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138 Main Street
Apple Bank Building
Second Floor
Sag Harbor, NY 11963
(use for courier delivery)
P.O Box 510
Sag Harbor, NY 11963
(use for USPS delivery)
T 631.725.0229
F 631.725.0230
Profile
Bates Masi + Architects LLC, a full-service architectural firm with roots in New York City and the East End of Long Island for over 45 years, responds to each project with extensive research in related architectural fields, material, craft and environment for unique solutions as varied as the individuals or groups for whom they are designed. The focus is neither the size nor the type of project but the opportunity to enrich lives and enhance the environment. The attention to all elements of design has been a constant in the firm’s philosophy. Projects include urban and suburban residences, schools, offices, hotels, restaurants, retail and furniture in the United States, Central America and the Caribbean. The firm has received 43 design awards since 2003 and has been featured in national and international publications including The New York Times, New York Magazine, Architectural Digest, Architectural Record, Metropolitan Home, and Dwell. Residential Architect Magazine selected Bates Masi one of their 50 Architect’s We Love. A gallery exhibition in May 2010 featured the firm’s earlier work from 1960-70.
Paul Masi spent childhood summers in Montauk and currently resides in Amagansett. He received a Bachelor of Architecture from Catholic University and a Masters of Architecture from the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University. He worked at Richard Meier & Partners before joining this firm in 1998.
Harry Bates, a resident of East Hampton, received a Bachelor of Architecture from North Carolina State University. After ten years with Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, he was in private practice in New York City for 17 years before moving the firm to Southampton on the East End in 1980. Our offices are currently located in Sag Harbor with plans to relocate to a new LEED Certified office building of our own design in East Hampton.
Noyack Creek
Lot size: 0.31 acres
Building size: 1,350 sq. ft.
Location: Noyack, NY
Program: Single Family Residence
Photographer: Bates Masi Architects
The client, a New York actor, sought a retreat for relaxation and casual entertaining on a restrictive narrow lot fronting the tidal estuary of Noyack Creek. The house became a study in architectural theatre: a series of spaces in a carefully scripted sequence that subtly reflect his professional life.
The path begins at the front door where perforated privacy screens slide apart like a curtain, revealing the loft-like living and dining spaces. The direction of the deck boards that make up the flooring is altered to demarcate the path through the space, emerging seamlessly to an exterior waterside deck. A broad stair to the second level, parallel with an interior stair along a glazed wall, acts as tiered seating for entertaining and looking at the water view beyond. Beneath the stair, hidden backstage for maximum privacy, the guest room shares the water view through a nearly hidden sliding door. Guests emerge as if through a trap door.
Continuing up the stair to the second floor, the final destination is the master suite and balcony. The master bedroom is connected to the bath by a bridge overlooking the public spaces below which are lit by the glazed stair wall. Lined with a guardrail of stainless steel cables recalling a fly loft and catwalk, the path culminates in the master bedroom with its wall of glazing overlooking the water.
Windows throughout the house are carefully placed to provide the maximum daylight and water views while maintaining privacy from the nearby neighbors and street. The siding system is manipulated for varying degrees of privacy as well. Comprised of Skatelite, a natural resin panel typically used in skateboard ramps, the siding is water-jet cut with tight joints in areas demanding privacy and loosely spaced in other areas to admit light and air. The texture and color of the siding, in keeping with the budget of the house, reference a black box theatre.
In the end, a house that could have been limited by its small site and budget was elevated by its conception as a stage for memorable experiences.
Noyack Creek
Lot size: 0.31 acres
Building size: 1,350 sq. ft.
Location: Noyack, NY
Program: Single Family Residence
Photographer: Bates Masi Architects
The client, a New York actor, sought a retreat for relaxation and casual entertaining on a restrictive narrow lot fronting the tidal estuary of Noyack Creek. The house became a study in architectural theatre: a series of spaces in a carefully scripted sequence that subtly reflect his professional life.
The path begins at the front door where perforated privacy screens slide apart like a curtain, revealing the loft-like living and dining spaces. The direction of the deck boards that make up the flooring is altered to demarcate the path through the space, emerging seamlessly to an exterior waterside deck. A broad stair to the second level, parallel with an interior stair along a glazed wall, acts as tiered seating for entertaining and looking at the water view beyond. Beneath the stair, hidden backstage for maximum privacy, the guest room shares the water view through a nearly hidden sliding door. Guests emerge as if through a trap door.
Continuing up the stair to the second floor, the final destination is the master suite and balcony. The master bedroom is connected to the bath by a bridge overlooking the public spaces below which are lit by the glazed stair wall. Lined with a guardrail of stainless steel cables recalling a fly loft and catwalk, the path culminates in the master bedroom with its wall of glazing overlooking the water.
Windows throughout the house are carefully placed to provide the maximum daylight and water views while maintaining privacy from the nearby neighbors and street. The siding system is manipulated for varying degrees of privacy as well. Comprised of Skatelite, a natural resin panel typically used in skateboard ramps, the siding is water-jet cut with tight joints in areas demanding privacy and loosely spaced in other areas to admit light and air. The texture and color of the siding, in keeping with the budget of the house, reference a black box theatre.
In the end, a house that could have been limited by its small site and budget was elevated by its conception as a stage for memorable experiences.
Noyack Creek
Lot size: 0.31 acres
Building size: 1,350 sq. ft.
Location: Noyack, NY
Program: Single Family Residence
Photographer: Bates Masi Architects
The client, a New York actor, sought a retreat for relaxation and casual entertaining on a restrictive narrow lot fronting the tidal estuary of Noyack Creek. The house became a study in architectural theatre: a series of spaces in a carefully scripted sequence that subtly reflect his professional life.
The path begins at the front door where perforated privacy screens slide apart like a curtain, revealing the loft-like living and dining spaces. The direction of the deck boards that make up the flooring is altered to demarcate the path through the space, emerging seamlessly to an exterior waterside deck. A broad stair to the second level, parallel with an interior stair along a glazed wall, acts as tiered seating for entertaining and looking at the water view beyond. Beneath the stair, hidden backstage for maximum privacy, the guest room shares the water view through a nearly hidden sliding door. Guests emerge as if through a trap door.
Continuing up the stair to the second floor, the final destination is the master suite and balcony. The master bedroom is connected to the bath by a bridge overlooking the public spaces below which are lit by the glazed stair wall. Lined with a guardrail of stainless steel cables recalling a fly loft and catwalk, the path culminates in the master bedroom with its wall of glazing overlooking the water.
Windows throughout the house are carefully placed to provide the maximum daylight and water views while maintaining privacy from the nearby neighbors and street. The siding system is manipulated for varying degrees of privacy as well. Comprised of Skatelite, a natural resin panel typically used in skateboard ramps, the siding is water-jet cut with tight joints in areas demanding privacy and loosely spaced in other areas to admit light and air. The texture and color of the siding, in keeping with the budget of the house, reference a black box theatre.
In the end, a house that could have been limited by its small site and budget was elevated by its conception as a stage for memorable experiences.
Noyack Creek
Lot size: 0.31 acres
Building size: 1,350 sq. ft.
Location: Noyack, NY
Program: Single Family Residence
Photographer: Bates Masi Architects
The client, a New York actor, sought a retreat for relaxation and casual entertaining on a restrictive narrow lot fronting the tidal estuary of Noyack Creek. The house became a study in architectural theatre: a series of spaces in a carefully scripted sequence that subtly reflect his professional life.
The path begins at the front door where perforated privacy screens slide apart like a curtain, revealing the loft-like living and dining spaces. The direction of the deck boards that make up the flooring is altered to demarcate the path through the space, emerging seamlessly to an exterior waterside deck. A broad stair to the second level, parallel with an interior stair along a glazed wall, acts as tiered seating for entertaining and looking at the water view beyond. Beneath the stair, hidden backstage for maximum privacy, the guest room shares the water view through a nearly hidden sliding door. Guests emerge as if through a trap door.
Continuing up the stair to the second floor, the final destination is the master suite and balcony. The master bedroom is connected to the bath by a bridge overlooking the public spaces below which are lit by the glazed stair wall. Lined with a guardrail of stainless steel cables recalling a fly loft and catwalk, the path culminates in the master bedroom with its wall of glazing overlooking the water.
Windows throughout the house are carefully placed to provide the maximum daylight and water views while maintaining privacy from the nearby neighbors and street. The siding system is manipulated for varying degrees of privacy as well. Comprised of Skatelite, a natural resin panel typically used in skateboard ramps, the siding is water-jet cut with tight joints in areas demanding privacy and loosely spaced in other areas to admit light and air. The texture and color of the siding, in keeping with the budget of the house, reference a black box theatre.
In the end, a house that could have been limited by its small site and budget was elevated by its conception as a stage for memorable experiences.
Noyack Creek
Lot size: 0.31 acres
Building size: 1,350 sq. ft.
Location: Noyack, NY
Program: Single Family Residence
Photographer: Bates Masi Architects
The client, a New York actor, sought a retreat for relaxation and casual entertaining on a restrictive narrow lot fronting the tidal estuary of Noyack Creek. The house became a study in architectural theatre: a series of spaces in a carefully scripted sequence that subtly reflect his professional life.
The path begins at the front door where perforated privacy screens slide apart like a curtain, revealing the loft-like living and dining spaces. The direction of the deck boards that make up the flooring is altered to demarcate the path through the space, emerging seamlessly to an exterior waterside deck. A broad stair to the second level, parallel with an interior stair along a glazed wall, acts as tiered seating for entertaining and looking at the water view beyond. Beneath the stair, hidden backstage for maximum privacy, the guest room shares the water view through a nearly hidden sliding door. Guests emerge as if through a trap door.
Continuing up the stair to the second floor, the final destination is the master suite and balcony. The master bedroom is connected to the bath by a bridge overlooking the public spaces below which are lit by the glazed stair wall. Lined with a guardrail of stainless steel cables recalling a fly loft and catwalk, the path culminates in the master bedroom with its wall of glazing overlooking the water.
Windows throughout the house are carefully placed to provide the maximum daylight and water views while maintaining privacy from the nearby neighbors and street. The siding system is manipulated for varying degrees of privacy as well. Comprised of Skatelite, a natural resin panel typically used in skateboard ramps, the siding is water-jet cut with tight joints in areas demanding privacy and loosely spaced in other areas to admit light and air. The texture and color of the siding, in keeping with the budget of the house, reference a black box theatre.
In the end, a house that could have been limited by its small site and budget was elevated by its conception as a stage for memorable experiences.
Cherry Point
Lot size: 0.25 acres
Building size: 1,685 sq. ft.
Location: Amagansett, NY
Program: Single Family Residence
A waterfront site coexistant with a tidal marsh yielded only a twenty-five hundred square foot buildable footprint for this windsurfer’s family beach house. The environmentally sensitive lot needed a unique water treatment system that was integrated into the architecture. This system had to be placed above ground level, creating an artificial plateau.
Raised on wooden pilings seven feet above the area’s floodplain, the house’s elevated entry deck lies flush with an artificial plateau determined by the requisite fifteen thousand cubic foot above ground waste water system. The main floor is further raised through an inversion of the traditional domestic organization – daytime living quarters on top, sleeping quarters below. Although this configuration affords panoramic views of the bay from the glazed living room and its adjacent sundeck, it also effectuates a physical discontinuity between interior and exterior. Since the land was purchased for its natural beauty as well as its proximity to the open water, and since legalistic constraints forbid the building’s extension into its landscape, the landscape would have to reach into the house – conceptually and visually.
With no horizontal surface to spare, the connection is performed within a thin scrim lining the structure’s vertical façades. The gaze cast across the property’s neighboring marshlands, one may witness the effects of the wind on the
plane of sea grasses: a rippling effect visibly renders forces and movement typically perceived only through touch as breezes pass over the skin. How could a similar effect take place as a responsive element integral with the architecture? A material is fabricated of loose screening with fishing lures fastened into each opening. This screen partially clads three façades; the lures shimmer as blades of glass, acting as a sort-of barometer that registers changes in wind speed and direction as they occur in real-time. Thus, in addition to engaging the design with its landscape, these walls also act as an essential instrument for the avid windsurfer. As the lures jingle back and forth on their hinges they alternately admit and deny direct southern sunlight into the living room interior, generating flashes of light and patterned shadows across the floor that alert the occupants to optimal surfing conditions.
An attention to materiality that began with the wind-responsive wall continues throughout the house’s exterior development. By layering the wind wall, concrete composite panels, a fenestration system, and a handrail system beyond and behind a basic volume clad in flush wood siding, the sides of an otherwise uninspired box are revealed on edge, lending an elegant thinness to the overall composition.
Through the simple manipulation of materials, in both their detailing and general application, a compact, highly efficient plan is seamlessly reconciled with its undersized lot and tied to the greater environment.
Cherry Point
Lot size: 0.25 acres
Building size: 1,685 sq. ft.
Location: Amagansett, NY
Program: Single Family Residence
A waterfront site coexistant with a tidal marsh yielded only a twenty-five hundred square foot buildable footprint for this windsurfer’s family beach house. The environmentally sensitive lot needed a unique water treatment system that was integrated into the architecture. This system had to be placed above ground level, creating an artificial plateau.
Raised on wooden pilings seven feet above the area’s floodplain, the house’s elevated entry deck lies flush with an artificial plateau determined by the requisite fifteen thousand cubic foot above ground waste water system. The main floor is further raised through an inversion of the traditional domestic organization – daytime living quarters on top, sleeping quarters below. Although this configuration affords panoramic views of the bay from the glazed living room and its adjacent sundeck, it also effectuates a physical discontinuity between interior and exterior. Since the land was purchased for its natural beauty as well as its proximity to the open water, and since legalistic constraints forbid the building’s extension into its landscape, the landscape would have to reach into the house – conceptually and visually.
With no horizontal surface to spare, the connection is performed within a thin scrim lining the structure’s vertical façades. The gaze cast across the property’s neighboring marshlands, one may witness the effects of the wind on the
plane of sea grasses: a rippling effect visibly renders forces and movement typically perceived only through touch as breezes pass over the skin. How could a similar effect take place as a responsive element integral with the architecture? A material is fabricated of loose screening with fishing lures fastened into each opening. This screen partially clads three façades; the lures shimmer as blades of glass, acting as a sort-of barometer that registers changes in wind speed and direction as they occur in real-time. Thus, in addition to engaging the design with its landscape, these walls also act as an essential instrument for the avid windsurfer. As the lures jingle back and forth on their hinges they alternately admit and deny direct southern sunlight into the living room interior, generating flashes of light and patterned shadows across the floor that alert the occupants to optimal surfing conditions.
An attention to materiality that began with the wind-responsive wall continues throughout the house’s exterior development. By layering the wind wall, concrete composite panels, a fenestration system, and a handrail system beyond and behind a basic volume clad in flush wood siding, the sides of an otherwise uninspired box are revealed on edge, lending an elegant thinness to the overall composition.
Through the simple manipulation of materials, in both their detailing and general application, a compact, highly efficient plan is seamlessly reconciled with its undersized lot and tied to the greater environment.
Cherry Point
Lot size: 0.25 acres
Building size: 1,685 sq. ft.
Location: Amagansett, NY
Program: Single Family Residence
A waterfront site coexistant with a tidal marsh yielded only a twenty-five hundred square foot buildable footprint for this windsurfer’s family beach house. The environmentally sensitive lot needed a unique water treatment system that was integrated into the architecture. This system had to be placed above ground level, creating an artificial plateau.
Raised on wooden pilings seven feet above the area’s floodplain, the house’s elevated entry deck lies flush with an artificial plateau determined by the requisite fifteen thousand cubic foot above ground waste water system. The main floor is further raised through an inversion of the traditional domestic organization – daytime living quarters on top, sleeping quarters below. Although this configuration affords panoramic views of the bay from the glazed living room and its adjacent sundeck, it also effectuates a physical discontinuity between interior and exterior. Since the land was purchased for its natural beauty as well as its proximity to the open water, and since legalistic constraints forbid the building’s extension into its landscape, the landscape would have to reach into the house – conceptually and visually.
With no horizontal surface to spare, the connection is performed within a thin scrim lining the structure’s vertical façades. The gaze cast across the property’s neighboring marshlands, one may witness the effects of the wind on the
plane of sea grasses: a rippling effect visibly renders forces and movement typically perceived only through touch as breezes pass over the skin. How could a similar effect take place as a responsive element integral with the architecture? A material is fabricated of loose screening with fishing lures fastened into each opening. This screen partially clads three façades; the lures shimmer as blades of glass, acting as a sort-of barometer that registers changes in wind speed and direction as they occur in real-time. Thus, in addition to engaging the design with its landscape, these walls also act as an essential instrument for the avid windsurfer. As the lures jingle back and forth on their hinges they alternately admit and deny direct southern sunlight into the living room interior, generating flashes of light and patterned shadows across the floor that alert the occupants to optimal surfing conditions.
An attention to materiality that began with the wind-responsive wall continues throughout the house’s exterior development. By layering the wind wall, concrete composite panels, a fenestration system, and a handrail system beyond and behind a basic volume clad in flush wood siding, the sides of an otherwise uninspired box are revealed on edge, lending an elegant thinness to the overall composition.
Through the simple manipulation of materials, in both their detailing and general application, a compact, highly efficient plan is seamlessly reconciled with its undersized lot and tied to the greater environment.
North Main
Lot size: 0.45 acres
Building size: 4,670 sq. ft.
Location: East Hampton, NY
Program: Office & Retail
Many contemporary commercial structures are planned with inherent disposability, minimizing initial cost at the expense of fortitude and long-term usefulness. This owner-occupied project challenges the conventional approach, enhancing the property’s value with durable material systems, adaptable spatial organization, and flexible building surfaces.
Insulated precast fly-ash concrete panels envelop the building’s two large uninterrupted spaces. This long-span sturdy shell will long outlast the typical tenant’s occupancy and accommodate an array of future uses. It is sheltered from the brunt of the elements by a skin of recycled modular wooden shingles held in place by custom stainless steel clips. In the same way that a car’s tires are prolonged by rotation, the panels are transferred from severe- to moderate- weathering facades and individually flipped front-to-back to maximize the material’s utility without using toxic, high-maintenance protective paints and stains. Inside, the same clips hold finished ceiling surfaces and light fixtures to the structural concrete planks. Rearranging and modifying these elements permits future users to adapt the spaces’ lighting, reflectance, acoustics, and technology without disturbing the permanent structure.
Similarly, air conditioning, voice, data, and electrical systems are modified by lifting the modular panels of a proprietary raised floor set atop the subfloor. Each panel accepts a replaceable finish layer fitted for grip, reflectance, sound attenuation, and wear-resistance.
In addition to enhancing the building’s value, the qualities of durability and flexibility also lay the foundation for its LEED Certification. Unlike many “green” buildings, this project attends to basic construction elements instead of relying on auxiliary technologies to achieve LEED credits. For instance, while the precast concrete panels are essential to the structure and envelope, they also contain an integrated insulation layer to outperform cast-in-place concrete in energy efficiency. These panels are spaced apart and pierced to introduce light wells and clerestories that reduce reliance on mechanical ventilation and artificial lighting. The wooden siding panels, once weathered to obsolescence, comprise a completely biodegradable product free of synthetic adhesives, fasteners, chemical coatings, or finishes. On the roof an array of modular planting trays insulates the building and diverts roof run-off water from the storm drains. Similarly sized photovoltaic panels may later replace some or all of these planting tray modules.
By simplifying the structure’s configuration, minimizing building technologies, facilitating future adaptation and superceding current regulations with LEED Certification criteria, the project acquires the attributes of “timelessness”; it will outlast its contemporaries and extend our natural resources.
North Main
Lot size: 0.45 acres
Building size: 4,670 sq. ft.
Location: East Hampton, NY
Program: Office & Retail
Many contemporary commercial structures are planned with inherent disposability, minimizing initial cost at the expense of fortitude and long-term usefulness. This owner-occupied project challenges the conventional approach, enhancing the property’s value with durable material systems, adaptable spatial organization, and flexible building surfaces.
Insulated precast fly-ash concrete panels envelop the building’s two large uninterrupted spaces. This long-span sturdy shell will long outlast the typical tenant’s occupancy and accommodate an array of future uses. It is sheltered from the brunt of the elements by a skin of recycled modular wooden shingles held in place by custom stainless steel clips. In the same way that a car’s tires are prolonged by rotation, the panels are transferred from severe- to moderate- weathering facades and individually flipped front-to-back to maximize the material’s utility without using toxic, high-maintenance protective paints and stains. Inside, the same clips hold finished ceiling surfaces and light fixtures to the structural concrete planks. Rearranging and modifying these elements permits future users to adapt the spaces’ lighting, reflectance, acoustics, and technology without disturbing the permanent structure.
Similarly, air conditioning, voice, data, and electrical systems are modified by lifting the modular panels of a proprietary raised floor set atop the subfloor. Each panel accepts a replaceable finish layer fitted for grip, reflectance, sound attenuation, and wear-resistance.
In addition to enhancing the building’s value, the qualities of durability and flexibility also lay the foundation for its LEED Certification. Unlike many “green” buildings, this project attends to basic construction elements instead of relying on auxiliary technologies to achieve LEED credits. For instance, while the precast concrete panels are essential to the structure and envelope, they also contain an integrated insulation layer to outperform cast-in-place concrete in energy efficiency. These panels are spaced apart and pierced to introduce light wells and clerestories that reduce reliance on mechanical ventilation and artificial lighting. The wooden siding panels, once weathered to obsolescence, comprise a completely biodegradable product free of synthetic adhesives, fasteners, chemical coatings, or finishes. On the roof an array of modular planting trays insulates the building and diverts roof run-off water from the storm drains. Similarly sized photovoltaic panels may later replace some or all of these planting tray modules.
By simplifying the structure’s configuration, minimizing building technologies, facilitating future adaptation and superceding current regulations with LEED Certification criteria, the project acquires the attributes of “timelessness”; it will outlast its contemporaries and extend our natural resources.
North Main
Lot size: 0.45 acres
Building size: 4,670 sq. ft.
Location: East Hampton, NY
Program: Office & Retail
Many contemporary commercial structures are planned with inherent disposability, minimizing initial cost at the expense of fortitude and long-term usefulness. This owner-occupied project challenges the conventional approach, enhancing the property’s value with durable material systems, adaptable spatial organization, and flexible building surfaces.
Insulated precast fly-ash concrete panels envelop the building’s two large uninterrupted spaces. This long-span sturdy shell will long outlast the typical tenant’s occupancy and accommodate an array of future uses. It is sheltered from the brunt of the elements by a skin of recycled modular wooden shingles held in place by custom stainless steel clips. In the same way that a car’s tires are prolonged by rotation, the panels are transferred from severe- to moderate- weathering facades and individually flipped front-to-back to maximize the material’s utility without using toxic, high-maintenance protective paints and stains. Inside, the same clips hold finished ceiling surfaces and light fixtures to the structural concrete planks. Rearranging and modifying these elements permits future users to adapt the spaces’ lighting, reflectance, acoustics, and technology without disturbing the permanent structure.
Similarly, air conditioning, voice, data, and electrical systems are modified by lifting the modular panels of a proprietary raised floor set atop the subfloor. Each panel accepts a replaceable finish layer fitted for grip, reflectance, sound attenuation, and wear-resistance.
In addition to enhancing the building’s value, the qualities of durability and flexibility also lay the foundation for its LEED Certification. Unlike many “green” buildings, this project attends to basic construction elements instead of relying on auxiliary technologies to achieve LEED credits. For instance, while the precast concrete panels are essential to the structure and envelope, they also contain an integrated insulation layer to outperform cast-in-place concrete in energy efficiency. These panels are spaced apart and pierced to introduce light wells and clerestories that reduce reliance on mechanical ventilation and artificial lighting. The wooden siding panels, once weathered to obsolescence, comprise a completely biodegradable product free of synthetic adhesives, fasteners, chemical coatings, or finishes. On the roof an array of modular planting trays insulates the building and diverts roof run-off water from the storm drains. Similarly sized photovoltaic panels may later replace some or all of these planting tray modules.
By simplifying the structure’s configuration, minimizing building technologies, facilitating future adaptation and superceding current regulations with LEED Certification criteria, the project acquires the attributes of “timelessness”; it will outlast its contemporaries and extend our natural resources.
North Main
Lot size: 0.45 acres
Building size: 4,670 sq. ft.
Location: East Hampton, NY
Program: Office & Retail
Many contemporary commercial structures are planned with inherent disposability, minimizing initial cost at the expense of fortitude and long-term usefulness. This owner-occupied project challenges the conventional approach, enhancing the property’s value with durable material systems, adaptable spatial organization, and flexible building surfaces.
Insulated precast fly-ash concrete panels envelop the building’s two large uninterrupted spaces. This long-span sturdy shell will long outlast the typical tenant’s occupancy and accommodate an array of future uses. It is sheltered from the brunt of the elements by a skin of recycled modular wooden shingles held in place by custom stainless steel clips. In the same way that a car’s tires are prolonged by rotation, the panels are transferred from severe- to moderate- weathering facades and individually flipped front-to-back to maximize the material’s utility without using toxic, high-maintenance protective paints and stains. Inside, the same clips hold finished ceiling surfaces and light fixtures to the structural concrete planks. Rearranging and modifying these elements permits future users to adapt the spaces’ lighting, reflectance, acoustics, and technology without disturbing the permanent structure.
Similarly, air conditioning, voice, data, and electrical systems are modified by lifting the modular panels of a proprietary raised floor set atop the subfloor. Each panel accepts a replaceable finish layer fitted for grip, reflectance, sound attenuation, and wear-resistance.
In addition to enhancing the building’s value, the qualities of durability and flexibility also lay the foundation for its LEED Certification. Unlike many “green” buildings, this project attends to basic construction elements instead of relying on auxiliary technologies to achieve LEED credits. For instance, while the precast concrete panels are essential to the structure and envelope, they also contain an integrated insulation layer to outperform cast-in-place concrete in energy efficiency. These panels are spaced apart and pierced to introduce light wells and clerestories that reduce reliance on mechanical ventilation and artificial lighting. The wooden siding panels, once weathered to obsolescence, comprise a completely biodegradable product free of synthetic adhesives, fasteners, chemical coatings, or finishes. On the roof an array of modular planting trays insulates the building and diverts roof run-off water from the storm drains. Similarly sized photovoltaic panels may later replace some or all of these planting tray modules.
By simplifying the structure’s configuration, minimizing building technologies, facilitating future adaptation and superceding current regulations with LEED Certification criteria, the project acquires the attributes of “timelessness”; it will outlast its contemporaries and extend our natural resources.
Beach Hampton
Lot size: .275 acres
Building size: 600 sq. ft.
Location: Amagansett, NY
Program: Single Family Residence
Project Narrative Forthcoming
Sagaponack
Lot size: 2 acres
Building size: 8965 sq. ft.
Location: Sagaponack, NY
Program: Single Family Residence
Photographer: Michael Moran
Contractor: Wright & Co. Construction
Interior Designer: Bates Masi Architects
Landscape Architect: Stephen Stimson
Located between the Atlantic Ocean and a freshwater pond, this residence is for an adventurous couple and their four sons. They wanted a house for their large family and numerous guests with a lawn, swimming pool, pool house, garage, and sports courts on a site with a limited building envelope due to coastal and wetland zoning. The large program, relatively small footprint, and daunting regulations dictated a building envelope densely packed with program that stood as a barrier between the ocean and the pond. Thus the design process was one of subtraction rather than addition: carving away at the solid mass of the house to reconnect site features and views and to distill the experience of the place.
Spaces run the full width of the house with floor to ceiling sliding doors on both sides. The spaces create apertures through which views, light, and air completely penetrate the house, dissolving its mass. Passersby see directly through the house to the sky and landscape beyond. With the sliding doors open and recessed into the adjacent walls, interior spaces are transformed from formal rooms to open pavilions, merging seamlessly with the site.
To accommodate the extensive program spaces are nested within one another. Operable partitions pull out from the walls of the living room, carving out a media room within the living room when privacy is desired. Conversely, with the partitions open, the media room merges with the living room for large gatherings. The thickness of the wall separating the dining room and kitchen is also cut away, utilizing its depth to accommodate a wine rack that also functions as a light fixture.
The process of carving is applied at the material and detail level as well. The 5/8” corten steel plate that clads the base of the house is waterjet cut into a delicate pattern that defies its mass. Inside, corian is employed for the ease with which it can be milled. Corian countertops are cut to form towel bars, bunk bed frames are carved to create ladders, cabinet doors are recessed to form handles, and wainscoting is subtly etched with meaningful words chosen by the clients.
Materials were chosen not only for their workability, but also for their durability in the coastal environment. Corten steel siding is zero maintenance despite being relentlessly sandblasted by the wind. Cedar siding and screens are finished using a Victorian technique in which the iron sulfate in a blend of white vinegar and iron filings reacts with the tannins in wood, creating an ebony finish that penetrates through the material and will not require refinishing. The lack of harsh stains or finishes reduces the ecological footprint of the house. Geothermal heating and cooling as well as vegetated roofs further reduce the environmental impact.
Using the design approach of sculpting away rather than building up, the house is pared down until the experience of the extraordinary site is dominant.
Sagaponack
Lot size: 2 acres
Building size: 8965 sq. ft.
Location: Sagaponack, NY
Program: Single Family Residence
Photographer: Michael Moran
Contractor: Wright & Co. Construction
Interior Designer: Bates Masi Architects
Landscape Architect: Stephen Stimson
Located between the Atlantic Ocean and a freshwater pond, this residence is for an adventurous couple and their four sons. They wanted a house for their large family and numerous guests with a lawn, swimming pool, pool house, garage, and sports courts on a site with a limited building envelope due to coastal and wetland zoning. The large program, relatively small footprint, and daunting regulations dictated a building envelope densely packed with program that stood as a barrier between the ocean and the pond. Thus the design process was one of subtraction rather than addition: carving away at the solid mass of the house to reconnect site features and views and to distill the experience of the place.
Spaces run the full width of the house with floor to ceiling sliding doors on both sides. The spaces create apertures through which views, light, and air completely penetrate the house, dissolving its mass. Passersby see directly through the house to the sky and landscape beyond. With the sliding doors open and recessed into the adjacent walls, interior spaces are transformed from formal rooms to open pavilions, merging seamlessly with the site.
To accommodate the extensive program spaces are nested within one another. Operable partitions pull out from the walls of the living room, carving out a media room within the living room when privacy is desired. Conversely, with the partitions open, the media room merges with the living room for large gatherings. The thickness of the wall separating the dining room and kitchen is also cut away, utilizing its depth to accommodate a wine rack that also functions as a light fixture.
The process of carving is applied at the material and detail level as well. The 5/8” corten steel plate that clads the base of the house is waterjet cut into a delicate pattern that defies its mass. Inside, corian is employed for the ease with which it can be milled. Corian countertops are cut to form towel bars, bunk bed frames are carved to create ladders, cabinet doors are recessed to form handles, and wainscoting is subtly etched with meaningful words chosen by the clients.
Materials were chosen not only for their workability, but also for their durability in the coastal environment. Corten steel siding is zero maintenance despite being relentlessly sandblasted by the wind. Cedar siding and screens are finished using a Victorian technique in which the iron sulfate in a blend of white vinegar and iron filings reacts with the tannins in wood, creating an ebony finish that penetrates through the material and will not require refinishing. The lack of harsh stains or finishes reduces the ecological footprint of the house. Geothermal heating and cooling as well as vegetated roofs further reduce the environmental impact.
Using the design approach of sculpting away rather than building up, the house is pared down until the experience of the extraordinary site is dominant.
Sagaponack
Lot size: 2 acres
Building size: 8965 sq. ft.
Location: Sagaponack, NY
Program: Single Family Residence
Photographer: Michael Moran
Contractor: Wright & Co. Construction
Interior Designer: Bates Masi Architects
Landscape Architect: Stephen Stimson
Located between the Atlantic Ocean and a freshwater pond, this residence is for an adventurous couple and their four sons. They wanted a house for their large family and numerous guests with a lawn, swimming pool, pool house, garage, and sports courts on a site with a limited building envelope due to coastal and wetland zoning. The large program, relatively small footprint, and daunting regulations dictated a building envelope densely packed with program that stood as a barrier between the ocean and the pond. Thus the design process was one of subtraction rather than addition: carving away at the solid mass of the house to reconnect site features and views and to distill the experience of the place.
Spaces run the full width of the house with floor to ceiling sliding doors on both sides. The spaces create apertures through which views, light, and air completely penetrate the house, dissolving its mass. Passersby see directly through the house to the sky and landscape beyond. With the sliding doors open and recessed into the adjacent walls, interior spaces are transformed from formal rooms to open pavilions, merging seamlessly with the site.
To accommodate the extensive program spaces are nested within one another. Operable partitions pull out from the walls of the living room, carving out a media room within the living room when privacy is desired. Conversely, with the partitions open, the media room merges with the living room for large gatherings. The thickness of the wall separating the dining room and kitchen is also cut away, utilizing its depth to accommodate a wine rack that also functions as a light fixture.
The process of carving is applied at the material and detail level as well. The 5/8” corten steel plate that clads the base of the house is waterjet cut into a delicate pattern that defies its mass. Inside, corian is employed for the ease with which it can be milled. Corian countertops are cut to form towel bars, bunk bed frames are carved to create ladders, cabinet doors are recessed to form handles, and wainscoting is subtly etched with meaningful words chosen by the clients.
Materials were chosen not only for their workability, but also for their durability in the coastal environment. Corten steel siding is zero maintenance despite being relentlessly sandblasted by the wind. Cedar siding and screens are finished using a Victorian technique in which the iron sulfate in a blend of white vinegar and iron filings reacts with the tannins in wood, creating an ebony finish that penetrates through the material and will not require refinishing. The lack of harsh stains or finishes reduces the ecological footprint of the house. Geothermal heating and cooling as well as vegetated roofs further reduce the environmental impact.
Using the design approach of sculpting away rather than building up, the house is pared down until the experience of the extraordinary site is dominant.