Mostly known for award-winning commercial and public architecture, Lord Aeck Sargent has always designed a house every now and then, as most large firms have. This lovely vacation home in the mountains of north Georgia was originally designed by the late Terry Sargent, AIA, a founding principal of the firm, for his own family. Perched on a hillside in the community of Bent Tree, it’s sited to capture panoramic views of Lake Tamarack and the mountains beyond.
A modern take on the ubiquitous log cabin, it pares the rustic aesthetic down to its basic elements and skillfully refines them: hardy cedar siding for the exterior and tongue-and-groove spruce for interior walls and ceilings.
Walls of insulated glass are punctuated with operable double-hung windows in the great room. The window walls face east to the lake and west to the shady woods. To the north and south, clerestory windows usher natural light to interior spaces. A skirt of local stone wraps the exterior at ground level to protect the wood siding and provide the impression of anchoring the house to its hilly 1.6-acre site.
Stacked bedrooms flank the central living spaces on the main and lower floors. A deck running the full width of the house opens to the lake view on the main level, and a screened porch offers protected views from the lower level. A modest third-level master occupies its own floor with a small loft space overlooking the great room.
Completed in 1991, the house won a regional AIA Award in 1992. The house is listed by Realtor Tracy Cousineau for $359,900.
