FIRE ISLAND HOUSE

Location: Fire Island, New York
Type: Residential - Timeshare, Ground-Up
Status: Schematic Design
Size: 1,650 SF
Client: Undisclosed
Team: Miroslava Brooks, Daniel Markiewicz, Mark Gettys
Project Credit: in collaboration with Mark Gettys Architects

Living on a beach, if nothing else, is about exposing our domestic lives to the natural environment.  The typical problem that one encounters with this typology, however, is that everyone wants to live on the beach and consequently lot sizes become long and narrow, limiting exposure to the water and maximizing exposure with one’s neighbors. This project circumvents this fundamental beach house issue by creating a series of internal exposures with the natural environment. 

Rather than packing all the house functions into a singular volume, the sleeping, bathing, living, and pool-lounging areas are pulled apart and interspersed with open-air gardens.  As a result, every space in the house includes multiple walls that face the exterior and have ample connections to the surrounding environment.

The connecting path - an elevated boardwalk - links the spaces together along a singular axis, directing movement and the eye toward an unobstructed view of the ocean.   The simple form of the house celebrates the traditional use of the vertical wood siding and vertical wood slats that allow for privacy from immediate neighbors while simultaneously offering refreshing open breezes and glimpses of the ocean from the center of the house. 

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