Sugar Hill House | David Gauld Architect

Perched on a hill at the shore of the Atlantic Ocean, this beach house’s cubic composition is shifted, resulting in spatial variety. Centrally located on the second floor, there is a cantilever that floats above the lap pool. The pool mimics the shape of the house with the cantilever echoed in the pool steps. This creates a relationship between the pool and house as solid and void. The cantilever/steps mark the central axis of the house. The façade follows this axis creating a poetic symmetry of thirteen boxes. On the right, the tenth stacked box is missing, forming a stepping of three outdoor decks, while on the left side one of the outdoor decks is screened in. Consequently, the outdoor decks on both sides imply a triangulated form to the shape of the house. In this secluded modernist retreat, the ocean can be experienced throughout many moments of the house, such as the dining room cantilever, the outdoor decks, and thehallway on the first floor. The first floor is separated into two bedrooms and two bathrooms using the grid of the façade as an organizing system. The second floor is completely open with the living room and screen porch revolving around the hearth, where the family gathers.