SeaBendTraditional Home Office, Boston
SeaBend is sited dramatically on a bluff, embracing a commanding view of a New England. The house is long and narrow, mostly one room deep, so that all the major rooms are open to both the north water views and the south sun, with breezes blowing through. The plan is geared to informal living, with the kitchen in the center to serve both indoor and outdoor living areas.
Part of the fun was in seeing what happened when a broad gabled volume was bent to respond to the contours of the site and to begin to suggest an outdoor space on the water side. Keeping the gable roof un-bent while putting a crook in the plan resulted in some curious volumes and unexpected shapes, which you discover as you move around the house.
Photography by Robert Benson
What Houzz contributors are saying:
A safe distance to the edge of the water is prescribed, and even the nature of the finished grading is reviewed and verified, so you do not direct water dangerously toward your neighbors. From foundations to the design requirements to resist high winds, water-focused home design plays by a whole separate rule book from its landed compatriots.In high-wind-velocity areas, the actual type of glass can be prescribed. And in the most dangerously exposed areas (as determined by the Federal Emergency Management Agency), protections for all the doors and windows —such as shutters or plywood panels — could be installed when storms hit. Even if you are living lightly by a marsh, far away from any windswept ocean or flooding river, the water on your site regulates things ike where your septic system can be, how you can add onto your home and the level of your basement.This new house in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, takes advantage of its water location with a long and narrow form, mostly one room deep, which allows all the major rooms to be open both to the northern water views and the southern sun. The spectacular view is framed with windows that respond to their coastal location: Both the glass windows and the structural supports between them are stronger than they would be in a landed location.
What Houzzers are commenting on:
bookshelves in office and studio to maximize views
LOVE this for the second floor library!!! Prefer white wood ceiling.
Photos in SeaBend
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