Behold the Taghkanic House, presiding over a gentleman’s farm in
upstate New York’s Hudson Valley, a two-hour drive from New York
City. The most visible part of this largely invisible contemporary home
consists of an 1,800-square-foot glass pavilion.
Glass houses always raise questions of privacy. However, in this case such practical concerns are addressed so that the majority of the home's living space consists of hidden subterranean chambers.
Two Price Options
The 8,800-square-foot home has six bedrooms, six full and three partial bathrooms. It has an asking price of either $6.75 million for 200 acres of protected property, or $8.25 million for an additional 150 acres and a three-bedroom renovated farmhouse. The listing is held by Heather Croner Real Estate and Sotheby’s International Realty.
Glass, steel and skylights
This minimalist habitation of glass and white-painted steel was
built in 2001 as the first major project by architect Tom Phifer. The
architect is known for his facility with light, as exemplified in the
sun-filled, sky-lighted galleries he designed for the North Carolina
Museum of Art.
The glass rectangular shapes seen in the sod here are skylights for Taghkanic House's underground spaces.
Celebratory space
The above-ground glass living area allows 360-degree views of the
surrounding Hudson Valley and the Catskill Mountains. Phifer designed
another glass structure, Fishers Island House, for a client who wanted
to sit in his house and look at his garden and his art at the same time,
according to
Dwell
magazine.
Taghkanic owner Moyra Mulholland, a makeup artist in the entertainment industry,
told
an Albany publication that the idea of a glass house didn't sit well
with her due to her fear of thunderstorms. Thus, Phifer refers to this
area as the "celebratory space," while the subterranean space
helps Mullholland feel protected.
Substructure
The substructure nestled into the gently sloping hillside is 7,000
square feet and includes the bedrooms, kitchen, media room, wine cellar
and a refrigerated cheese room.
Continue reading $8.25 Million Glass Home on CNBC
