House of Courtyards Upstate NY

Typology

Residential

Area

3000 sf

Location

Columbia County

Status

Built

House of Courtyards Upstate NY

Architecture

Interiors

This villa on a sprawling 12 acres site is designed around a calibrated sequence of exterior and interior spaces to take advantage of the spectacular, gently sloping wooded site. The floor plan organization and the large sliding doors, allow the house to expand and contract according to the seasonal changes. Openings and walls, frame and focus the interior views toward the mountains in the background and toward a large natural pond. More interior images upcoming.

“The House of Courtyards, a new Columbia County house, is a refined living space in the heart of a secluded wooded plot […] Planned around a courtyard and covered outdoor spaces, but unified through form and material, The House of Courtyards is a contemporary take on the cabin in the woods.”
Wallpaper*

“The ethos of the Alepreda studio uses craftsmanship combined with digital modeling to produce a poetic aesthetic language that highlights the tactile sensations and richness of handmade processes. This approach is made evident by the multiplicity of personalized elements, both in the structural characteristics and in the selection of furnishings: the rooms are enlivened by vintage pieces and objects produced on a small scale with traditional carpentry techniques, designed by the architect and made by the Miduny brand.”
AD Italia

Press

Wallpaper*, AD Italia

Expertise

Site Planning, Architecture, Interior Design, Landscape, Permits & Approvals, Web Design

Team

Alessandro Preda, Nicola Brasetti
Structural: Ian Pendleton

Photography

James John Jetel

House of Courtyards Upstate NY

Inspiration

In-Between Spaces

The spaces between interior and exterior hold the quiet magic of blurred boundaries. Here, the sense of enclosure feels soft, breathable, ambiguous—a boundary that connects rather than dividing. A partially enclosed vantage point from which to observe the surroundings.

More than In-Between Spaces

Synchopated Rhythm

Elements are placed in intentionally varied intervals and sizes, echoing the irregular yet harmonious patterns of tree trunks in a forest. The resulting spatial experience is dynamic and pulses with unpredictability and natural rhythm.

For instance, in our House of Courtyards, this theme reappears, at different scales, throughout the project, creating a system of resonances with the surrounding forest. Boards and battens facade, Boiserie, custom concrete pavers, vanities.

More than Synchopated Rhythm

House of Courtyards Upstate NY

Process

Aerial View

“The House of Courtyards Upstate NY, a new Columbia County house, is a refined living space in the heart of a secluded wooded plot […] Planned around a courtyard and covered outdoor spaces, but unified through form and material, The House of Courtyards is a contemporary take on the cabin in the woods.” Jonathan Bell, Wallpaper*

The property is accessed from above through a winding byway.

A house in the woods.

View of entry.

View of a secondary bedroom from the front Courtyard.

The main courtyard.

Living Room. The vertically fluted boiserie resonates with the tree-truck outside. The pattern, metaphorically, continues across the windows, connecting the interior and exterior.

Custom kitchen. The materials include white oak, soapstone, and handmade ceramic tiles.

House of Courtyards Upstate NY — The stair is entirely built of locally sourced white oak.

The interior architecture creates a visual connection with the forest and landscape while providing a feeling of refuge through warm, natural materials and hand-crafted details. Our design ethos deploys craft and digital fabrication to produce poetic details that embody the tactility and richness of artisanal processes. The house of courtyards exemplifies this approach through several custom elements that re-interpret traditional regional details in a contemporary way. The living quarter opens toward forest and mountain views on the East and pond views on the North-East corner, which is fully glazed. Rather than capturing direct light, this orientation privileges the more poetic reflected light from the flickering leaves. Overall, the interior material palette is refined, understated, and mostly specific to the region.