A Modern Home with Historic Content in East Hampton, New York

A home is designed depending on the needs of a client and the project brief they provide. This way, the home will be used conveniently by the owners. We have seen so many home designs already and we are sure that you have an overflow of ideas for what a modern home would look like especially if you are planning to get a house of your own. Today, we have here another lovely modern home to show you.

The house is designed for a young couple in East Hampton, New York that is intended to accommodate their growing family and reflect their modern lifestyle. Said house is located within a private oceanfront community that was established in the 19th century. In the neighborhood, most houses are more conservative in design and scale than the surrounding contemporary oceanfront communities. Because of this, the clients wanted to have a “modern home that would fit within its historic context while embracing the modest scale of the property”. The goal of the design is met by referencing the nearby agrarian vernacular buildings, specifically gabled potato barns embedded in the ground. The house has a unique structural system that helps create a false ground plane, sloping up from natural grade to the second floor. This way, the scale of the house is masked when viewed from the street. The home used warm, earthy tones coined from the materials it used that blends with the weathered landscape that surrounds the dwelling. Come take a look at this gorgeous residence!

Location: East Hampton, New York

Designer: Bates Masi Architects

Style: Modern and Contemporary

Number of Levels: Two-story on one volume, one-story on other parts

Unique feature: A fusion of modern and contemporary design while retaining some historic element and creating a connection to the environment.

The structure of the house consists of 7” thick glue-laminated wood panels that are supported by steel girders and columns. It eliminates the necessity of traditional wood framing and structural elements. It is exposed as the finished ceiling surface throughout the ground level spaces.

You can see here the outdoor area with grass landscaping and natural landscaping as well. A rectangular pool also sits outdoors that has its own pool house. It is indeed a very spacious property! An intimate outdoor space is created for small gatherings, including a fire pit and spa with views of the ocean. Sloping portions of the elevated ground plane include paths to connect the family areas with the more public entertaining areas at grade.

Looking at this area, the pool has a wooden deck and fencing. There are also grass in this part of the landscape and some trees outside the fence. I could honestly imagine a horse in here. Horseback riding would be fun in this very large lawn! Lol!

The structure of the house allows for a number of design opportunities like the material transitions from inside to outside as a 12’ by 90’ long cantilever. It also used sidings for the exterior and a beautiful sturdy material for the roofing. And hey, it has a chimney too!

Look at that very spacious lawn! If there aren’t horses here (lol), the kids would surely have fun running around the area. That would be fulfilling for the entire family. You can also get a closer look at the wooden sidings too. The overlapping looks very nice and neat. Alaskan yellow shakes monolithically clad the roof and sidewalls. The coursing exposure is four times larger than the typical coursing so that the scale is reduced.

Seen here is an outdoor kitchen with what looks like weathered steel around it. It also used materials that traditionally utilized on agricultural buildings for low maintenance, durability and ability to gracefully weather over time. Cedar and weathering steel are executed in nontraditional ways for this home.

The first floor of the house is dedicated to guests and entertaining while the second floor is reserved for the family. The elevated ground plane surrounds the family bedrooms that are planted with native grasses. The ceiling looks very nice! It has a natural look that extends the beauty from outdoors. That black walling is also a stunner that contains the fireplace. Even the furniture inside the house are all gorgeous too as well as the lightings.

The kitchen has a long wooden island that has a beautiful finish. It used white for the cabinet faces with some interesting hardware. What separates the kitchen to the living space is that wooden vertical slats of the staircase.

This one is the dining area with wooden dining table and a pretty set of dining chairs that has upholstered seats. Its contemporary design just fits the look of the area. A sliding door leads to the outdoor space that also creates a stunning view from here.

The stair treads are cut from thick laminated wood. It is carved out of the wood ceiling to transform surface mounted fixtures into lighting elements. The design of the staircase adds a sculptural beauty to the entire home.

This is the bathroom of the house where natural light is flooding because of the louvers on the upper part of the wall. It also used stones for the wall that give it a subtle Zen feel. Wooden flooring is used for this part. It also has a separate shower on the other side of the wall.

This house does look distinct and beautiful. It also looks so very spacious with a pool area outside. The interior is a stunning space too with many decorative furniture and furnishings. This is a design done by Bates Masi Architects. The surrounding contemporary oceanfront communities near the location of the house are becoming overdeveloped and no longer connect to the environment. This home is different because of how it retains a connection to the natural environment. The house is rooted within the landscape and becomes a unique and cohesive addition to the neighborhood. We may not see photos of the neighborhood but with the looks of the house, we can tell that it could make a huge difference in the area.