The residence is located in Sedgwick, near the headwaters of the Bagaduce River, on a rocky peninsula that juts out into tidal waters with views across the river to woods, farmland, and blueberry barrens. The single-level residence has an attached workshop for woodworking and equipment storage. The main volume of the home occupies a ridgeline on the property, affording views both up and down the river. The workshop tucks into the landscape and opens onto grassy fields that lead to the shoreline. A connector volume, composed of a home office and screened porch, provides an internal pathway from the living spaces to the workshop and creates a plan that functions throughout the seasons. The various program elements of living and working are thus combined into one integrated and continuous building form that works within its landscape.

The exterior embraces weathering materials in a dark palette. The predominant material is a stained eastern white cedar that accentuates the horizontality of the building forms. The volumes are carved in to create threshold spaces for entry and outdoor living. These recesses are wrapped in weathering Cor-Ten steel sheets. During the project’s development, the architects studied a number of roof forms before settling on a low-sloping shed roof section that meets to form a single gable at the project’s center. This sheltering roof form was chosen in part for solar orientation and in part to direct water downslope, away from outdoor spaces. A substantial photovoltaics array will occupy the south-facing slope of the workshop roof. The project will be built with the architect’s typical passive house approach to the building envelope, with high levels of insulation, air sealing, heat recovery ventilation, and triple-glazed windows and doors. An energy model was used to inform the design process and assess the building performance.

Location: Sedgwick
Architect: OPAL
Construction start: Spring 2020
Construction complete: Winter 2021