House rules: Janson Goldstein creates a serene guest house in the Hudson Valley

Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
Thank you for signing up to Wallpaper. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
For a sleek guesthouse in upstate New York, Manhattan-based architecture firm Janson Goldstein didn’t want to compete with the existing main house on the rural site. ‘We did this by coming up with a very simple and clear design,’ says partner Hal Goldstein.
The result is a rectangular structure sited to the northeast of the main house. Clad in charcoal-coloured vertical cedar boards, the concrete and wood structure’s opacity gives way to striking transparency at its centre. Here, a window-walled enclosed breezeway provides views and connections to the surrounding meadow. The breezeway – a living area – separates a bedroom at one end of the house from a home gym at the other, each oriented towards the east of the wooded property, with large picture windows framing the landscape.
At the southwestern entry of the guesthouse, the architects cut away a rectangular notch, leaving the framing members intact to create a sort of trellis or pavilion and emphasising the verticality of the cladding. The intent was to highlight the transition from outside to inside and make an ‘exterior foyer’, says Goldstein. The flat roof consists of an EPDM rubber membrane over insulation, with a visible parapet edge of darkened copper (adding rich detail).
Completed last fall, the guesthouse – with its concrete floors and exposed rafters – helps complete the property, along with a pool and deck that were part of Janson Goldstein’s scope. Goldstein says the clients were drawn to his firm’s work after seeing a similarly geometric and relaxed house they designed in East Hampton, New York.
Clad in charcoal-coloured vertical cedar boards, the concrete and wood structure’s opacity gives way to striking transparency at its centre
A window-walled enclosed breezeway provides views and connections to the surrounding meadow
The architects cut away a rectangular notch, leaving the framing members intact to create a sort of trellis or pavilion and emphasising the verticality of the cladding
The intent was to highlight the transition from outside to inside and make an ‘exterior foyer’, says Goldstein. Large picture windows frame the landscape
INFORMATION
For more information, visit the Janson Goldstein website
Photography: Scott Frances
ADDRESS
Janson Goldstein
180 Varick Street Suite 1414
New York, NY 10014
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
-
Tokujin Yoshioka’s flaming glass cauldron sets Tokyo alight
Japanese designer Tokujin Yoshioka plays with fire with an exhibition of glass torches and cauldrons, on view at 21_21 Design Sight Gallery 3 in Tokyo (until 5 November 2023)
By Danielle Demetriou Published
-
Debris Block House in India’s Bengaluru nestles into its leafy landscape
Debris Block House by Collective Project intertwines contemporary architecture, flora and roof gardens, as it nestles within its native landscape
By Tianna Williams Published
-
Sabato De Sarno’s tenure at Gucci begins with a debut collection of real clothes
Italian designer Sabato De Sarno presented his debut collection for Gucci at the house’s Milan hub, which was inspired by what the Italian designer called ‘the joy of life’
By Jack Moss Published
-
'Emerging Ecologies' at MoMA explores the history of the 'green’ movement
'Emerging Ecologies' opens at MoMA in New York, curated by Ambasz Institute director Carson Chan and seeking the meaning of building 'green'
By Beatrice Galilee Published
-
This Miami office is a workspace filled with rawness and texture
A new Miami office by designer Clive Lonstein balances the warmth and texture of nature with modern workspace
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Bed-Stuy townhouse renovation elevates historic home through contemporary minimalism
Bed-Stuy townhouse renovation by Also Office with Colony brings together past and present through gentle design gestures and strategic redesigns
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Discover Diller Scofidio + Renfro’s Blue Dream house in the Hamptons
A new monograph captures Blue Dream house and the lengthy design and construction process of a quintessential example of contemporary Hamptons architecture
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
2023 Obel Award celebrates Kate Orff’s ecosystem-driven designs
Scape and its founder Kate Orff have scooped the 2023 Obel Award, which celebrates the landscape studio’s Living Breakwaters project
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Perelman Performing Arts Center by REX is New York’s marble-clad cultural gem
The Perelman Performing Arts Center by REX in Manhattan conceals a series of ingenious modular stages
By Pei-Ru Keh Published
-
A family villa on the Florida waterfront saves its surprises for the rear elevation
KoDA’s Parkway Residence is a new family villa concealing an inner courtyard and waterside garden with far-reaching views
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Formation Association, USA: Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory 2023
Geometry rules in this Silver Lake, Los Angeles home, designed for a three-sided site
By Nana Ama Owusu-Ansah Published