Dwell 2015 11

modern world
houses we love
The building’s design was
determined by the desire for a
strong geometric form and by
the materials Hunt could find.
The cedar cladding is meant
to fade over time (left). The
interior features fence pickets
from Hunt’s parents’ house
and a rotating selection of
furniture from his apartment
(below). Windows oriented
toward nature shut out the city.
N
“ It’s a perfect spot for an afternoon
nap, a makeshift painting studio, or
a quiet space to have a drink with a
friend.” —Nicholas Hunt, architect
Just a few blocks from the swooping
Barclays Center arena in downtown
Brooklyn sits an unexpectedly quiet
haven, a petite 1,300-square-foot
patch of green punctuated by a small
outbuilding. This modest structure,
a single room with just enough space
for an army cot or chair, was designed
and built by architect Nicholas Hunt,
who runs the studio Hunt Architecture
with his brother, Andrew, in addition
to working for larger firms.
“The point of the project for me
was an escape from the city—both in
terms of building it and hanging out
in it, inhabiting it,” says Hunt, who
spent a total of about seven days over
four months constructing the space.
“It was for the act of building and to
be able to do this for myself, to be my
own client; that’s something young
architects rarely get a chance to do.”
The 5-foot-by-11-foot studio was
completed for just under $1,200, a
small sum made possible by the clever
reuse of materials, like cedar planks
salvaged from another job and the
white fence pickets from his parents’
property in Massachusetts that make
up the interior. Plexiglas fills a skylight
and wood-slatted windows, keeping
out prying eyes while opening up the
interior to views of greenery and sky.
“Once you’re in it,” says Hunt, “you
feel outside the city.”
40 NOVEMBER 2015 DWELL