Dean Maltz Architect

(Association with Shigeru Ban Architects)

The Furniture House is one of 34 residences designed for the Houses of Sagaponac Development in Southampton, New York. Furniture House 5 is based on the plan of Ludwig Mies van der Rohe’s unbuilt Brick Country House (1924), reinterpreted in wood according to program, structure, and site. An improved version of the prefabricated Furniture House System was employed. The spatial concept of the design divides the building into four separate zones. Each of these four zones is enriched by an individual garden that integrates the interior with the surrounding landscape. The house’s construction components are modular, nine feet floor-to-ceiling furniture units that act as elements of structure, spatial division and storage. During construction furniture units work as a flexible system in which two people can move, position and install each piece. Pre-finished on the interior and exterior, the only element needed is additional sheathing for the exterior which is applied for waterproofing and insulation. In total 144 furniture units were employed ranging from closets, book cases, linen closets, pantry, partitions and HVAC units. The house is a sequence of spaces transitions and continuous relationship between interior and outdoor architectural moments.