The Mamaroneck House is a new construction situated in the city of Mamaroneck, NY USA. Sitting on a scenic lot of about 1 acre in a wooded neighborhood outside NYC, this single-family house consists of 511 mq of primary living area, plus a fully finished basement and a three-car garage. The program consists of a large eat-in kitchen, formal dining and living rooms, a media room, a study, a large master suite, three children’s bedrooms, a family room, and a guest bedroom. The 28 mq conditioned basement compliments the primary living spaces, incorporating an expansive children’s play area, a media center, and a small gym. While the entry façade is planar in nature, the rear façade is animated with a more dynamic relationship between indoor and outdoor living areas. This side of the house is defined by a double-volume transparent cube and several more solid volumes which provide a more ambiguous relationship between indoors and out. The kitchen is located in the rear side of the house, this playing into that ambiguity and providing a strong connection with the environment.
This indoor / outdoor kitchen was designed as the heart this new home. One of the main characteristics of the house is the blurred lines, expressed with a highly transparent rear face that unifies indoor and outdoor spaces. The kitchen area is composed of two distinct areas: indoor food preparation and eat-in kitchen and an outdoor grille and food prep area with an outdoor dining pavilion. The four areas devoted to food prep and dining are united by physical adjacencies and visual sight-lines. For instance, a 2x2.5m window and large glass doors connect the both and outdoor kitchen, and the free-standing dining pavilion has a cantilevered roof without one corner column to more fully unite the outdoor covered area with the house itself.
A simple material palette composed of walnut and ipe wood, white cabinetry and exterior stucco and an array of soft grays was implemented, maximizing a sense of natural light and enhancing the minimal architectural vocabulary of the entire house. Practicality and performance are ensured thanks to the full height millwork custom made by Cesar Kitchens and outfitted with Miele appliances.
Additionally, the kitchen remains well connected to the rest of the house and allows for an easy circulation thanks to its five doors and openings making the space a destination within the house.
Credits
Mamaroneck
New York, USA
Confidential
10/2017
97 mq
Eric Gartner
Joy Wang, Aries Liang, Caroline Edwards
Peter Murdock
Curriculum
SPG Architects is a mid-sized architectural firm based in New York City. Founded by Coty Sidnam and currently directed by Eric Gartner, SPG is an award-winning design practice that also provides a comprehensive range of architecture and design services. SPG’s modernist approach to design allows for the various functions of a space to be organized and expressed, while eliminating the cacophony of the untended environment. Architectural ideas are drawn from the project site and the client’s needs and desires. These then are expressed through manipulations of form and light. An interest in up-to-date building technologies, natural and man-made construction materials, and a constantly developing approach to sustainable design strategies further inform our designs. SPG’s work clearly presents a visual consistency based on human proportions, the exploration of light, and the judicious use of materials that provide singular tactile, visual, spatial and temporal experiences.