Location: Massachusetts,. United States Year of construction: 1987 Architect: Peter Forbes Photography: Tim Hursley
The inspiration for this single-family property came from the owners’ passion for boats and sailing. Taking this as his guiding principle, American architect Peter Forbes designed a building that would resemble an observation tower, facing out over a large, picturesque lake that disappears into the distance.
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The house is splendidly located on top of a hill in an area of woodland with very tall pine trees that are hardy enough to withstand the harsh climate. It stands high above beautiful Lake Marion, in the state of Massachusetts.
The building is on four separate levels, and although the foundations stand on a rectangular base, the upper floors are slightly adapted to take an oval form that also incorporates a tower with a square ground plan – the vertebral element of the whole structure. The basement, partly concealed below ground level, is designed as a utility and workshop area and includes the garage. A porch opens on one side to create an outdoor space sheltered from the strong winds. A staircase right in the center of the building, inside the tower, leads to the second floor where the living areas are located: a large living room with fireplace, the dining-room, and the kitchen. The spatial continuity of these areas is interrupted only by the flight of stairs.
The architecture of this building grows out of the hillside, extending upward to the tall chimneys and staggered roofs via the apse-shape porches at each end of the building and culminating in the central tower.
The central element of the building is the three-story tower that rises above the rest of the structure. Inside, the central staircase moves from one side to the other, crossing the tower and at the same time connecting the different spaces that form the final composition.
In the interior of the building, the flooring, the stair treads, and the banisters are all made of wood, while the walls and ceilings are of whitewashed plaster, white being the dominant color throughout the house.