Interior designer Michael Halpern has created a stunning contemporary home in Connecticut that masterfully blends traditional barn architecture with modern design sensibilities. Working in collaboration with architect Nate Dalesio of Multitude Studio, the project known as "The Meadows" demonstrates how vernacular architecture can be reimagined for contemporary living while maintaining deep connections to the surrounding landscape.
When Halpern first discovered the Connecticut meadow that would become his home site, he was immediately captivated by its potential. "It was this big, beautiful field set in a hollow," he recalls. "Every view was fantastic and I loved that I wouldn't have to clear any trees." The designer's search for the right architect led him to Dalesio after seeing the architect's own family home featured in a design publication, sparking a collaboration based on shared design principles.
The resulting home sits gracefully among the gentle hills of Litchfield County, Connecticut, in an area renowned for its colonial houses, agricultural barns, and respect for the bucolic landscape. The two-bedroom, two-and-a-half bathroom residence consists of two barn-like volumes positioned perpendicular to each other, connected by a striking glass entry foyer. This configuration creates a sculptural composition that references traditional barn architecture while clearly establishing itself as a contemporary interpretation.
"The barn was the clear vernacular," Halpern explains. "But I wanted it to be very clean and simple with a lot of timber. I knew Nate shared that same sensibility." Dalesio's response to this vision was to abstract traditional forms rather than replicate them. "We abstracted the traditional forms but didn't replicate them," says the architect. "It helps the home fit in with its setting but you can tell it's not exactly the same as everything around it."
The home's layout demonstrates careful choreography of public and private spaces. The primary suite and private areas are tucked into one volume, while the other opens into a soaring, wood-clad great room that offers expansive views across the landscape. A series of carefully framed window assemblies, ranging from oversized picture windows to slender awnings and custom polygonal shapes, creates a dynamic rhythm of light and shadow that shifts with the changing seasons.
The interior design emphasizes material consistency and tranquility through an extensive use of white oak. The great room features oak-clad ceilings and columns, reflecting Halpern's appreciation for Scandinavian design principles. "I consulted a German friend of mine and said, 'I'm thinking of Baltic, birch, and oak,'" Halpern recalls. "And he said, 'Oh, the German expression is aus einem Guss. Or in one pour.' And I thought that sounds right. So it became all oak."
This commitment to material consistency extends to the window and door frames, which were finished on-site in white oak to match the floors and ceilings. The floor-to-ceiling Marvin Ultimate Sliding doors in the living and dining areas lead to a dramatic cantilevered deck and frame uninterrupted views of the surrounding meadow and hills while flooding the interior spaces with natural light.
The primary suite offers a distinctly different perspective, with views over the treetops that contrast with the ground floor spaces. The lower ceilings in the private wing create a cozier, more secluded atmosphere compared to the grand scale of the public living areas. "I wanted to have an office that was connected to my bedroom," says Halpern of the expansive primary suite. "It was important to me to be able to have guests, yet I could close off my own personal space when people were here."
One of the home's most striking architectural features is found in the stairwell, where a custom triangular assembly of Marvin windows follows the roofline to create a sculptural wall of glass. This innovative solution addresses the challenge of bringing natural light into the lower level spaces. "It was essential that the stairwell have a large glazed area to get light into the lower areas, which proved challenging due to the unusual shape that follows the roofline," explains Dalesio.
The window strategy throughout the home was carefully planned to correspond with daily light patterns and space usage. Northern light fills the primary suite, study, and fitness room, while the kitchen receives morning sun. "The windows absolutely had to correspond to the way the light changes during the day," says Halpern. "Making decisions like that is one of the most satisfying parts of designing a home."
The home's exterior features yellow Alaskan cedar timber cladding that will silver as it weathers, creating a soft palette of grays that harmonizes with the galvanized roof and gutters. Other design elements include a cantilevered deck inspired by Marcel Breuer's New Canaan home, a stone garden drawing from the Noguchi Museum in New York City, and gabion retaining walls that reference local stonework traditions.
Nearly two years after completion, the home has matured beautifully. The exterior cedar cladding has begun to silver in some areas while remaining tawny in others, echoing the shifting colors of the meadow through the seasons. The lap pool, positioned strategically to the side of the property, takes advantage of the views while avoiding visual prominence during winter months.
The project represents a successful balance between honoring local architectural traditions and creating spaces for contemporary living. "My mother was an interior designer and I grew up with the idea that you can imagine space to be whatever you want," reflects Halpern. "It's a real gift to be able to visualize something from nothing. I found an empty hollow and put a house on it. Now, what was once a corn field is a beautiful home."
The collaboration between Halpern and Dalesio demonstrates how thoughtful design can create homes that feel both timeless and thoroughly modern. The Meadows stands as an exemplary model of how contemporary architecture can respectfully engage with regional building traditions while providing sophisticated spaces for modern life.
