TAG lap pool
The images below show one of our most interesting current projects. We have been hired to not only improve and enlarge a suburban “colonial” house, but also to address the owner’s fundamental dislike for the current house’s outward appearance. The owners need larger spaces in most every direction, and because the existing house also needs new windows and siding, the opportunity exists to completely change the style of the house.
Perhaps the most exciting of the new changes is the conversion of the former basement into a day lit lap pool, with folding doors opening onto a new lower terrace with a grassy berm, seating wall and fire pit. The new living and dining spaces are then designed to float above this sunken terrace.
We’ll keep you posted as the design progresses, but below is where we are to date.
 BEFORE: front and side of existing house |  AFTER: front and side of new house showing new entry sequence |
 BEFORE: rear of existing house |  AFTER: rear of new house showing new decks and indoor pool courtyard / terrace |
 Aerial view showing new lower level indoor pool courtyard / terrace |  Aerial view showing new entry sequence |
 Lower level pool courtyard with seating integrated into landscaped slope |  Lower level pool with glass walls opening out to the courtyard / terrace |
A new house for an art collector on Martha’s Vineyard, the renovation of a beach house we originally designed 10 years ago, the complete reconstruction of an urban townhouse, the total redesign of a glass walled penthouse at the W Boston, not to mention over 10 additional projects in design or under construction from Cape Cod to Hawai’i… It’s going to be a VERY busy summer at our studio…
 We just started the design of a new house for an art collector on an extraordinary site on Martha’s Vineyard |  The house will enjoy spectacular views of the Atlantic as well as brackish ponds and adjacent conservation land |
 We have begun redesigning a glass walled penthouse at the new W Boston |  The unit has magnificent views of Boston, including the harbor, the Public Garden, the Back Bay and Financial District skylines, and the Charles River. The generic existing plan will be opened up to enhance the dramatic views and allow for a more relaxed lifestyle. A new sculptural glass and steel staircase will lead through a motorized skylight to an enormous roof deck with lap pool |
 We are just beginning the design for a completely rebuilt South End row house |  Five floors have already begun to be demolished in preparation for all new structure and finishes, inside and out |
 Construction has just begun on an expanded unit at The Esplanade, a condominium complex built on the Charles River and designed by Moshe Safdie |  The expanded space will serve as both a home office as well as a guest suite for two young entrepeneurs, whose families visit regularly from India |
 We designed this Cape Cod beach house over 10 years ago for a family with two young daughters. Since then, the family has out grown the original house, so we are helping them expand it in every direction, including up |  All interior walls on the ground floor as well as a brick and concrete chimney have been removed, and large steel beams have been added for a totally open living / dining / cooking / entertaining space. This open living space will extend up to a second floor family room with deck that faces out to the Atlantic. The wood posts in this photo are only temporary… |
Nearly Complete: House in Brewster
Inching closer and closer to completion is this new house facing north to Cape Cod Bay. The owners, a commercial general contractor and his venture capitalist wife, did not want your average Cape Cod with dormers and picket fence. They loved their loft in Boston, and wanted to replicate that feel on their quiet side street in Brewster. The lot was previously undeveloped, and included a natural low “bowl” surrounded by dunes. The typical suburban reaction would be to fill in the site and build a setback-busting McMansion, but instead we took advantage of the existing topography so that a basement level family room could have large sliding glass doors opening out to a courtyard and lap pool. The house is essentially two separate stand alone “lofts” — main house and guest house — joined by a glassed-in bridge that floats above the lap pool and courtyard. The main house has a family room on the lower level, a large living / dining / cooking space on the middle level, and a master suite with office on the top floor. The guest house has storage on the lower level, and two guest bedrooms and baths on the upper level. The bridge acts as a casual dining room with both southern exposure and an ocean view to the north, and below are wide bleacher stairs that lead up from the pool below to a stone terrace within the dunes, and a path to the beach.
 Digital model view of entry to house view of bridge between main and guest house. |  View of entry bridge and front door the planar walls lining the central courtyard are sheathed in clear finished Cedar lap siding; the double height window is located adjacent to the main stair. |
 Digital model view of the central courtyard and lap pool, facing south towards the street. |  Digital model view of steel entry bridge, concrete support, and steel stair leading down to the courtyard and pool. |
 Interior stair leading up to master suite. |  Interior of bridge. |
 Exterior view of bridge looking towards top of bleacher stairs and pool. |  View of Bay side of house from top of dunes. |
 View of Cape Cod Bay from top of dunes. |