Illustrations Santiago Uceda

Virginia has its boxy brick colonials. Illinois is home to prairie style. California wrangled the ranch to popularity. And Oregon?

Oregon residential design is more than just a pretty space. It’s an evolving process. Trying to define it is like chasing rain with a butterfly net. Ask people what it looks like and get responses like this.

“I take issue with the word ‘look,’” says Clive Knights, chair of the department of architecture at Portland State University. “Architecture is so much more complex and rich than its façade.”

How a home relates to its site, the footprint it leaves on the land, the way it accommodates residents' needs are all critical measures of its success.

Oregon homes don’t simply look different, they are different.

But how?