The Quarry House
Our clients bought ten acres of land in the Catskills on the site of a former bluestone quarry. The abandoned quarry pit had filled over time to become a naturally-fed freshwater pond.
The brief for the project was to design a two-bedroom house with a variety of indoor and outdoor living spaces as well as a compact two-bedroom guest house.
We worked with the clients to find the best position for the house and guesthouse to take advantage of the views over the pond and into the forest beyond.
The circulation for the house is along the interior spine of the entry courtyard, with bedrooms and living spaces facing out to a variety of views through mature trees that were carefully maintained. The screened porch extends outwards, hanging over the quarry rubble, open on three sides to take in the best views through the tree canopy.
Passive House strategies and detailing were used to reduce the energy load for an all-electric house, with solar panels on the roof of an adjacent, south-facing shed providing most of the required operating energy.
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