Black-clad volumes looking at the horizon. Ghent House by Thomas Phifer and Partners

Architecture firm Thomas Phifer and Partners designed Ghent House a house with six black-clad, single-room volumes, connected by arched corridors, underground, located in the Catskill Mountains, on an expansive, 32 hectares (78 acres) site in upstate New York, a two-hour drive from Manhattan.

"The Ghent House was designed as a linear collection of structures, slightly askew from one another and partially embedded into a hillside."

Thomas Phifer and Partners.

The shape of the building designed by Thomas Phifer and Partners is siding on the landscape and the black siding helps mask the angular forms of the construction. The building was built partly below grade and is only visible from certain angles.

Two access staircases lead into the 380-square-metre (4,100 square-foot) residence. One is located near the middle of the building, while the other is at one of the extremities.

Ghent House by Thomas Phifer and Partners. Photograph by Scott Frances.

Project description by Thomas Phifer and Partners

The Ghent House was designed as a linear collection of structures, slightly askew from one another and partially embedded into a hillside. Each structure contains one room. Slightly raised interconnecting underground passages link the rooms spatially and conceptually.

The building’s low profile minimizes its impact on the sprawling 78-acre site. A small, elevated entry building leads down and into the passage that connects the house’s four bedrooms, kitchen, living, and dining rooms.

Each room is focused on a large, glazed opening that provides spectacular views of the Catskill Mountains and access to the exterior. The site design accommodates sculpture, sitting areas, a pool, walking paths, and beehives, and provides ample grazing land for local cattle farmers.

Ghent House by Thomas PhifGhent House by Thomas Phifer and Partners. Photograph by Eric Petschek. Courtesy of Ghent Houseer and Partners. Photograph by Eric Petschek.

Ghent House by Thomas Phifer and Partners. Photograph by Eric Petschek. Courtesy of Ghent House

Ghent House by Thomas Phifer and Partners. Photograph by Eric Petschek. Courtesy of Ghent Houseifer and Partners. Photograph by Eric Petschek.

Ghent House by Thomas Phifer and Partners. Photograph by Eric Petschek. Courtesy of Ghent House. Photograph by Eric Petschek.

Ghent House by Thomas Phifer and Partners. Photograph by Eric Petschek. Courtesy of Ghent Househek.

Ground floor plan. Ghent House by Thomas Phifer and Partners.

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More information

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Architects

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Thomas Phifer and Partners.

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Project team

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Andrew Mazor, Caroline Alsup, Gregory Bonner.

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Collaborators

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MEP.- Petersen Engineering Group.
Structural Engineering.- Rodney Gibble Consulting Engineers.

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Main Contractor

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Bill Stratton Building Company.

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Area

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479 m² (5,152 ft²).

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Dates

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2014-2020.

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Location

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Ghent House. Ghent, USA.

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Photography

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Scott Frances. Eric Petschek.

THOMAS PHIFER

Thomas Phifer. Since founding Thomas Phifer and Partners in 1997, he has completed the North Carolina Museum of Art in Raleigh, N.C;, the Raymond and the Susan Brochstein Pavilion at Rice University in Houston, Texas; and the Salt Point House, the Millbrook House, and the Taghkanic House, all in the Hudson River Valley of New York State.

Work under construction includes the United States Federal Courthouse in Salt Lake City, Utah and the prototype of a new street light fixture for New York City. The firm is also designing a museum for the Glenstone Foundation in Potomac, Md.; a field house and velodrome for Brooklyn Bridge Park in Brooklyn, N.Y.; a federal office building in San Juan, Puerto Rico; and houses in Madison, Wis., and Dallas, Texas.

Phifer’s buildings have been repeatedly honored by the American Institute of Architects, including six AIA National Honor Awards and 21 AIA New York Honor Awards. In 2011 the North Carolina Museum of Art won a National Honor Award from the AIA and in 2010 the Raymond and Susan Brochstein Pavilion also won a National Honor Award. The international competition-winning design for the City Lights light fixture for New York City won a Research and Development Award from Architect magazine in 2009, and in 2008 the Salt Point House won an American Architecture Award from the Chicago Athenaeum. His projects have been published and exhibited extensively in the United States and overseas.

In 2004 Phifer was awarded the Medal of Honor, the highest award given to an individual or firm, from the New York Chapter of the AIA. In 1995 he received the prestigious Rome Prize from the American Academy in Rome, and in 2011 he was elected an Academician of the National Academy of Design. He is a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects and is serving as a Peer for the General Services Administration. He received his Bachelor of Architecture in 1975 and his Master of Architecture in 1977, both from Clemson University.