This is a cottage for a couple, who run marathons the world over, entertain often and value their solitude. The major criteria was that the site and its agricultural heritage be respected and that as few trees as possible be removed; the house was not to be visible from the road; and that every room have a distinct view. The clients chose our firm because it had an architect and a landscape architect, in order that the site and the home be designed in concert with one another.

The initial concept diagram was a hand superimposed on an oak leaf, representing our attitude toward the site ecology. The idea to organize the house with stone walls is derived from a visual reminder of the deep structure of the site, the masses of stone deposits left by the glacier. The wood lams and wood decked ceiling reinforce the idea of living under a canopy of mature trees. Colors, building materials and textures were suggested by leaves, bark, stones, and moss gathered from the site.

The design concept is "a walk in the woods".