Project of the Year

Elevated DESIGN

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FOURTEEN residential projects rise to the top in our ANNUAL AWARDS program

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September 2021

Custom Home

More Than 5,000 Square FeeT

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P R O J E C T o f t he Y E A R

architect

Hutker Architects — builder

Sea View Construction — location

Duxbury, Massachusetts — size

5,581 square feet

Michael J. Lee Photography

Back River B U I L D E R O N L I N E .C O M

perched on a sloped site that overlooks the tidal salt marshes of Duxbury Bay in eastern Massachusetts, the Back River home—by local firm Hutker Architects—aims to speak to the scale and vernacular of historic homes in the surrounding area.

The design team, including partner and founder Mark Hutker, principal Thomas McNeill, and senior designer Deepa Parthasarathy, researched Duxbury’s history, which dates back to the Pilgrims settling into the maritime town after arriving on ships like the Mayflower.

“We went a couple steps further with the site analysis and understanding the place of where we are designing this house,” says McNeill.

“We dedicated time to drive around the neighborhood and cataloged a whole bunch of photographs of houses … to try to get a really good understanding of the town’s vernacular.”

The new 5,581-square-foot home recycles archetypes from the area’s rich history, including gabled forms clad in naturally weathered cedar, articulated gutter brackets, and a white-painted Tory chimney with a black cap—a style rumored to have signaled loyalty to the British during the Revolutionary War. On the street-facing side, the home appears as a modest single-story home with a two-car detached garage. But, a series of entry “aediculae,” or black metal frames, starts to signal a break from tradition and highlights the home’s

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“THERE’S A REALLY incredible WARMTH TO IT. THE material PALETTE, THE DETAILING, THE DIFFERENT LEVELS, AND sectional QUALITIES ARE E alll WELL ELL DONE.” O E.

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wetland views at first glance. The modern forms begin at the driveway’s edge, continue through the main entry, and then to a threedimensional black box on the far interior wall.

“It was really important to us to have this primary entryway that served all the needs, so the family can take advantage of the incredible view they have every day when they walk in the house,” continues McNeill.

After passing a powder bath and enclosed mudroom, owners are welcomed into the home’s light-filled main living area, which features the open kitchen, dining, and living space, and a fully glazed rear wall that offers views to the garden and back lawn in the foreground and bay views beyond.

To the north, a glass-enclosed modern stair leads to a hallway that sits a half a flight above the great room with the owner’s suite and office, separating the bedroom suite from the main area and resolving a grading issue.

Downstairs on the lower level, owners have three additional bedroom suites for their grown children, a home gym, and a family den.

On the other side of the great room’s fireplace, the team added another striking feature—a cantilevered screen porch that extends 16 feet over the pool terrace. Given the home’s proximity to the marshes and the site’s coastal restrictions, the chosen program minimizes the overall square footage on the physical site and provides a shaded outdoor space below and a unique indoor experience on the elevated porch.

Besides being intrigued by the “humongous cantilever,” the design award judges admired the material palette, the detailing, the different levels, and sectional qualities, along with its “incredible warmth” and its “ability to fit into its surroundings.”

“I had a smile on my face the whole time I was looking at these pictures,” states a juror.

“The sum of the parts just really works in a way that I don’t see very often.”—s.s.

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Michael J. Lee Photography

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