Who knew a historic house could live so progressively behind its by-the-book façade? Asked to double the footprint of an early 19th-century house in this beach town’s historic heart, Robert M. Gurney restored the exterior to its original condition. But the ambitious interior redo relates flawlessly to a floor plan that encompasses four one-story pavilions.
In lieu of tacking on a giant addition, Gurney created separate buildings that form a courtyard around the new swimming pool. The original house’s first floor now contains a master suite, a powder room, and a foyer that leads through the house to a kitchen/dining/living pavilion. Upstairs in the old house are three bedrooms—two on the second floor and one on the third. Additional pavilions house a bathroom, a screened porch with Douglas fir walls and a fireplace, and an exercise room.
“We used familiar forms, including a steeply pitched pyramid roof on one volume,” Gurney says. The shingled pavilions have tall red-brick chimneys but no overhangs, gutters, or trim, and lots of glass in black steel frames. The interiors, even in the historic house, are modern, crisp, and light-filled. The additions explore the language of the old house, enclose the backyard space, and bring the project down to scale, our judges noted approvingly. “It transcends but still respects the existing house,” one said.
Entrant/Architect: Robert M. Gurney, FAIA, Architect, Washington, D.C.; Project architect: Brian Tuskey, Robert M. Gurney, FAIA, Architect; Builder: Ilex Construction, Easton, Md.; Landscape designer: South Fork Studio Landscape Architecture, Chestertown, Md.; Interior designer: Baron Gurney Interiors, Washington; Living space: 2,338 square feet; Site: 0.18 acre; Construction cost: Withheld; Photographer: Maxwell MacKenzie.
Resources: Bathroom cabinets: Woods and Style, www.woodsandstyle.com; Bathroom fittings: Dornbracht, www.dornbracht.com; Bathroom fixtures: Duravit, www.duravit.com, Kohler, www.kohler.com; Cooktop: Miele, www.miele.com; Dishwasher: Bosch, www.bosch-home.com; Doors: Hope’s, www.hopeswindows.com; Garbage disposer: Insinkerator, www.insinkerator.com; Kitchen cabinets: Woods and Style, www.woodsandstyle.com; Kitchen fittings: Dornbracht, www.dornbracht.com; Kitchen fixtures: Julien, www.julien.ca; Paints/stains/wall finishes: Sherwin-Williams, www.sherwin-williams.com; Refrigerator: Sub-Zero, www.subzero-wolf.com; Windows: Hope’s, www.hopeswindows.com
