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HO U S E, LO N G IS L A N D, NE W YO R K, USAAR C H I T E C T

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WALDEN REVISITED A passionate, beautifully detailed interweaving of dwelling and nature, interior and exterior is almosteighteenth-century, certainly Miesian, in its poetic marriage of pure artefact and wild landscape.

1 main entrance2 d i n i n g3 k i t c h e n4 l i v i n g5 master bed6 master bath7 s t u d y8 b e d9 garden shed

1Looking south, with master bedroom right andfireplace terminating living area left. StrongMiesian order with deep copper-coveredcornice holds whole composition together.2Looking along west wall, with entranceimmediately right and master suite pavilionbeyond tree left.3Entrance (west) court with path (which hasbecome straight by this time) leading directly to entrance in glazed link. Garden hut rightforeground has same cornice as rest of house.4Entrance court is largely closed, while…5…east side opens itself to view.

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plan (scale approx 1:360)

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Tod Williams and Billie Tsien area very strange phenomenon:internationally recognized USarchitects who have gained theirreputation not from theobscurity of their theories andunapproachability of theirlanguage, nor from flashygestures and showbiz antics, butfrom careful and intelligent useof materials and craftsmanship inpursuit of a gentle, sensuous andthoughtful arrangement ofspaces revealed by light. In someways, their work resemblessome of the best to be found inGermany, Switzerland andScandinavia, but they areundoubtedly American in therange of their responses to thevery different cultures, climatesand landscapes of their country.Their Neurosciences Institute atLa Jolla is a reflection of thegenial weather of California,

while the Art Museum inPhoenix (AR November 1997) isa retreat from the desertextremes of Arizona. The housethey made in Manhattan (ARNovember 1997) is a luminousre-examination of the traditionalNew York brownstone. Andnow the weekend place theyhave created in Long Island is amodern comment on Thoreau’sromantic, strangeRousseauesque experiment withliving in his primitive hut atWalden Pond – very American.

The new house is anything butprimitive, but it does sit next toa large natural pond surroundedby woods, and has views of thedistant sea. Designed for a NewYork family which has neverowned a house before, it isintended to be a place of peaceand quiet, where parents can, ifthey want, live a life almost

completely isolated from theirgrown-up children (and viceversa). In the centre of the plan,the kitchen is the physical andmetaphorical hub of the place.To its south is the dining-room,and to the north is the morelofty sitting area, all enclosed in asimple rectangular plan. Twowings, connected to the centralrectangle by glazed passages,make separate zones for parentsand children, very much in theway advocated over 30 years agoby Alexander and Chermeyeff inCommunity and Privacy. Each wingcan be more or lessautonomous, and each room hasa different view and direct accessto the lawns and stronglyscented local pines.

As the principal space, thesitting area has a big fireplaceclad in split New York blue-stone; beyond it are views of the

HO U S E, LO N G IS L A N D, NE W YO R K, USAAR C H I T E C T

TO D WI L L I A M S, BI L L I E TS I E N

6Kitchen is symbolic heart of house.7Cherrywood stairs to…8…study balcony over kitchen and dining area…9…which overlooks…1 0…living room, focused on symbolicstone hearth.

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site plan

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HO U S E, LO N G IS L A N D, NE W YO R K, USAAR C H I T E C T

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lake and woods. Much of thisplace derives its atmospherefrom the warmth of the built-incherrywood furniture, whichdevelops into a study balcony up in the clerestory level overthe kitchen. The tray of space is reached by a short flight ofstairs that grows out of thecupboards and shelves.

At first sight, the house seemsto be made almost entirely ofwood. From the west, the pathwanders up past the garden hut(a most elegant affair, made as asort of detached part of thehouse) to a rather severe frontboarded in cedar – the scent ofthe planks complements thearoma of the pines. This ratherdefensive side is relieved by theglass link containing the maindoor between the children’swing and the main centralrectangle. Everything (including

the detached hut) is kept inorder and united by a dark, deep laminated cornice beamcovered in patinated copper,which runs round the whole ofthe complex plan.

On the other side, the houseopens to the views. Williams and Tsien clearly wanted theplace to be a wooden structure,but could not refrain fromdissolving the corners as gluedglass joints. Slender steels aresometimes hidden in the timberposts, and the clerestory hasmetal rather than woodenmullions. The unusual mixture of steel, timber and glass isallowed to set up its own logic.Every detail is preciselyconsidered and beautifullyexecuted. Every view ischerished and enhanced. Theplace is a sensuous triumph.

M. S.

1 1Details are considered with rigourso as not to put barriers betweeninside and out.1 2Dissolved glass corners do notactually have thin metal mullion –glued joints in double glazing givethe impression.1 3 , 1 4One of the calmest moments:master bathroom and its associateddecked court.

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A r c h i t e c tTod Williams, Billie Tsien & AssociatesProject architectPeter ArnoldStructural engineerSeverud AssociatesP h o t o g r a p h sMichael Moran