Even under ideal circumstances, gut renovations are an enormous undertaking. Add to the equation a tight, nine-month timeline, a remote location reachable solely by ferry, and a rambunctious family of five to design around—then you’ll begin to grasp the enormity of the task at hand for Oliver Freundlich. A longtime friend tapped the SoHo-based architectural designer to transform an ’80s-era house situated in Seaview, an isolated yet intimate beach community on Fire Island. She and her partner snatched up the spot in hopes of building a summertime retreat from their life in Brooklyn, reminiscent of the island home where she’d spent her childhood summers.
Freundlich had his work cut out for him for his first-ever vacation home project. Fire Island’s strict building limitations and time-consuming approval processes—not to mention the logistics of transporting materials on an island void of motor vehicles—presented significant hurdles along the way. Luckily, Freundlich, an avid ocean lover himself, delighted in balancing the site’s unique challenges with his friends’ aspirations for an authentic summer escape to call their own. “There’s a strong element of nostalgia in this place, so it was a very intimate process,” says Freundlich. “Knowing the clients and having actually witnessed childhood life in Fire Island gave us a deep foundation to draw from to make it very personal.”
Ipe decking surrounds the home’s renovated pool—a special find amid Fire Island’s notoriously small lots. A custom arbor with a cedar brise-soleil overhang is supported by a single column, leaving plenty of open space for poolside entertaining. A cedar wall enclosing the space offers privacy from the street and neighboring homes. Painstakingly sourced patio furniture by Paola Lenti gives the outdoor lounge area vibrant splashes of color.
With its weathered wood siding, the exterior of the existing home conveyed the mood of Fire Island’s iconic Modernist architecture, but a serious spruce-up was in order. Drawing inspiration from the work of famed local architect Horace Gifford, the Oliver Freundlich Design (OF/D) team enlisted Island Contracting to strip the structure down to its skeleton and re-side it in clear cedar. Guided by lead designer Will McLoughlin, and in a nod to Gifford’s legendary designs, the home’s windows were enlarged and reconfigured to frame the surrounding landscape, incorporating as much glass and light as the structure would allow.
The original footprint and proportions of the home still remain, including its three distinct volumes, which intrigued Freundlich from the start. “The house had all these amazing suggestions, and we just capitalized on them,” he says. “That’s really where the exciting, transformative opportunity lay, to dramatically change the character of the house while amplifying its best qualities.” In the updated structure, an open living, dining, and kitchen area with 11-foot ceilings is transformed into a double-height, glass-enclosed atrium in the center of the home. The third section of the house splits into two floors—a luxurious master and guest suite upstairs and a closed-off corridor on the lower level, housing the three kids’ bedrooms, with space to spare for the family’s frequent summer guests.
In doubling the size of the kitchen’s east-facing window, Freundlich embraces architect Horace Gifford’s tendency to highlight Fire Island’s stunning landscapes. Glass stretches from the ceiling to the countertop, framing a gorgeous snapshot of the Japanese black pines in the distance. Natural light pours in from all angles, complemented by Alvar Aalto pendants overhead. Absolute black granite carries over to the kitchen island and countertops and deep, sea-blue laminate by Abet Laminati covers the cabinetry, ensuring durability and longevity. Playful pops of color come from the clients’ vintage collection of Dansk kitchenware and a photograph by R.A. McBride—one half of the homeowning couple.
Inside, lead interior designer Emily Lindberg did away with the stark, white-on-white tile, laminate cabinetry, and drywall covering every surface. Douglas fir wall panels and white oak flooring brought warmth and material richness to the spacious home, which Lindberg filled with an eclectic mix of vintage and contemporary pieces and vibrant textiles. Personal accents, including Danish Modern furnishings from the couple’s collection and colorways inspired by their favorite hues (mustard yellow and Pinot-like purple) allow the home to more accurately express the family’s aesthetic within the original proportions of the space.
Between Labor Day and Memorial Day, the OF/D team worked tirelessly to prep the house for move-in, just in time for the start of summer. The end product is the ideal hub to bring together this lively family’s nostalgia for the past with new memories created on the island. “It was the ultimate renovation in some ways,” Freundlich reflects. “It captures the character and spirit of the people who inhabit it, and that’s thematic in what we do.”
