ONLY article by willfitzz

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IN SURFSIDE by ANDREW SPENCER photography by TOM G. OLCOTT PHOTOGRAPHY and MATTHEW KISSIDAY PHOTOGRAPHY

When you talk to Matt MacEachern, Principal with Nantucket – and Boston-based Emeritus, Ltd., you get the immediate impression that he’s smart. Really smart. With a degree from Wentworth Institute of Technology in Boston – an educational trajectory that a semester studying urban planning in the South of Tom G. Olcott Photography

Folding glass doors afford an expansive indoor-outdoor living experience.

France, a fellowship to study Chinese culture in China, and an architecture internship on Nantucket – that impression becomes stronger. But despite that high-level of intelligence, he is still able to find incredible sophistication in the somewhat uniform nature of Nantucket architecture.

architectural design by EMERITUS renovation and build by CHENEY BROTHERS BUILDING & REMODELING

“There is so much beauty in the Nantucket design vernacular,” he said. “You have five or six very simple ingredients, and they create a beautiful consistency.” Matt pointed out the irony some might even say the paradox – inherent in the Nantucket building requirements, noting that in its consistency, Nantucket is unique in the fact that the buildings are so similar in character. It’s easy to think that one might easily get bored using that recipe of “five or six simple ingredients” over and over, but Matt is fascinated by the details that go into creating the perfect Nantucket home for his clients. “In such a tight paradigm,” he said, “you focus on details that you might otherwise take for granted. I get a lot of satisfaction out of those details and out of being able to express my own language as a designer within the Nantucket paradigm.” He cited interior details as being some of the most exciting parts of a design project and added that stairs were currently a “personal obsession.” More on that in a second. In the early 2000s, Matt ran for a seat on the Historic District Commission and was elected to the Board. He admits that he periodically felt frustrated by some of the Board’s decisions,

photos on both pages by Matthew Kissiday Photography

Simple exposed beams set a balanced rhythm on the ceiling, our goal was depth and textured detail without formality.

An informal table for morning

tea, just off the living area.

WORKING TOGETHER, MATT AND STEPHEN BROUGHT TO FRUITION A GORGEOUS HOME IN THE SURFSIDE AREA, . . . .

but after being on the other side of the discussion; he quickly grew to appreciate the HDC’s opinions and decisions. “It was an incredibly enlightening experience,” he recalled of his two years on the Board. “You’re confronted with issues that you’d never thought about before, and you have an immense responsibility because when you approve one person’s design, that means other people can use the same ideas going forward.” In addition to providing him with a great deal of insight into how the Board operates, he also built a huge amount of respect for the HDC Board members: “They have a huge responsibility and it’s a huge time commitment.” In his 20 years of running an architecture firm on Nantucket, Matt has built a reputation for excellence, and a part of the credit for that reputation has to go to the people with whom he works. “We have fantastic, talented people that we work with,” he said. One of those people is Nantucket builder Stephen Cheney of Cheney Brothers Building and Renovation. Originally from Rhode Island, Stephen came out to Nantucket for the first time during the summer of 1997. To work construction, as he tells the story, “I was immediately hooked by the beauty and the people.” He spent a few more summers on the island

photos on both pages by Tom G. Olcott Photography

before relocating full-time in 2001, at which point he started

The clients wanted three bedrooms and an open floor plan that

his construction business, focusing on high-end home building

connected to the spectacular view of the Atlantic Ocean just

and large-scale renovations.

outside their back door. And while that might seem pretty easy for those of us who aren’t architects, Matt took it to an entirely

And as talented as he is, he knows, just like Matt, that he’s only

new level by incorporating NanaWalls, a product that allows

as good as those around him. So he makes sure to surround

the back of the house to essentially open up completely. “It’s

himself with the best when it comes to designing a project. And

really spectacular,” Matt said. “On a nice day, you can fold

he speaks very highly of the Emeritus Principal, saying, “Matt

in the windows on the back of the house and open it all up to

is a turnkey architect. 'He gives me comprehensive plans and

the outdoors.”

makes my job a lot easier.'” That amazing addition, however, required a smart builder, too. Working together, Matt and Stephen brought to fruition a

Enter Stephen Cheney. “The doors are thirty-six feet wide and

gorgeous home in the Surfside area, a project that was from

ten feet tall,” Stephen explained. “When they’re open, it’s

the start filled with a major challenge. “The allowable footprint

great. But when they’re closed, you have the challenge of how

for building was less than a thousand square feet,” Matt

to keep the weather out and the air conditioning in.” With

recalled. “So, by the standards of both the area and the island

nearly twenty years of experience building on Nantucket,

as a whole, it’s not a big house.” Likening the project to that

Stephen has the expertise to solve that complex problem.

of designing a cruising boat, Matt said, “You can’t afford to

“Building a weatherproof house on Nantucket requires

be careless with space in that limited of an environment. Every

a thorough understanding of the time-tested techniques

space has to be elevated in importance because if it’s there,

that have proven effective over the years,” he said.

it has to be serving a purpose.”

photos on both pages by Matthew Kissiday Photography

The doors are magnificent, as is the entire home. But there’s that little personal obsession that Matt mentioned, the one about stairs. Matt’s vision was for a flight of stairs that seemed to be floating in space, but which in reality were firmly grounded to the adjoining wall. “It was a lot of fun collaborating on those stairs,” Stephen said. “Matt wanted a very minimalistic design that still maintained full support at all times. You only get one shot to do something like that right.” The solution to the myriad of challenges associated with that staircase included aircraft-grade aluminum and a United Kingdom-based manufacturer. It’s been said that the devil is in the details, but in the case of both Matt MacEachern and Stephen Cheney, those details are where their professional skills are highlighted. Whether it’s

designing and installing walls that can be folded away so that they open up to the prevailing summer breeze or building a staircase that seems to defy gravity altogether, some of their best work is found on those details. And all of those details come together to create a magical living space that, even though it’s only on a footprint of less than a thousand feet, is still big enough to hold an entire family’s Nantucket dreams. Designed to open the traditional stair, omitting typical supporting elements. Avoidance of density of materials, while simultaneously substituting required features with the lightest and most transparent materials. Goal was to dematerialize the stair. The foyer conditions both entry hall and vertical circulation to the second floor and lower level.

Dreams that became true through the talents and knowledge of two superior Nantucketers. For more information about Emeritus, Ltd. check out their website at www.emeritusltd.com. To learn more about Cheney Brothers Building and Renovation, please visit them online at www.cheneybrothersbuilding.com.