September 21, 2006
Herring Creek Farm
This newly constructed gambrel-roofed home sits on a seventeen-acre lot in Herring Creek Farm, an expanse of waterfront farm- and grassland redeveloped as a private enclave with just a handful of residences. Each could be no more than 7,500 square feet, with neither basements nor outbuildings permitted.
The clients’ large family, many visitors, and formal aesthetic suggested that inspiration could come from shingle-style Gilded Age coastal “cottages” of the Northeast. The design emerged from an imagined historic narrative of just such a house, one abandoned after the hurricane of 1938, then brought back to glorious life for the twenty-first century.
The wings of the H-shaped plan conceal each other, making the large building appear smaller and creating outdoor rooms. Flowerboxes, fireplaces, and porches convey a sense of hearth and home, and the owners’ style comes through particularly in a summer living room styled after Palm Beach, where they spend much time.
