OCEANFRONT HOUSE, SOUTHAMPTON - Michael Haverland Architect

1. The program is divided into three parts--main house, guest wing and screening room/pool area--to break down the scale of the house and maximize views along the ocean and bay.

2. Four solid piers at the main house allow the structure to cantilever to the glass wall with large doors that slide open for unobstructed connections to landscape and water views.

3. A regular rhythm of vertically proportioned sliding doors and windows establishes an order and rigor that unifies both floors of the house, rooms within the house, and other structures.

4. Large expanses of glass open to bay views as well as ocean views on the other side. The clarity of the primary two-story simple glass box volume is experienced from every angle.

5. The rhythm of solid piers and the distinct horizontal second floor extends to the guest wing to relate both structures. A balcony cantilevers to the east to the best ocean views.

6. A solid wall designed as a strong, simple figure overlaps the two-story glass box, relates to the guest wing volume beyond, frames the front door, and conceals service spaces behind.

7. Solid planes in modern compositions provide privacy from the road and visually connect the three volumes. The structures are integral with the landscape and topography.

8. The main house, guest wing and studio/screening room are organized parallel to the ocean to frame open views from every room and the ocean dune pattern weaves through the site.

9. The piers define spaces within the loft-like volume, and allow flow around them from room to room. A cantilevered second floor deck defines the outdoor patio and provides shade.

10. The structural piers are also chimneys for fireplaces in every room as well as vertical chases for mechanical systems and drainage so the interior spaces remain pure and simple.

11. Details, such as the thin roof fascia, are important elements of the rigorous modern box and were integral to the early structural design concept and roof configuration.

12. A full-scale mock up the house was built to evaluate the siting, scale of volumes, proportion of interior space and framed views. It was modified to test various options.

13. The siting of the guest wing relative to the main house was explored, as were patterns on the more opaque walls on the first floor that unify the two volumes and provide privacy.

14. Furniture was mocked up out of foam core to test arrangements in the space and establish the ideal room size and proportion. The mock up required a permit from the Village.

15. The arrangement of guest wing, screening room and pool are organized around the main house, which utilized part of the footprint of the original DuPont mansion closer to the ocean.

16. Horizontal decks off the second floor illustrate a balanced asymmetry design sensibility, responding to different site conditions and program needs on either side of the glass volume.

17. The house is primarily one room deep with transparency between the piers to capture water and bay views and light from every vantage. Piers are visible through the glass walls.

18. One of many three-dimensional renderings that studied the window width and ceiling height, rhythm of piers, opacity on first floor walls and relationships of the structures.

19. The topography and landscape were conceived to bring the pattern and texture of the ocean dunes through the site to the bay and simultaneously provide privacy on the first floor.

20. One of many three-dimensional renderings and models that tested different second floor balcony configurations and related sunshade devices on the ocean side of the house.

21. Proposed site plan. The program is distributed in three separate structures that nestle in the dunescape to minimize visual and physical impact. Some green roofs are proposed.

22. Proposed ground floor plan

23. Permit Set - Main house ground floor plan

24. Permit Set - Main house elevations

25. Permit Set - Main house elevations

26. Permit Set - Guest House and Studio elevations

27. Architectural Review Board Submission - Ask/Give Back

28. Comparative renderings showing the previous house "before" and simple massing of the "after" house. The former house was 48,000 square feet, replaced with one much smaller.

29. Three-dimensional renderings overlay previously existing house with proposed. Not only is the square footage of the proposed house a fraction of the former, but so is the volume.

30. Watercolor of early proposed view from Meadow Lane. The position of the house, its scale, new dunescape and native plantings conceal most of the house from the road.

31. Watercolor of early proposed view from Ocean. Three parts of the program, main house, guest and screening room, reduce overall mass of the house to harmonize with landscape.

32. Watercolor of early proposed view from Meadow Lane. The initial concept of the piers and two-story modern glass box emerged after many different approaches were considered.