AIA NY Architecture Merit Award, 2009Perched
at the peak of Mt. Merino, this house is designed to take advantage of
breathtaking views of the Hudson River and Catskill Mountains - made famous by
the Hudson River School painters in the late 19th century.
Cedar-clad retaining walls, define the compact footprint of the 2300
square-foot house, organized around a two-story interior garden court.
Embedded
in the hillside, the house was designed from the inside out: like a movie
camera viewfinder, the house captures a sequence of carefully framed views
organized along a continuous circulation route. As it spirals around an
interior courtyard, this concrete path threads its way through a chain of
indoor and outdoor spaces that take viewers from the loft-like living/dining
level on the upper level, past a pool area sheltered by a dramatic canopy to a
wood-clad den and outdoor dining room below.