Design: Potato Barn Recast Into Living Space
Stephen Levine, an architect, and his wife, Laverne Dagras Levine, a designer, had lived on the East End for several years when they decided, 15 years ago, to renovate an old Sagaponack potato barn for a residence. They were particularly interested in maintaining the relationship of the building to the landscape.
Potato barns were built for storage, with three walls of the building underground. Natural insulation from the earth kept the potatoes from freezing in the winter and cool in the summer. Huge trucks could drive in through the large doors at the open end of the building and dump the potatoes directly on the floor.
"Even then, we were aware that the number of barns was diminishing, and did not want to lose sight of the fact that this had been a working barn," said Mr. Levine. Three large red ventilators marching along their roof ridge are original to the building and a dead giveaway that this is no ordinary house.
Drawing An Axis
As their plans took shape the landscaping also was laid down on paper. The length of the barn, built parallel to the road, was emphasized by a long hedge. Drawing a line down the center of the barn to the eastern end of the lot, Mr. Levine established an axis for the building and the garden.
The interior, from west to east, progresses from bedrooms to the living room in the center, to the dining area and kitchen, where the original barn doors were replaced with a wall of windows and two glass doors.
The floor levels vary gently, with a flight of stairs to the master suite and pairs of steps down to the dining room. A free-standing fireplace in the living room is also open on the dining side, level with the tabletop where everyone can see it.
Geometric Space
The kitchen door leads up another set of garden steps to a terrace under the grape arbor. This is a special spot for the Levines, inspired by the shady terraces of rural restaurants they visited in Southern Italy.
"We eat almost all our meals there as long as the weather holds. At night the arbor is lit with rows of tiny white Christmas lights and there is another light that accents the lotus plant in the reflecting pool," said Mrs. Levine.
A row of tiny spouts along a copper pipe, Mr. Levine's own invention, forms a series of fountains at the edge of the pool, a subtle addition of sparkle and sound.
An aerial view of the land shows clearly the owners' preoccupation with geometric space, indoors and out. As Stephen Levine is quick to admit, "Everything is architecture!"
Mowed A Straight Line
The long hedge bordering the road suddenly juts inward to form two rectangular parking spaces. An arched opening leads visitors through the hedge into a square courtyard, defined by a shed and plantings, and on to an entrance in the glass wall.
From the large living room window, the view runs straight down the axis, between the grape arbor and shed, between a pair of cherry trees, and along the path to a rectangular garden.
"When we first lived here the landscaping was still minimal, and we simply mowed a straight line to and around the vegetable garden." Today that vista is backed by a grove of evergreens, with a small opening at the center.
In time, these trees will grow into a dense thicket, and then the couple will high-prune the interior opening and create a cool, dark, outdoor retreat.
The Trains Run By
At the rear of the barn a large semi-circle of hedging defines the lawn and separates it from meadow grass and larger trees beyond.
As is typical of potato storage barns, the railroad is not far away, here forming the entire northern boundary of the property. Bamboo in irregular stands has grown together in an impenetrable wall, which screens and muffles the sight and sound of the trains that rumble by.
The Levines' subtle understanding of detail makes the open interior work especially well for entertaining. The wooden kitchen cabinets, for example, have a formal, contemporary look that belies their utilitarian purpose.
Subtle Detailing
The cooktop is another of Mr. Levine's adaptations. To keep the cooking area inconspicuous and narrow, he designed a single row of four black, grated burners that blend into the back of the countertop and are hidden from the dining area by a band of white molding.
Other black appliances, such as the toaster, seem to disappear.
There is a sense of fun and long-lasting pleasure about the Levines' house. Not long ago they carried back a pair of papier mach‚ acrobats from a Mexican vacation. These brightly colored figures now cavort from the collar beams in the living room, in front of a huge carnival sideshow banner of "Lady Medusa, the Snake Charmer."
In a basket nearby, a calico cat is quite content. She belongs to a neighbor, and comes over just for weekends.