Inside a Modern Hideaway in East Hampton

In addition to designing residences and schools, architect Lynne Breslin has garnered international acclaim for spearheading a wide range of exhibitions for several major museums, using architecture to create immersive spaces and experiences. These same goals have been effortlessly achieved in this uncommon East Hampton home, which Breslin designed as her own private hideaway.

East Hampton, New York | Cindy Shea, Sotheby’s International Realty – Bridgehampton Brokerage

Its striking streamlined contemporary silhouette of steel, wood, and glass frames intriguing, inviting spaces that interact dynamically with the flourishing surroundings. Alaskan cedar has been treated using shou sugi ban—a centuries-old Japanese technique wherein wood is torched, rendering it waterproof. The softness and color of the enveloping flora—including several varieties of hydrangea, grasses, and other carefully chosen plants—serve as an organic counterpoint to the clean lines of metal and glass.

Beyond a foyer of polished Venetian plaster, nine-inch-plank maple and green Vermont slate floors unfold. Anchoring the main level is a kitchen featuring an island with counter seating and Swedish pendant lighting, custom back-painted glass and maple cabinetry, Vermont marble countertops, and stainless-steel appliances that include a Thermador induction cooktop, double wall ovens, a Sharp microwave drawer, two Miele dishwashers, and a Sub-Zero wine chiller. Steps away are a window-wrapped dining area where the colorful surroundings act as living art and a corner living area with a contemporary French limestone gas fireplace and a cutting-edge media system that projects films and television directly onto the stone. Just outside, an ipe deck seems to float on the lawn’s virtual sea of green.

A staircase with a Starphire Ultra-Clear glass railing and floating blonde wood risers leads to the second level and the primary bedroom suite, which gazes into the boughs of surrounding trees and is appointed with maple floors and stylish walnut cabinetry. Its spa-inspired radiant-heated bath boasts a soaking tub, a teak vanity with a wraparound mirror, slate floors, and a spacious glass-enclosed shower. The two additional bedrooms are serene and bright, with inspiring views of trees, grass, blue skies, and the swimming pool below. Baths are clad in handmade Fireclay tile and feature Toto washlets, Italian fixtures, and polarized smart glass, which at the push of a button becomes opaque, affording consummate privacy. The deck has a Starphire Ultra-Clear rail that ensures the view remains uninterrupted.

A comfortable lower-level family room with waterproof oak flooring and a Sub-Zero wine chiller opens through a wall of glass to a sunken ipe courtyard. Two bedrooms and two modern baths are secluded on this level as well. Approached by an elegant travertine driveway, the heated and air-conditioned one-car garage includes a Tesla charging station. Solar panels are mounted on the roof, and every windowed room is equipped with remote-controlled shades.

The roughly half-acre grounds feel like a private wooded sanctuary, with the solar-heated saltwater gunite pool bringing to mind a tranquil forest pond—its handsome bluestone terrace notwithstanding. Among the thoughtfully selected plants are cryptomeria trees, which can reach heights of up to 60 feet, creating a natural curtain of privacy. A refreshing outdoor shower is nestled amid the foliage.

While the home’s design and technologies are decidedly forward thinking, the location is as timeless as they come. South of the highway—a designation in the Hamptons whose reputation precedes it—the property enjoys proximity to Georgica Pond and two desirable beaches, landmarks that have been flocked to for more than a century and surely will for decades and generations to come.

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