while at night the space between the columns is perceived as the
figure, and that was intentional.”
The clients were seeking a home that would reference the
interior of a yacht, and also wanted the kitchen, living and dining
areas to be one big open room at the center of house. The DaSilvas
worked to devise intriguing ways to achieve these dual goals, and
delineate the spaces from one another. Directly in front of the
entry hall is the barrel vaulted dining space with ship’s lantern
pendant lighting, while the kitchen and living areas each have
differentiating coffered grid ceilings. To suggest a ship’s interior, the
window bench behind the dining table is carved in an undulating
shape, the ceiling features decorative mahogany beams that look
like hull ribs, and there is an entrancing panel of cutout starfish
shapes above the bench. “We took advantage of the little bit of
attic space to carve upwards and give a sense of height there. We
also put lights in behind the sunburst of starfish cutouts, which
you can see glowing at night, especially from the back patio or
dock,” says John.
“Our clients were very interested in fanciful details,” says Sharon,
“which made the project a lot of fun to work on.” The foyer and
stairwell features Greek Revival-esque details, such as decorative
engraved borders and newel posts in ionic column shapes.
“We are not designing historic reproductions,” says John,
“ but we are huge architectural history buffs and we draw
inspiration from many eras. We are pluralists when it comes to
design influences.”
(Above) A long bench runs along a bank of windows.
(Inset) A curved ceiling delineates the dining area and the
lighting fixture looks like it belongs in the galley of a boat.
AT HOME ON CAPE COD 26 • SPRING/SUMMER 2020