1970s modernist home by Charles Gwathmey gets refreshed by Worrell Yeung
The restoration and refresh of a 1970s modernist home by Charles Gwathmey, delivered by dynamic architecture studio Worrell Yeung, brought an iconic residence into the 21st century
![House in the Dune by Worrell Yeung](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/6JomuNKYCh2Huuf6XqjFVE-415-80.jpg)
A modernist home designed by iconic American midcentury architect Charles Gwathmey, originally known as the Haupt Residence, has just been given a new lease of life with a restoration and refresh by New York studio Worrell Yeung. The house, built in the 1970s in Amagansett, New York, cuts a distinctly modernist figure, sat among sand dunes and looking out towards the ocean – a positioning that lends it its name, House in the Dunes.
Partially clad in gray cedar siding, which is matched by white walls and swathes of glazing, the house is a composition of opaque volumes and voids. These create windows, terraces, rooms and double height living spaces indoors, in a design that feels at once dramatic and comfortably domestic.
Restoring modernist architecture
Figuring out how to approach a redesign process in such a valued piece of modernist heritage was key, explain the architects, who admit that their first instinct was the keep things very low key. ‘We’re big fans of Gwathmey – particularly his early stuff,' says studio co-founder Max Worrell. ‘So we were very excited when we got the call about the house. Especially given that it was in its original condition, totally untouched. Our intention, at first, was really to do as little as possible.'
Using Gwathmey's original drawings as a reference and starting point, the team went to work. The task included updating the structure where needed, to bring it up to 21st century standards, while gently tweaking the interior to better suite the new owners' requirements and overall functionality. ‘At every stage of the process we were asking ourselves, ‘What would Gwathmey do?' adds Worrell.
A modernist home for the 21st century
A large part of the exterior cladding was replaced and updated. Meanwhile inside, the living, dining and kitchen areas were carefully united, opening up views and routes through the ground level. Attention to detail was key throughout, with the architects ensuring that any new materials introduced in the redesign, for example, felt at home within Gwathmey's building intention.
The owners are pleased, reveling in the fact that their modernist home is now preserved and cared for. ‘We had a vision of breathing new life into the house, not just as our home, but as an architecturally significant building,' they say. ‘Houses of this vintage are in a dangerous middle ground right now. They are not old enough to be valued for their era appropriate aesthetic. They are either seen as gems to be saved, or outdated and easy tear down material.'
‘But just as any period in time, there are gems worth saving and preserving for future generations to enjoy. This is definitely one of those gems, and we feel grateful and honored to have been part of its story. We hope our efforts from a design and rebuild aspect can highlight all its idiosyncrasies while ensuring its preservation for decades to come. What’s important to me is capturing the transformation we’ve accomplished and having this moment of the house’s life documented, on our watch, before we pass it along.
INFORMATION
Wallpaper* Newsletter + Free Download
For a free digital copy of August Wallpaper*, celebrating Creative America, sign up today to receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories
Ellie Stathaki is the Architecture & Environment Director at Wallpaper*. She trained as an architect at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece and studied architectural history at the Bartlett in London. Now an established journalist, she has been a member of the Wallpaper* team since 2006, visiting buildings across the globe and interviewing leading architects such as Tadao Ando and Rem Koolhaas. Ellie has also taken part in judging panels, moderated events, curated shows and contributed in books, such as The Contemporary House (Thames & Hudson, 2018), Glenn Sestig Architecture Diary (2020) and House London (2022).
-
‘Hedonistic and avant-garde’: Rabanne’s Julian Dossena on the legacy of the chainmail 1969 bag
Paco Rabanne’s 1969 chainmail handbag encapsulates the late designer’s futuristic, space-age style. Current creative director Julien Dossena tells Wallpaper* about the bag’s particular pleasures
By Jack Moss Published
-
Postcard from Paris: Olympic fever takes over the streets
On the eve of the opening ceremony of Paris 2024, our correspondent shares her views from the streets of the capital about how the event is impacting the urban landscape.
By Minako Norimatsu Published
-
The Mercury Prize nominees for 2024 have been revealed
Charli XCX, The Last Dinner Party and Beth Gibbons are amongst this year's nominees
By Charlotte Gunn Published
-
This New York Townhouse renovation is a lesson in contemporary minimalism
TenBerke’s carefully considered New York townhouse is the reimagining of a century-old Manhattan structure that reframes vertical living
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Visit The Frost House, a lesser-known modernist architecture marvel in Michigan City
The Frost House is a lesser-known midcentury architecture gem in Michigan City, Indiana; we took the tour as the property goes on the market
By Audrey Henderson Published
-
Broadway designer Scott Pask’s Arizona retreat is a scene-stealing discovery
Scott Pask invites us inside his Arizona retreat, nestled in the foothills overlooking Tucson – a place to reboot, recharge and commune with nature
By Michael Webb Published
-
Upstate New York retreat Ridge House evokes land art
Ridge House in upstate New York, the work of Brooklyn-based studio Worrell Yeung, is at one with the surrounding countryside
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Rafael de Cárdenas’ first ground-up project is a forever home with waterfront views and hidden treasures
Rafael de Cárdenas reveals his latest completed project in the Pacific Northwest, a family home of calming spaces that bleed the outside in, and ten years in the making
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
We tour Silver Lake House, an architecture couple's ultimate Los Angeles 'urban sanctuary'
Silver Lake House by Standard Architecture | Design is the practice founders Jeffrey Allsbrook and Silvia Kuhle's idyllic personal home in California
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Step inside One High Line's sculptural forms in New York
One High Line, the residential building designed by Bjarke Ingels of BIG with interiors by Gabellini Sheppard and Gilles & Boissier, swirls up into the skyline absorbing its New York City context
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
The Greenwich by Rafael Viñoly: an exclusive first look inside
We tour The Greenwich with Román Viñoly, exploring one of his father Rafael Viñoly’s final projects in New York
By Léa Teuscher Published