Programmatic Requirements

The owner’s existing saltbox country residence did not provide suitable space to meet the needs for large family and office gatherings. It was their intent to add a more private space for their immediate family’s weekend stays while using the existing residence’s kitchen and great room as the “gathering area” for large events. This substantial space addition must complement the existing structure. Remodeling of the existing residence and a pool house / outdoor cooking area adjacent to the existing pool was also part of the program.

Design Solutions

The simple dominant shape of the existing residence and the formal arrangement of its interior was used as a guiding design principle in the new building addition. In order to mesh with the existing building, a similar dominant shape with rotated geometry to the existing was designed. Wrapping, bending porches joined the two structures while using the existing fire pit as an organizational guide toward the making of an outdoor room. While the new addition was to be the focal point, viewing the existing structure and incorporating its architecture were of central importance. Natural materials of stone, Brazilian hardwood and stained concrete flooring with a standing seam metal roof ground the building to its landscape. Interiors with lodge-like materials, lighting and scale, with anchoring stone fireplaces provide a feeling of warmth and home. The furniture-like craftsmanship of the pool house with its central ventilating roof ridge, reminiscent of German pavilions in the area, visually ties the structures together within the compound.