Award-Winning Architecture

Architects showed off their best residential work for AIANH’s recent annual competition.

The New Hampshire chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIANH), celebrating its eightieth year as a statewide champion of the architectural profession, held its thirtysixth annual program.

A full schedule of events had been planned around this program, including the eagerly anticipated Design Awards Celebration Gala. However, due to the pandemic, much of the recognition for Excellence in Architectural Design moved to virtual and print platforms, such as the summer issue of Forum, AIANH’s quarterly print publication.

AIANH would like to thank its sponsors, including Platinum Sponsors Charron, LLC, and Spaulding Brick Company, Inc., and Gold Sponsor Callahan Construction Company. The AIANH Excellence in Architecture Design Awards Program also receives support from Corporate Allied Partners: Marvin, NHSaves, Crown Point Cabinetry, Liberty Utilities, North Branch Construction, Pella Windows and Doors and PROCON.

AIANH received forty submissions across categories for commercial and residential projects, as well as unbuilt, small firm and architectural restoration and preservation. The jury, architects and landscape architects from Seattle, Washington, evaluated projects based on overall design excellence, including aesthetics, clarity, creativity, relevant functionality and sustainability that aligns with the AIA Framework for Design Excellence. Eleven submissions were chosen for recognition, including two residential projects.

This year’s contributor is Susan Phillips-Hungerford, AIA, the chairperson of the AIA New Hampshire Design Awards Committee. She is also a practicing architect in Peterborough, where her passion for the natural environment, the built environment and collaboration as process combine to meet client objectives.

—Bonnie Kastel

MERIT AWARD: EXCELLENCE IN ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN

Shoreland Overlook

Murdough Design conceived of the home as a place to gather in nature for a couple and their extensive network of family, friends and professional colleagues. Immersed in the landscape overlooking the idyllic Squam Lake shoreline, the house accommodates sixteen-plus guests and allows for diverse use, from corporate retreats to intimate musical performances to family gatherings. With movement through the building, spaces and views unfold progressively through a framework of linked vantage points and framing devices. Architecture and landscape are intertwined, blurring distinctions between interior and exterior.

This occurs especially at pivot points where geometries of adjacent buildings are connected, such as the entry breezeway and the covered bridge. The materials palette is natural and modern. Craft, detailing and construction details create a quiet architecture that has minimal visual impact on the lakefront and prioritizes an experience of immersion and connection to the natural site.

Murdough Design in Concord, Massachusetts

(978) 341-4100 • murdoughdesign.com

General Contractor: Wood and Clay, Inc. in Gilford Structural Engineer: RSE Associates in Watertown, Massachusetts Surveyor/Civil Engineer: David M. Dolan Associates in Center Harbor Solar: New Hampshire Solar Landscape Architect: Richardson Associates in Saco, Maine Landscape Contractor: Miracle Farms in Moultonborough

Event Barn

The design challenges here were to provide a flexible event space for gatherings of family and friends; capture views of mountains to the east; include a commercial kitchen that facilitates the preparation of farm-to-table meals, including wild game, local grass-fed beef and on-site poultry; and provide garage/storage space. The barn is positioned at the top of a knoll to maximize the views. The lower level, three-stall garage slides into the hill, adding insulation and acoustical isolation. The barn’s south-facing roof hosts a solar array. Natural stone forms ribbon driveways without adding impervious pavement. The barn is post-and-beam construction with exterior rain-screen cladding. The doors are reclaimed barn board, complemented with copper accents at the cupola and roof edges. The cupola sits atop a splayed light shaft, bringing natural light to the center of the event/gathering space. The event space includes a three-sided bar located under the cupola, with views framed through glass barn doors.

Cowan Goudreau Architects, PLLC in Concord (603) 226-3990 • cgarchs.com

General Contractor: Sharpe Builders in Contoocook Landscape Architect: Pellettieri Associates, Inc. in Warner Engineer-Structural: SW&C Engineering P.A. in Manchester

Soo Nipi House

In this project to replace a family home destroyed by a fire, the rough size and location of the previous house was used as a starting point to design a retreat for a brother and sister to spend time relaxing, reading, cooking and using the lake.

The house is designed for two families to occupy separately or simultaneously. The layout balances two master bedroom suites, both with spectacular lake views, over a shared loft-like main living space. The primary feature of the space is a wall of sliding doors that connect the kitchen and dining area directly to the pergola and outdoors. Consideration was taken to minimize its massing due to lakefront height restrictions and the prominence of the house, which is positioned on an exposed point on the eastern shore of Lake Sunapee. The roof parapets conceal a large solar array, and the pergola provides screening of the main façade.

MGa | Marcus Gleysteen Architects in Boston, Massachusetts

(617) 542-6060 • mgaarchitects.com General Contractor: Burpee Hill Construction in New London Landscape Architect: Pellettieri Associates, Inc. in Warner Engineer-Structural: Roome & Guarracino, LLC in Somerville, Massachusetts

Photography by Lisa Ellis

MERIT AWARD: EXCELLENCE IN ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN

Look to the Mountains

Returning to New Hampshire to be near family, this couple embarked on the design process with several priorities: comfort for family and guests, flexibility in the utility of spaces and entirely off-grid. With roots in the New England barn aesthetic, the resulting simple lines, utility and timber structure contribute to the comfort and functionality. Employing techniques to reduce the use of old-growth timber, utilizing structural insulated panels for a high R-values and using reclaimed materials are examples of sustainable efforts. Additionally, the landscape is intentionally minimal, requiring nearly zero maintenance—the 12kW solar array supplies nearly all the electricity required for the home with a propane boiler and generator for backup. Collaboration between the homeowner, builder, structural engineer, interior designer, architect and talented tradespeople and artisans delivered not just a beautiful home but also a thoughtful and enjoyable process.

Bonin Architects & Associates, PLLC in New London (603) 526-6200 • boninarchitects.com

General Contractor: Broome Building Co. in Bristol Structural Engineer: Firetower Engineering Interior Design: Lisa Ellis Design in Athens, Georgia

Photography by John W. Hession

Hillock House Apartment

The Hillock House Apartment was designed as the renovation of an accessory dwelling unit located above an existing garage. The clients wanted the renovated apartment to be a modern space for their teenage children and friends to gather, with heirloom-quality finishes and detailing to last generations. The clients are hoping their future grandchildren will enjoy the space. The renovation uncovered significant rot and mold due to water damage and air leakage in the existing structure, built in the 1990s. This was eye-opening for the team, with a goal to create a healthy and durable renovated space. Hybrid insulation, proper air sealing, triple-glazed doors and windows, heat recovery ventilation, heat pump technology, rain screen ipe siding left to weather, and the use of durable white oak cabinetry and flooring are sustainable features of this project.

Eagle Pond Studio in Wilmot (603) 456-8553 • eaglepondstudio.com

General Contractor: Winni Construction in Danbury Landscape Design: Landforms, LTD in Bow

Photography by Jason Greenleaf

Larkin-Rice House

The design intent of the project was to convert the three-story, historic, single-family residence and carriage house into a condominium of five units, with four units in the main house and one in the carriage house. It was critical that the work was done to repair the exterior of both buildings in a manner consistent with the original period of the structures. The design process included an extensive analysis and documentation of the existing conditions of the site and buildings in order to create an appropriate plan for treating exterior and interior architectural elements.

McHenry Architecture in Portsmouth (603) 430-0274 • mchenryarchitecture.com

General Contractor: Jay Prewitt Builder in Eliot, Maine Civil Engineer: Ross Engineering in Portsmouth Structural Engineer: Ross Engineering in Portsmouth Landscape Architecture: Terra Firma Landscape Architecture in Portsmouth

Photography by John W. Hession

Indian Point Lake House

Five generations of our client’s family have been raised to enjoy, respect and appreciate the natural beauty of Indian Point at Pleasant Lake. Zero ten design was entrusted to fill the needs of a large family by replacing a modest cottage with a comfortable lakefront retreat for future generations that not only preserves the magnificent views to the lake but also respects the unique ecosystem around the point. The careful placement of the structures allows a glimpse of the lake for walkers passing by the main road. From the driveway approach, the structures and lake view gradually expand out to celebrate the dramatic 180-degree view of the pine grove and shoreline unique to the point. Great care was taken to make the building’s appearance from the lake true to the quaint New England lakeside architecture, with the exterior finishes seamlessly blending into the natural landscape.

zero ten design in San Francisco, California (415) 512-8010 • zerotendesign.com

General Contractor: Old Hampshire Designs, Inc. in New London Structural Engineer: CLD Engineers in Manchester Lighting: Weller Design Architectural Lighting in San Francisco, California Landscaping: Landforms, LTD in Bow

Modern Camp

A two-bedroom residence located on a tranquil pond was designed with an elegantly simple aesthetic to focus on the water throughout the seasons. The house was sited to minimize its impact on the wooded setting and shoreline. The living spaces are aligned to look down the length of the pond through a screen of trees. The gable roof orients the living spaces to the pond. The open floor plan flexibly adapts to many furniture layouts. In the summer, living activity expands to a lofty screen porch, onto the plane of the deck, and through wide, glazed doors to the terrace and pond. Modern detailing and limited material palettes heighten awareness of the changing light. High ceilings and expansive windows draw light into the center of the house and connect the interior to the pond. NHH

Haynes & Garthwaite Architects in Norwich, Vermont (802) 649-3606 • hgarchitects.com

General Contractor: Ludwig Leskovar in Norwich, Vermont Structural Engineer: DeWolfe Engineering Associates in Montpelier, Vermont