Inside a $3.25 Million Contemporary House Designed by One of the Leading Architects in the Hamptons

The first personal residence of one of the most talked-about architects in the Hamptons has floated onto the market, ready for its next discerning steward, with a $3.25 million asking price. Lynda Packard of Douglas Elliman holds the listing.

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The Hamptons is well known for its great big, shingle-sided summer “cottages” overlooking the Atlantic Ocean and stately mansions sequestered behind towering hedges. The small towns, villages, and hamlets that comprise the Hamptons, however, also have a long tradition of experimental, contemporary, and minimalist architecture, from the “not-quite-proper” late 19 ^th -century Thomas and Mary Nimmo Moran House and Studio in downtown East Hampton to Andrew Geller’s eye-catching 1956 Pearlroth House in Westhampton Beach to the numerous minimalist masterpieces by late architect Charles Gwathmey that dot the farm fields and vegetated dunes that comprise the local landscape.

Among the trailblazers extending the area’s deep connection to forward-thinking architecture is the award-winning East Hampton-based firm Bates Masi + Architects, whose local projects include a 600-square-foot set in the dunes of Amagansett to a nearly 12,000-square-foot stunner in sleepy Sagaponack that, paying homage to the area’s agrarian history, was inspired by the ordered lines of farm fields.

When Paul and Elizabeth Masi moved to the Hamptons more than 20 years ago, they plunked down $95,000 for a wooded parcel of not quite half an acre in East Hampton’s leafy, low-key Barnes Landing neighborhood, where they built a striking if modestly sized residence that not only looks today much as it originally did but reflects early executions of some of the architect’s hallmark flourishes: bold, clean lines, asymmetrical massing, the integration of natural materials, and cantilevered elements that add a sense of daring and lightness.

Intended as a year-round residence, Masi told Robb Report, “The home was designed to interact with the seasons. Registered in functionality, detailing, and how the house could be used or seen in the different cycles of the year.” Masi and his family sold the property in 2011 for $1.1 million, according to tax records, and it’s changed hands just once since, in 2020 for $2.75 million.

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Today, the house looks much as it did when it was originally built, albeit with some updates. The long, linear residence has three bedrooms and a bathroom on its main floor; the primary bedroom and bath occupy the upper level, along with a study/home office. A finished basement includes an additional living space with a pantry kitchen and outside entrance, another bedroom, and another bathroom.

Walls of glass create an easy back and forth between the outdoor living and entertaining spaces and the open-plan great room, which contains the living, dining, and kitchen areas. The switchback staircase just inside the front door is divided by a slim, bright orange wall, and a double-sided fireplace is shared by a cozy main-floor den and the partly covered, multi-level deck outside the great room.

The decking extends out over a grassy slope to hover in the fluttering treetops, while a lower area of the deck incorporates a built-in barbecue grill and integrated bench seating. Along with the rest of the yard, the nearby bluestone-trimmed plunge pool and spa are shielded from neighboring homes by tall clumps of bamboo, thick walls of greenery, and old trees.

Click here for more photos of the East Hampton residence.

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