Design Spotlight

Literally a stone’s throw from the Rennert pile, on a narrow spit of blue-chip real estate nestled between the Atlantic Ocean and a small pond, stands a house designed by Bates Masi Architects that embraces restraint, not ostentation.

Bucking prevailing Hamptons real-estate logic, the owners tore down an existing 1980’s eyesore, which principal Harry Bates called “a big white elephant worthy of Austin Powers,” and replaced it with a structure roughly half the size. Due to rigorous beachfront zoning, the firm had to move the new house back 40 feet from the shoreline. Setbacks

beach

from the pond on the opposite side could not budge, leaving a much smaller footprint in which to pack an ambitious program of eight bedrooms, two offices, a pool house, and an athletic court. “The design was a process of carving away and integrating the house into the site,” explains coprincipal Paul Masi. “It

was about blending materials into the landscape and making things go away.”At 7,500 square feet, the house is hardly small. But it evinces a less-is-more approach. “We kept it as serene as possible and limited the number of materials. You don’t need a lot of design moves when you have

Serge Korsikov

“When you’re on the beach, the house

disappears.”

Design Spotlight

Life’s A

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