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Hamptons artist studio by Worrell Yeung is tucked among the trees
CategoriesArchitecture

Hamptons artist studio by Worrell Yeung is tucked among the trees

By Zarkon Group,

Architectural studio Worrell Yeung has completed a two-storey, black-coloured home extension called Springs Artist Studio that is meant to offer the “experience of being perched in the trees”.

The Brooklyn-based firm was tasked with designing the 800-square-foot (74-square-metre) addition for a Long Island house belonging to a florist and a painter.

Black-stained artist studioBlack-stained artist studio
Worrell Yeung tucked a Hamptons artist studio among the trees

The couple has an extensive collection of art and special objects. Their home is located in Springs, a hamlet in East Hampton that is popular with artists.

“The hamlet of Springs has a strong history of painting,” said Max Worrell, co-founder and principal of Worrell Yeung. “We were drawn to that lineage; Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning, Helen Frankenthaler and Jane Freilicher all painted out here.”

Artist studio interior by Worrell YeungArtist studio interior by Worrell Yeung
It is an addition to a Long Island home

The team conceived a two-storey addition that contains a painting studio on the upper level and an exhibition space down below that doubles as a garage.

The ground floor also has a powder room.

Artist studio interior featuring a gabled roofArtist studio interior featuring a gabled roof
The building has a gabled roof

In response to strict zoning rules and environmental sensitivities, the studio created a small-footprint building that preserved existing trees and minimised the overall impact on the landscape.

Rectangular in plan, the building has a gabled roof and walls clad in pine boards that were stained black to match the main house.

Birch plywood interiorsBirch plywood interiors
Interior finishes include birch plywood

Different-sized boards were used “to create a sense of shifting, lateral scale that counters the vertical massing of the structure”.

The lower portion of the building is covered in 12-inch-wide boards (30 centimetres), while the upper areas are clad in 4-inch and 1-inch versions (10 and 2.5 centimeters).

In the power room, the birch plywood has been stained blue

“From afar the studio reads as an abstract volume,” the architects said.

“Up close, the textured wood and varied-sized planks break down the scale of the building to something more accessible and rich with detail.”

The black cladding is interrupted on the upper level by a band of ribbon windows.

The architects worked with Silman Structural Engineers to create the continuous windows, which are supported by steel-rod cross bracing and slender steel columns that match the mullions.

Within the building, the four-foot-tall (1.2-metre) ribbon windows offer immersive views of the landscape.

“Natural light streams in while unique views appear from each direction, framed by unobstructed glass corners,” the team said.

Ribbon windows in extension by Worrell Yeung Ribbon windows in extension by Worrell Yeung
These offer immersive views of the landscape

“We wanted to create this experience of being perched in the trees – a retreat for working,” added Jejon Yeung, cofounder of Worrell Yeung.

Interior finishes include birch plywood, which was used for flooring, walls and cabinetry. In the powder room, the plywood is stained a rich shade of blue.

The decor includes vintage Eames molded fibreglass chairs and a vintage chandelier by David Weeks.

Black cabin in the woodsBlack cabin in the woods
The siding was painted black to match the main house

The addition is connected to the main home by a glazed passageway that brings in the natural surroundings while “providing a moment of respite between home and the studio/work environment”.

Other projects by Worrell Yeung include a series of gabled timber buildings on a New York farm and a refresh of a cedar-clad dwelling on Long Island that was originally designed by famed US architect Charles Gwathmey.

The photography is by Naho Kubota.

Project credits:

Architecture: Worrell Yeung
Design team: Max Worrell, Jejon Yeung, Yunchao Le Structural Engineer: Silman
Contractor: Fifth and Dune

Reference

Worrell Yeung renovates cast-iron New York building for Canal Projects
CategoriesInterior Design

Worrell Yeung renovates cast-iron New York building for Canal Projects

By Zarkon Group,

Architecture studio Worrell Yeung has renovated a historic cast-iron building in Soho for an arts organisation called Canal Projects, which hosts exhibitions “in an unmistakably New York City space”.

Sat between Soho and Tribeca, the five-storey landmark was built in 1900 as a manufacturing centre, featuring a decorative white facade, double-hung windows and an external fire escape all typical of the neighbourhood.

Exterior of cast-iron building housing Canal Projects
Worrell Yeung renovated the lower two floors of a landmarked building to create a home for Canal Projects

Its street and basement levels were renovated by Worrell Yeung to create a home for Canal Projects, a non-profit arts organisation that hosts exhibitions, talks, performances, readings and screenings for the community.

The studio was careful to retain as much of the building’s character as possible, highlighting the existing features like original masonry and steam radiators, and restoring them where necessary.

Patinated bronze panels line the entry threshold
Patinated bronze panels line the new entry threshold

Visitors arrive via a new entry threshold on Canal Street, where patinated bronze panels line the tall walls in a space intended to offer a moment of pause.

Up a short flight of steps is the main gallery space – a large, open and flexible room that can be programmed in accordance with the organisation’s needs.

The main gallery space is surrounded by windows and features historic details
The main gallery space is surrounded by windows and features historic details

“We designed the foundation to be a series of spaces that would compress and expand, collapse and unfold and move between dark and light,” said Worrell Yeung co-founder Jejon Yeung.

Surrounded by 14 large windows on two sides and boasting ceilings over 13 feet (four metres) tall, this room is light-filled and spacious.

A staircase leads down to more space at cellar level
A staircase leads down to more space at cellar level

New white oak floors complement the industrial details, including five cast iron columns and five wide flange steel columns that were exposed and restored.

“Similarly to providing artists with a distinctive platform, we wanted viewers to experience art in an unmistakably New York City space,” said Max Worrell, Worrell Yeung’s other co-founder.

Library space with pivoting shelves
A library area is formed by pivoting floor-to-ceiling shelves

“Passers-by will glimpse exhibitions from the street through the window walls along Canal and Wooster Streets, and visitors on the interior can see artwork with the city context visible in the background,” Worrell said.

Also on the ground-floor level are private offices for the curators and a bright orange public restroom.

The dark cellar space is used for film screenings
The dark cellar space is used for film screenings

Next to a freestanding reception desk by artist Zachary Tuabe, a staircase leads down to the basement level, which has a much smaller occupiable footprint.

Darker and more enclosed, the cellar space features original brickwork, masonry and timber ceiling joists, and provides a very different exhibition space that is suitable for film screenings.

Orange kitchen
A bright orange kitchen is tucked into an alcove

Light from the steel sidewalk grates illuminates one end of the space, where a library area is created by floor-to-ceiling shelving that pivots as required.

A pantry area is hidden in an alcove behind a set of stable doors and is coloured entirely bright orange to match the upstairs restroom.

“We wanted artists to confront a venue that provides sufficient neutrality for their work, but that is also distinctly undivorceable from the Soho Cast Iron District,” said Yeung.

“This is a building typology unique to New York City, and a richly layered context within which to exhibit.”

Orange public bathroom
A public restroom on the upper level matches the kitchen

Canal Projects opened to the public in September 2022, with an exhibition titled Pray organised by artistic director and senior curator Summer Guthery.

The show featured works by Bangkok and New York-based artist Korakrit Arunanondchai, and American artist and filmmaker Alex Gvojic.

The Canal Projects building exterior at night
The building is located on the corner of Canal and Wooster Street, between Soho and Tribeca

Worrell Yeung was founded in 2015, and has worked on a variety of projects in and around New York.

The studio recently completed a timber-clad lake house with cantilevered roof planes in Connecticut, while past endeavours have included a Hamptons renovation, a Chelsea loft apartment, and the penthouse in the Dumbo Clocktower Building.

The photography is by Naho Kubota.

Project credits:

Architecture and interior design: Worrell Yeung
Worrell Yeung project team: Max Worrell, founder and principal; Jejon Yeung, founder and principal; Beatriz de Uña Bóveda, project manager; Yunchao Le, project designer
Structural engineer: Silman (Geoff Smith, Nick Lancellotti)
Lighting designer: Lighting Workshop (Doug Russell, Steven Espinoza)
MEP engineer: Jack Green Associates (Larry Green)
Expediter/code consultant: Anzalone Architecture (James Anzalone)
Contractor: Hugo Construction (Hugo Cheng, Kong Leong)

Reference