Peninsula, Edgewater, New Jersey
The name of this project, the ‘Peninsula’, was selected as a derivation of site. After the emergence of modernism and the rise of suburbia in the face of increased demand for low-cost housing, residential development tended towards simple, generic construction of homes clad with various decorative styles including ‘French Normandy’, ‘Tudor’, and ‘Georgian’.
This resulted in dislocated architectural identities which failed to reflect site, as well as indigenous styles and methods of construction. As such, the solution for this project necessarily hinged on the idea that a new ‘American modern’ could be imagined and redefined by a more authentic vocabulary, offering a redirect on the styles that influence generic building construction.
The apartment units were designed in three different schemes,
each recalling different regions and materials, as opposed to styles and periods.
These schemes include Pacific (walnut), Atlantic (cherry) and Nordic (oak)
The three options of wood define the major architectural difference among units, and are determined by the specific layout and location of the apartments within the building.
In a North-facing apartment, a warm, cherry wood might be selected to balance the cool northern light, whereas a Nordic oak scheme might be used in a South-facing apartment to balance the yellowness of the light.
AMENITY: CLUB HOUSE
Child care center was made to be both fun for kids and a place where parents can sit and work or socialize
Principal-Lead Designer: Farnaz Mansuri
Senior Designer: Thomas Shea
Photographer: Frank Oudeman
Interior Designer & Decoration: de-spec
Published :
“I’ll Take It! (and the Sofa, Too)”, The New York Times, 2007