STANFORDVILLE RESIDENCE

DWA created this striking house design in response to an almost paradoxical request: the owners wanted a "modern" home, but one that would look natural in the very rural setting they had chosen as its site. The result is a unique structure that takes a cue from the classic form of the Shaker barn ­ but also has a distinctly contemporary edge.

One of the challenges DWA faced was how to give the home the wide-open feel of a loft favored by their clients, while preserving the scale and privacy of a traditional home. The house consists of three barn-shaped structures laid out in a V-shape, which divides the interior into three spacious and separate living areas. The addition of a loft, which now houses a home office, in the central barn creates several discrete spaces without breaking up the room; parts of the space are double-height, while some are single-height, and feel more intimate.

A model of this project was featured at the Cooper-Hewitt, the Smithsonian's National Design Museum, at the 2003 National Design Triennial.