Quarried from the rugged New England landscape, this natural material
offers the solidity of stone softened by its mottled coloration.
The spatial dividers — backdrops, display walls, and sometimes
pieces of art — reinforce the house’s overall geometry, while neutral
walls and white oak flooring unify the living area. Floor inserts of tinted
concrete break up the broad expanses of wood and serve as markers for
a journey of exploration through the house.
The cubes-within-rectangle scheme brilliantly allows the primary living space to feel unrestricted, yet offers intimate alcoves for experiencing the
collection of paintings, sculpture, and photography. Discovery of these little
galleries is simultaneous with the constant panorama of revealed landscape
— framed glimpses of nature instead of picture-window views.
The kitchen, flush with natural light from three skylights and a
window wall, has the simplest of islands topped with polished concrete.
It stands in front of a Shaker-like wall of cabinets complete with an
aluminum ladder that moves along a barn-door rail.