In Amagansett, New York, a quiet stretch of land has been shaped into a home that reflects not just its setting, but the lifestyle of the family who lives there. Designed by Bates Masi + Architects, the house was created for owners whose days revolve around the ocean, the wind, and the subtle signals that tell them when it is time to head out onto the water.
A Home Designed for Watching the Conditions
For this family, being on the water is as much about timing as it is about passion. Wind surfing, kite boarding, and sailing all depend on knowing when conditions are right, and the house was designed to support that awareness. Daily life here includes watching subtle environmental cues, whether at home or nearby on the beach, and the architecture responds by making those signals easier to read rather than hiding them.
Two Wings That Balance Living and Rest
The house is arranged into two distinct wings that create a clear rhythm to daily life. One wing is dedicated to shared living spaces, while the other is reserved for sleeping areas. This separation allows busy, social areas to remain lively while quieter spaces stay calm and protected, all without feeling disconnected.
A Backyard Designed to Lead You Home
Looking out over the backyard, the home connects visually and physically to a swimming pool and a timber deck. From there, a series of steps gently lead up past the pool to a reflecting pool and onward to the house itself. The journey through the landscape feels intentional, guiding movement while reinforcing the connection between water, architecture, and everyday routines.
Reading the Wind Through Water
For a family so attuned to wind conditions, knowing when the breeze is right is essential. The reflecting pool plays a practical role beyond its visual appeal, acting as a barometer that reveals the strength and character of the wind. Ripples across the surface give immediate feedback, turning a quiet architectural element into a daily tool for decision making.
Light Filled Interiors That Stay Open to Nature
Inside, the home feels bright and airy thanks to a restrained palette of light wood and expansive floor to ceiling windows. Natural light moves easily through the spaces, while views out to the surrounding landscape keep the interior closely tied to the outdoors. The atmosphere is calm, open, and deliberately uncluttered.
A Structure That Makes Engineering Visible
The structure of the house becomes part of its visual language. Exposed glulam wood beams run east to west, with venting panels positioned between each beam along the perimeter. To span large distances, steel flitch plates connect the beams, creating slim voids that neatly accommodate light fixtures while remaining clearly visible as part of the design.
A Fireplace That Carries Design Across Boundaries
In the living room, the fireplace surround echoes the steel flitch plates seen overhead. This detail creates a visual link between structure and finish, while also extending from the interior out to the exterior. It becomes a subtle connector, reinforcing the continuity between inside and outside spaces.
A Minimal Kitchen with Practical Warmth
The kitchen stays intentionally simple, with wood cabinets that match the timber used throughout the house. This consistency helps the space feel integrated rather than separate. A large island adds extra storage and provides a casual place for a couple of people to sit, making the kitchen both functional and welcoming.
Details Revealed Along the Hallway
Moving through the hallway offers a closer look at the steel flitch plates that connect the structural beams. Here, the engineering becomes more intimate, allowing occupants to appreciate the craftsmanship and logic behind the home’s construction as part of everyday movement.
A Bathroom Designed for Life After the Ocean
One of the bathrooms includes two showers, one located indoors and the other outdoors. This thoughtful addition makes rinsing off after time in the ocean easy and practical, while reinforcing the idea that the home is designed around an active, water focused lifestyle.
This Amagansett house shows how architecture can quietly respond to the rhythms of everyday life. By aligning design decisions with a family’s deep connection to wind and water, Bates Masi + Architects created a home that feels intuitive rather than imposed.