The Open Hearth is a place and a state of mind. The place is a garden and a building, the borders of which are purposefully left unclear. The state of mind is focus. The Open Hearth provides a place to concentrate on artistic, social or business issues, or on matters of a personal nature. It encourages through its design both inward and outward focus. Naming the project the Open Hearth stems in part from the fact that the spiritual and physical center of the building, indeed of the whole design, is a small in-floor hearth but also because "hearth" is the original meaning of the Latin word "focus."

The design of the garden and building derives from those associated with tea gatherings in Japan. The primary element of the Open Hearth project is a small roofed structure, shaped somewhat like the vortex of a whirlpool which has been abstracted into a triangle. In fact, the structure is not "architecture" per se, but rather is the confluence of three curved, rammed earth garden walls that are capped with a roof where they meet. Like the tea rooms in Japan, this structure centers on a small hearth, the room is lit only by subtle light, and is inwardly focused. It is equipped with no modern facilities; what is in the room has been carried in, bringing renewed attention to the preciousness of material resources. For all its similarities, the design of the structure is not traditionally Japanese and so it offers itself to more varied uses. Although the Open Hearth could be used for tea gatherings in the Japanese manner, it also could be a center for any event which is trying to raise the level of awareness, community, or ability to focus among a small group of people. This could be applied to any number of situations including: intellectual or philosophical discourses, creativity exchanges, business brainstorming, religious meetings, and yoga, zazen and other meditation sessions.