Read the full article about this Provincetown Modern Renovation. Article excerpt below.

‘I can’t believe this came out of it’: A Provincetown guesthouse gets reinvented as a modern single-family

Neil Jacobs and Eric Ganz dreamed of a seaside escape with a Scandinavian sensibility. What they purchased was a historic Greek Revival built for a sea-captain-turned-merchant that had been functioning as a guesthouse since just after World War II.

As head of reconnaissance, Jacobs gave the Provincetown property a hard pass at first, in part because the house was chopped up. “It felt like every door you opened was another bathroom,” Jacobs says. Later he reconsidered, noting that it met his husband’s criteria: a water view and a yard big enough for a small pool. This time, inspiration struck. If they opened it up, Jacob says, “We could have a central atrium filled with light.”

Wife-and-husband architectural team Mette Aamodt and Andrew Plumb rendered the vision a reality. The duo realized that scooping out the shell, including the second floor and attic, would leave exactly what Jacobs and Ganz were looking for. “There are two gabled roof forms, one that runs east-west and another that runs north-south,” Plumb says. “That meant we could have two double-height spaces perpendicular to each other.”

Excavating the inside of a building is easier said than done. While the red brick chimney could be dismantled with little problem, eliminating a good portion of the second story would require backup. “The floor does a lot of work to stitch a house together,” Plumb explains. “You can’t just take it away and be done.” Steel ties were inserted to stabilize the roof and steel lintels went up to support the walls.

The main living space is now the central atrium the couple imagined. It soars to 22 feet at its peak and light pours in from nearly every direction. The architects matched an existing sky-high dormer window facing the street with a copycat opening on the wall across from it, which opens into the second-floor den. They also made a cutout in the wall above the stairs that peeks into the master suite. “The idea was to create these specific moments of connection between spaces,” Plumb says.

The living room melds into the kitchen at the back of the house. At Ganz’s suggestion, a 12-foot bi-fold door visually connects the space to the deck, patio, and plunge pool. In the interest of keeping sightlines clear, cabinetry and appliances are pushed to the side. “A kitchen has all this stuff that screams, ‘I am a kitchen!’” Plumb says. “It’s important that a kitchen be quiet in an open space, especially here where you look through it to the outdoors.”

To imbue the dining area with its own sense of space and character, Plumb lined the ceiling with white oak tongue-and-groove boards. He also designed a slatted white oak screen as a backdrop. “Neil wondered if the ceiling would be high enough, but a contrast in scale is a good thing,” Plumb says. “It makes smaller spaces cozier and larger spaces more impressive.” The purpose of the screen, which Jacobs calls, “Andrew’s greatest moment,” is threefold. Functionally, it shields the stairway to the master suite. Visually, it adds interest. Mentally, it also soothes the mind. “Textured surfaces slow down the eye and makes things feel calm,” Plumb says.

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We love events like these for several reasons. One, many of the artisans use natural and local materials. Two, you’ll be supporting small, local businesses. Third, these pieces are unique and beautiful, easily becoming a cherished heirloom for your family. And finally, you have an opportunity to know the local craftsmen better.

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Read The Transcript:

Sarah Lueck: We’re here at Field + Supply, billed as a modern makers craft fair, to take a look at artisan furniture. This is a three day event showcasing handcrafted furniture along with a growing representation of home accessories, clothing, food, and gifts. It’s held at Hutton Brick Yard in Kingston, New York, a former brick manufacturer that supplied New York City with brick for over a hundred years. You can still see large stacks of bricks in the old kiln buildings and in brick gabions that line the paths.

I’m going to highlight a few of the things I saw during my whirlwind few hours there. One thing to note is that it feels like Brooklyn in the country. Both attendees and vendors are mostly from New York City or the Hudson region, but not all, which means of course there were lots of great dog and fashion sightings.

Photo Courtesy of Michael Robbins

First step is Michael Robbins, a New York furniture designer who has a strong sense of proportion and detail. Think glam shaker, but in the best way. I love this stone topped coffee table and his hardware. He effortlessly mixes materials and pieces like this brass, wood and upholstered day bed, and his take on a shaker peg rail is begging to be put in an entry hall for all those fall jackets.

Next up is a long time favorite of mine, Sawkille, a Kingston-based husband and wife team who draw on a deep knowledge of historical methods to create timeless pieces that feel crush. Case in point is this amazing metal and mother of pearl inlaid table.

Photo Courtesy of Andrew Finnigan

One thing there was no shortage of here was stools. I liked these by Andrew Finnegan with their nicely proportioned turned legs and fee. Another Hudson Valley furniture maker, his wood-turning skills are evident in most all of his pieces. Note that you can customize the finish and size of most everything you see here, even if not advertised.

There were some nice material examples in the Heide Martin booth, a Maine-based furniture maker, such as this peg rail hung cabinet.

AWN, short for Accordance With Nature, is a personal favorite of mine because of their intricate, sometimes idiosyncratic details. I really want one of these shelves.

Let’s take a break for a second from furniture and look at a few of the other vendors that caught my eye. The company Found My Animal had baby goats, so of course I had to stop there. Turns out a percentage of sales from their handmade pet leashes support animal welfare initiatives and promote adoption over purchase practices.

Photo Courtesy of Tantuvi

This is Tantuvi, which is Sanskrit for weaver, and it’s a collection of colorful abstract rugs designed in New York and woven in India via a co-op whose goal is to train more women in the art of weaving, giving them an income that will increase their stability and independence in what is largely still a male-dominated society. I love the mission and the strong compositions of the rugs.

I had to show a ceramics booth, and this artist, Raina Lee, was refreshingly out of place among the muted earth tones of a lot of the other booths. She makes her own highly textured glazes like this one named Creamsicle, and her dreamy LA Treehouse showroom was just featured in the New York Times.

Now back to furniture. Dzierlenga had a beautiful yet unmanned booth. The best was this credenza made from one of my all time favorite woods, spalted maple, which is actually any type of maple that has been allowed to begin to decay, then dried to stop further decay. The results are these beautiful black lines in the grain. To me, it looks like a drawing of wood overlaid with the actual wood. You see it in turned bowls a lot, but this is a gorgeous example of how it can elevate furniture, too.

Peg Woodworking was another favorite. Her mix of metal and bright powder coated colors, woven seats, and curved wood forms really stood out. Based in New York City, she has sculpture background that shows in the material experimentation and strong lines.

Photo Courtesy of Jack Rabbit Studio

Last but not least is JackRabbit Studio, whose chunky sculptural chairs were almost good enough to eat. Miller the owner said he made these for this weekend and I’m really hoping to see more work like this from him in the future.

That’s it for me here at Field + Supply. The artisans featured here all make their own products in the US, many using local materials and running small businesses with employees. This event has been a great way to get to know some of them a little better. We love incorporating furniture in our projects crafted by makers like these. They bring a unique perspective to their work and create finished pieces that are true heirlooms.

SUBSCRIBE TO THE AAMODT / PLUMB YOUTUBE CHANNEL HERE TO GET MORE VIDEOS ABOUT CREATING A SLOW HOME

Links Mentioned In Video:

Event: http://www.fieldandsupply.com/
Michael Robbins: http://www.mchlrbbns.com/
Sawkille: https://www.sawkille.com/
Andrew Finnigan: https://www.andrewfinniganwoodturning.com/
Heide Martin: http://www.heidemartin.com/
AWN: http://www.accordancewithnature.com/
Found My Animal: https://www.foundmyanimal.com/
Tantuvi: https://tantuvistudio.com/
Raina Lee: https://rainajlee.com/
How A Ceramist Transformed A Los Angeles Treehouse: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/13/t-magazine/how-a-ceramist-transformed-a-los-angeles-treehouse.html
Dzierlenga: http://www.dzierlenga.com/
Peg Woodworking: http://www.pegwoodworking.com/
Jack Rabbit Studio: https://www.jackrabbit.studio/new-page-1

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To be honest Audis have never been on my radar. I have been partial to BMWs since my dad drove a 3-series in the early 90’s and I always thought that would be my grown-up car. But our friend Bryan, who is our go-to car-guy, said that was BMW’s classic period and that since then the styling has gotten more aggressive. Today Audi is more classic. It has a clean design aesthetic that is understated and unpretentious, while just as luxurious as its competitors.

After collecting some more anecdotal evidence, a quick Google search lead me to an interview with Audi’s head designer in Wallpaper* Magazine in which he defined Audi’s brand as being sporty, progressive, and sophisticated. I also noticed Audi was sponsoring a fundraising gala at the Institute of Contemporary Art / Boston. Then the final piece of the puzzle fell into place – a press release from Audi stating it has been the only automotive brand present at the internationally renowned art show Design Miami / Basel since 2006.

“Design Miami / Basel is one of the highlights on the international design show calendar, and it is the most significant forum for design lovers… The brand’s passion for design has taken the form of various projects with international designers and architects….”

Aha! It was deliberate. Audi has positioned itself as the design lover’s car. Well played Audi! Your clean lines and single-frame grill snuck up on me. You didn’t shout or honk or even grrr as you surrounded me but now design lovers  is all I see.

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After graduating from Barnard I received a Japanese Monbusho Research Fellowship given out by their Department of Education and headed off to Japan with very little preparation.

Japan

I arrived bleary-eyed after the long flight to a place where I couldn’t speak to anyone, didn’t know the customs and couldn’t read the neon billboards all around me. Did you see that movie “Lost in Translation”? That was me and I was homesick.

I quickly met up with some other foreign students and started eating out with them at the ramen carts and local sukiyas. Eating was a great source of pleasure for me in Japan, not only for the tasty dishes, but also for the experience.

The handmade earthenware, beautiful arrangements, intimate atmosphere and the rituals of serving tea and other dishes delighted my senses and made me feel welcome.

I admired the everyday objects like the tea cups and rice bowls and began to seek out the handmade ceramics at the studios of local artists. Their irregular shapes and finishes, the evidence of the hand of the maker and the natural process of kiln drying captivated me.

Wabi Sabi

The Japanese concept of beauty is called wabi-sabi and it centers around the notion of transience and imperfection. It is for the Japanese what the Greek orders and perfection are for the west. Wabi-sabi is simplicity, austerity, authenticity, intimacy, modesty, irregularity. It embodies a sense of melancholy and spiritual longing that comes from Buddhist teachings. But with that longing is also a sense of possibility and openness. There is not one correct answer, like the Golden Mean, but many possible outcomes and that inspires me.

In every other way I was an outsider but in wabi-sabi there was room for me. The tea cups that I collected that year fill me up with their imperfect beauty because I can complete the story myself in many different ways.

The image is from Japanese ceramic artist Shinobu Hashimoto. His work can be found at his site hashimotoshinobu.com and you can watch him work here on his youtube channel.

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The Smokehouse

Mock-up Samples for Modern Texas Prefab

We have been interested in this technique and material as an exterior siding for quite some time. We experimented with its use on our Warming Hut Project because of the relationship between the fire to make it and the fire to warm you in the hut. More recently, we used it in our award-winning Modern Texas Prefab Project. Paradoxically, charring the wood also makes it more fire retardant as well as being rot and pest resistant. For both projects, the charring was achieved by using a blowtorch on the wood before it was installed.

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