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Pines Modern is a brand-new, non-profit 501(c)(3) endeavor dedicated to the rediscovery of all that the Pines has created, particularly its mid-century architectural and cultural heritage. We ask for your support in the form of tax deductible contributions to help us to continue discovering, documenting, and sharing the best that Fire Island Pines has to offer. There is much more to document! Our significant expenses include professional photography, drum-scanning of vintage images, creation and maintenance of the web site, required non-profit insurance, preservation consultations with homeowners, and the staffing of Pines Modern functions. Our officers are not paid for their efforts.
Donors at the $50 annual level and above will receive priority notification for house tours and other Pines Modern events. Each donor who contributes $150 and above will receive a free ticket to the next Pines Modern house tour. Please contact us if you would like to place an advertisement on our site.
For support regarding donations, send your message here.
2019 Contributors
Adam Wade
Pines Modern is a brand-new, non-profit 501(c)(3) endeavor dedicated to the rediscovery of all that the Pines has created, particularly its mid-century architectural and cultural heritage. We ask for your support in the form of tax deductible contributions to help us to continue discovering, documenting, and sharing the best that Fire Island Pines has to offer. There is much more to document! Our significant expenses include professional photography, drum-scanning of vintage images, creation and maintenance of the web site, required non-profit insurance, preservation consultations with homeowners, and the staffing of Pines Modern functions. Our officers are not paid for their efforts.
Donors at the $50 annual level and above will receive priority notification for house tours and other Pines Modern events. Each donor who contributes $150 and above will receive a free ticket to the next Pines Modern house tour. Please contact us if you would like to place an advertisement on our site.
For support regarding donations, send your message here.
2019 Contributors
Adam Wade
612 SHORE WALK
Architect: HARRY BATES, c. 1968. Renovation: RAWLINS DESIGN, 2020.
In 2014, Christopher Rawlins conducted an oral history with architect Harry Bates, which revealed Bates’ extant projects in Fire Island Pines. This late Sixties example was worse for wear: exposed wiring, scattered mechanical equipment, overgrown plantings, and a constipated infilling of a lower-level patio room, all of it slathered with Eighties mauve-and-seafoam. Fortunately, a 1971 article in House Beautiful revealed the virtues of a home created for textile designer James Patterson. Our restoration does not strive for historic purity, but it does recapture the transparency, simplicity, and love of color that marked the original home.
From the public walkway, the home’s deep roof overhang looms large. We clad this in vivid, up-lit tiles, a cheerful foil to the neutral cedar siding that sheathes most Fire Island homes. A grand entry stair leads to the upper level, pausing at an intermediate perch to admire the garden. The upstairs floor plan was only modestly altered. New finishes and fixtures do the heavy lifting here. The downstairs level was completely redesigned, and contains a primary bedroom, guest room, bathrooms, and a laundry room. Full-height glass doors reveal gardens to the south and the pool deck to the north, its cross-ventilated design minimizing the need for air conditioning.
A new pergola frames an outdoor dining room, and the fence that once tightly surrounded the deck is pushed to the perimeter, with textured detailing allowing both privacy and breezes. Scott Ahlborn’s landscape design preserves key flowering plants, mixing these with sustainable and low-maintenance companions. This marriage of architecture and landscape is fully appreciated from a new roof deck that is an irresistible place to strike a pose.
Photos: Tom Sibley. Plans: Rawlins Design.
HOUSE BEAUTIFUL, 1971.
