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Modern Cedar-Clad Home in Quebec’s Quartier 8 Blends Seamlessly Into Its Natural Landscape
In 2024, acclaimed Montreal-based design firm Ménard Dworkind (MRDK) unveiled the Q8 Residence, a striking 280-square-metre (3,000-square-foot) home tucked at the base of a hill in Mont-Tremblant’s prestigious Quartier 8 development. Conceived as a peaceful refuge immersed in the dense forest of Quebec, the project demonstrates a sensitive yet modern response to its natural environment.
Architecturally expressed as a collection of asymmetrical, cedar-clad volumes, the house captures the dual essence of privacy and openness, providing a warm and functional living space that celebrates both the interior and exterior experience.
Clever Orientation and Material Harmony
From the outset, orientation and material strategy played a pivotal role. “We focused heavily on how light enters the home, choosing where to maximize and minimize glazing, and how materials reflect and blend with the forest around it,” explains MRDK co-founder David Dworkind, who also photographed the project.
The home’s form is defined by staggered volumes with contrasting finishes—vertical larch siding, white cedar shingles, and board-formed concrete—working together to create an ever-changing facade that resonates with the surrounding landscape. This intentional variety in materiality serves to break down the home’s massing and embed it more naturally into the forested site.
Private Entry and Layered Approach
Approaching from a gravel driveway, the residence intentionally turns its back to the road. This design move enhances thermal performance in Quebec’s cold winters and fosters a greater sense of privacy. A carport spans between the main house and a storage structure, with a zig-zag corner design cleverly marking the distinction between public and private zones.
A short concrete garden wall, formed with textured board impressions, gently guides visitors toward an informal entryway. Here, the intersection of architectural elements—a bent form wrapped in larch, a white cedar-shingled volume above, and the concrete wall below—creates an inviting but understated threshold into the home.
Double-Height Living for Light and Connection
Inside, a compressed mudroom near the entry transitions dramatically into a soaring double-height living, dining, and kitchen area, acting as the heart of the home. Natural light pours in, creating a sense of openness while fostering strong indoor-outdoor connectivity.
The kitchen emphasizes minimalist function, with a sliding screen and built-in cabinetry concealing a pantry and appliances. This clean-lined approach allows the larch-paneled walls and ceilings to take visual precedence, enhancing the home’s organic warmth.
A Protected Outdoor Experience
The eastern facade features a screened porch that spans the length of the home, shaded by the cantilevered second floor. This space acts as a secondary living and dining area, ideal for enjoying morning sun while being shielded from bugs—a must for warm months in Quebec.
This porch leads to a square deck with a pool, anchored by a double-sided fireplace column that extends the home’s rectilinear architecture into the outdoors. Here, family life naturally spills into the landscape while maintaining comfort and protection.
Private Suite Designed for Aging in Place
On the western side of the home, a full private suite was designed with aging residents in mind. The layout includes a primary bedroom, bathroom, laundry, and gym, all opening onto a triangular covered porch. A curved privacy wall shields an exterior shower—a space further concealed by a massive boulder unearthed during the site excavation.
This integration of organic elements and strategic shading techniques speaks to the studio’s commitment to creating architecture that evolves naturally from its environment.
Intimate Nooks and Functional Upper Floor
A portion of the upstairs hallway has been transformed into a reading nook, complete with a floor-to-ceiling bookshelf and a daybed that overlooks the double-height living room below. This small gesture enriches the home’s livability and adds layers of intimacy.
The upper level also includes three bedrooms and two bathrooms, completing a layout that supports multigenerational living or hosting guests with comfort and style.
Material Palette Echoes the Forest
Throughout, the home’s interiors echo its external cladding. The use of larch wood, dark and light-stained pine veneer, limewashed finishes, and white walls create a textural language that feels grounded yet contemporary.
This seamless flow between inside and outside furthers the house’s dialogue with the forest, reinforcing its mission as a home deeply rooted in its natural surroundings.
About the Team and Contributors
Design Team:
- David Dworkind
- Guillaume Ménard
- Benjamin Lavoie Laroche
Contractor:
Landscape Design:
- Savaria Paysage
Millwork:
- Barrie Graham
Interior Decoration:
- LK Designs
Key Brands and Products Featured
| Category | Brand |
|---|---|
| Wood Flooring | Unik Parquet |
| Lighting | Pablo Designs, Artemide, Ferm Living |
| Furniture (Dining) | Ināt Furniture |
| Exterior Siding | Maibec |
| Kitchen Appliances | Miele |
| Plumbing Fixtures | Aquabrass |
Past Projects by MRDK
The Q8 Residence builds on MRDK’s growing portfolio of context-sensitive architecture. In previous works, they’ve transformed a 1980s home originally designed by Frank McGrath, preserving its terracotta fireplace and curvilinear plaster forms. They also clad a vacation house entirely in cedar to allow it to gracefully age and blend into the surrounding terrain.
Q8 Residence stands as a powerful testament to the potential of architectural restraint, environmental sensitivity, and refined materiality. By crafting a home that neither competes with nor dominates its site, Ménard Dworkind delivers a blueprint for modern forest living in harmony with nature.
