Fairmount Residence and Cabana

2000 | Fairmount Residence and Cabana | Hillsborough, NC

This 4,500-square-foot, two-bedroom country home is set in the Piedmont region of central North Carolina. The home’s owner, an avid fine art collector, requested a simple structure that would offer an appropriate setting for his extensive art collection, a comfortable entertaining environment, and a quiet, country retreat. The home includes a separate guest quarters, a salt water swimming pool, trellised garden and storage shed.

Designed as an interpretation of a traditional country homestead, the Fairmount Residence is informed by the example of early 20th century architect, William Wurster. Drawing on Wurster’s admonition that a house must be built “up from the cabin and not down from the mansion,” the floor plan is based on a simply proportioned building module that is repeated and then subtly modified to accommodate the home’s various uses. The resulting composition has been sensitively sited to take best advantage of its hilltop setting, employing time-honored techniques of passive solar design and natural ventilation to create a comfortable, responsive environment. Views of the surrounding landscape and the owner’s collection of outdoor sculpture are intentionally framed by the both the home’s interior spaces and adjoining exterior gardens. By applying familiar vernacular forms and materials with intention, the Residence evokes the compelling heritage of the country home, without yielding to literal historicism.

AWARDS
AIA North Carolina Merit Award, 2000
AIA Triangle Isosceles Award, 2000