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ArchDC Summer 2017.qxp_Summer 2017 5/24/17 10:48 AM Page 40

On clients in general, and how that relationship applied to
this circumstance: “I’m a great believer in buying into the client’s
agenda. I would never do something that the client didn’t want,
something solely for my ego,” said Dynerman. But what if the
house is one’s own? “I tried to think of Nancy and me in the
abstract, as if we were an outside client.” This abstraction led to
the simple determination that his “clients” were basically “empty
nesters who entertain a lot, but informally.” This spoke to gracious
but not lavish spaces in a simple layout. The material palette lends
a “kind of rustic, cabin quality” to the house. Posters and works of
favored artists are displayed without pomp, and the furnishings
are modest in price. Pulling the living room roof away at both
ends and putting a skylight over the entire kitchen lends a tent-like
quality to the central gathering space.
On life and architecture: “There’s always a dance between
how people live, and how they aspire to live. The successful
architect captures both, seeing possibilities, opportunities that
the client never imagined.” The view of the wooded bluff down
to Little Round Bay, then St. Helena Island, then Round Bay and
the eastern side of the Severn beyond, has both calming and
stimulating effects, like the house itself. Having such easy access
to his sailboat has been wonderful, “almost life-changing,” said
Dynerman. The house has more than fulfilled his aspirations for
a casually stylish place accommodating either calm retreat or
bustling gatherings. Sitting in the beautifully daylit living room,
glancing over the layered view of water and trees, digressions
came naturally. And what is a great weekend house, if not a
scenic detour from one’s main life?

Kitchen.

Home office.

View from the roof deck.

40 A HOUSE OF ONE’S OWN