If there ever was a firm that disproves the notion that modern design is cold, it would be Bates Masi + Architects. Far from stark, the firm’s soft, sculptural homes exude a warm, comfortable feel while still maintaining a clean aesthetic. Partners Paul Masi and Harry Bates are committed to a unique, scientific approach that explores the relationship between materials, details, and site. Bates Masi has—over the past five decades—left a profound mark on contemporary residential design.
“The scale, acoustics, and lighting of a space play just as an important function as the tactile and visual components of the home,” says Masi, who applied the same principles to the design of his own home, Elizabeth II.
Extensive research into architectural acoustics essentially turned Masi’s residence in Amagansett, N.Y., into a living instrument: custom-designed stainless steel clips attach to the home’s exterior vertical wood siding to offer flexibility against the material’s natural expansion and contraction cycles. Inside, a spring mechanism “tunes” the boards by controlling the amount of space through which the sound waves pass, and the same steel clips punctuate the interior cabinets as handles. Felt affixed to the walls absorbs the downtown Southampton bustle, and the home’s central staircase tapers in thickness, varying the frequency of the pitch heard with each footfall. Another example of the architects’ restrained elegance is the firm’s 2015 Beach Hampton project: a tiny, sculptural box outfitted in glass, steel, and concrete. Softened by a paneled wood façade and steel-framed windows, the home feels luxurious while remaining efficient inside a 15-foot-by-20-foot footprint.
In 1996, Masi arrived at Bates Architects’ Long Island studio as a 20-something summer associate with intentions of pursuing a graduate degree in architecture before opening his own practice. Bates, who was designing some of the Hamptons’ most progressive modern architecture, was 70 at the time and considering retirement. He asked Masi to instead consider joining the company permanently. In 1998, Masi accepted Bates’ offer, realizing the creative freedom the partnership would provide.
Today, the firm employs 15 people, including Bates, who now lives in Florida but communicates with the staff daily. Masi notes that the gradual growth has been instrumental to upholding the firm’s primary goal of growing organically without making compromises to the firm’s commitment to quality design.
“Everyone here is on the same page in terms of design philosophy, execution, and how and why we practice,” says Masi, who describes the firm’s refined approach to design as a “courtship” that aims to resolve multiple components with a single solution. Beginning with exercises that determine firm/client compatibility, the process asks a series of questions (Who are these people? How do they live? What’s important to them?), while also researching the site, such as its microclimate, ecology, and topography. Next, work begins on sketches, initial plans, and models.
With 40 years between them, the firm’s leadership may likely hold the record for the greatest age difference between two partners. They’ve used the gap to their advantage, however, filling their portfolio with work that showcases a consistent, elegant design sensibility that draws upon the expertise of both partners.
“There is a strong emotional connection involved when working on people’s homes,” Masi says. “It’s a part of their family, it’s very important to them, and we find a lot of gratification in our role.”
