There are patios under the cantilevered sections; it’s a two-for-one solution in which you get some shaded recreational space in the summer, and keep the building well above the snow line in the winter. The cantilevers are supported by masts that are also see-through fireplaces. The one supporting the main section is in fact two fireplaces: one indoors (in the great room above) and one outdoors (in the patio below). The wings are connected by a steel-and-glass bridge with a south-facing wall that pivots entirely open. It’s twenty-five feet long and counterbalanced overhead by a large steel weight that sits five feet above the roof. The hand-wheel crank that operates it is attached to an eight-foot-long screw.