Multi-Generational House

  Multigenerational House is a 2,800-square-foot, ground-up residence set within a gently sloping meadow, bordered to the south by a dense forest in Germantown, NY. The house is designed to accommodate three generations of a family in a shared domestic environment that balances togetherness with autonomy. The space forms part of a broader family compound, alongside a neighboring residence designed for the client's niece, establishing a small, interconnected rural enclave.
       The project reinterprets the vernacular typology of the barn through a contemporary lens. Three distinct volumes—each referencing traditional barn profiles—are composed as separate pavilions that pivot outward to create intimate covered inner courtyards, integrating indoor and outdoor living while preserving privacy. These volumes house an entrance pavilion with a garage, office, and workout area; a central living pavilion containing the living room and kitchen; and a separate bedroom volume. The central living pavilion, with its lofted ceiling, opens southward to capture natural light and long views into the forest, while the bedroom wing is set back into the landscape, creating a quieter, more secluded domain. 

Photos by Alon Koppel and Naho Kubota

Status

Completed in August 2025

Program

Residential

Area

2,800 sf

Location

Germantown, NY

 Approach to the house is carefully choreographed. From the north, a curved brick wall defines a façade that conceals the scale of the home and guides circulation along a meandering path. This moment of compression gives way to openness upon entry, where the house reveals itself through expansive south-facing glazing and a direct view of the surrounding forest and meadow. The orientation follows principles of feng shui, aligning the home to welcome light, warmth, and a sense of integration with the landscape.

     An undulating roof plane, integrated with solar panels, unifies all volumes under a single canopy. The house is designed with a highly efficient envelope and is heated and cooled using a geothermal system, ensuring sustainable and energy-conscious living.

       Multigenerational House is ultimately a study in balance – openness and enclosure, privacy and togetherness, tradition and contemporary form. By reimagining the barn typology as a series of connected but distinct volumes, the project proposes a new model for rural living that integrates privacy and connection, to the land and to each other.

Team

Koray Duman, Daniel Elmore, Caitlin Dippo, Roksolana Ozerianska, & Pablo Subiotto Marqués