & Planning Award, 2006