ELIZABETH RIVER RESIDENCE

The owners, an older couple, wished to move into a new house on an empty subdivided narrow lot a few doors down from their existing historic home of many years. They wanted the new house to reflect a more contemporary look with light filled open spaces inside yet on the outside keeping with the context of its traditional old neighboring homes along the riverfront.

They also asked that the new house be designed around their collection of important American Art, paintings by artists such as Sargaent, Cassatt and Frankenthaler to name a few. Each painting was carefully placed so as to avoid creating a museum like feeling, but instead a comfortable living environment integrated with some of the owners new and old furniture.

This 6,000sq. ft. home was also challenged by its location on the river. It's water facing windows and large open spanning structure had to be designed for high hurricane forces as well as exposure to sea salt. This homes' Early Dutch inspired exterior brick facade features very steep rooflines with brick parapet walls at their gable ends and topped by very massive brick chimneys. Its uniqueness lies in its stark stripped-down facade of traditional Williamsburg brick detailed in a very simple fashion with undecorated shed dormers giving it a factory-like aesthetic. Copper dormer roofs, gutters and downspouts add a very old and weathered look, as if the home has been there along side its historic neighbors for a long time.

The footprint of this house had to follow the long and narrow lot on which it is situated, therefore a massive entry hall was designed to bisect the house into two light filled wings. Elegantly attached to one curved wall of this hall is the main stair, an open riser suspended trussed metal structure finished with oak treads. Behind the curved pocket door found under the stair is the spacious kitchen featuring an Aga stove with simple walnut cabinets of which some are on the backside of the curved wall. The kitchen is open to the large living room with a sweeping view of the river. Creating these large spans for this wing was also structurally challenging since traditional brick houses never had such large open spaces within them.

The owners have since had their daughter, a prominent local landscape architect further enhance the site with indigenous plant material. The house sits like a steam liner on the water and the owners tell us that it "feels like we've lived in it forever."