A Martha’s Vineyard Home Designed for Views and the Ocean Breeze

On the western edge of Martha’s Vineyard, off the coast of Massachusetts, Turkel Design has crafted Veil House—a thoughtfully designed home that responds to its landscape, the remote location, and the island’s strict building regulations. Rather than limit the design, these constraints were transformed by the Turkel team into defining features.  

The homeowners, a doctor and a visual artist who had spent many years visiting Martha’s Vineyard, were drawn to Turkel Design’s modernist style and precision prefabrication system, which reduces environmental impact compared to conventional construction. They envisioned a summer retreat scaled for everyday life as a couple yet able to welcome children and grandchildren throughout the year. They also wanted a home that could embrace the island’s changing light and ocean breezes and wouldn’t overwhelm the landscape.

"Our first impressions were of the compelling duality of the site," says Joel Turkel, co-founder and creative director of Turkel Design. "It offers broad views across Vineyard Sound while remaining sheltered within a grove of black oak and tupelo." 

The project’s defining feature emerged from a regulatory constraint. Local codes, intended to reduce light pollution, limit ocean-facing facades to 50 percent glazing. While many neighboring homes  address the requirement by increasing their overall footprint, Turkel Design developed a different solution: a series of sliding timber screens—or "veils"—that glide across the waterfront elevation.  

The movable panels provide shade, privacy, and protection from the elements while allowing the visible glazing to remain within the permitted limit in every configuration. Paired with floor-to-ceiling sliding glass doors on both sides of the home, the system encourages natural cross-ventilation, drawing ocean breezes through the interior.

Inside, Veil House balances intimacy and openness through a carefully considered plan. A linear service zone organizes the rear of the home, separating secondary spaces from the primary living areas overlooking Vineyard Sound. At its center, a generous great room anchors the house, with the primary suite to the east and the guest wing to the west. 

Floor-to-ceiling retractable glass doors extend the living spaces out to  a covered outdoor circulation zone, allowing the home’s modest footprint to feel remarkably expansive. The result is a retreat equally suited to quiet mornings for two and weekends and holidays with extended family.

Turkel Design’s prefabrication process also proved well suited to the logistical challenges of building on an island. Much of the home’s construction was completed off-site, while foundation and landscape work progressed simultaneously, reducing material waste, minimizing on-site labor, and streamlining the construction schedule. With logistics carefully coordinated in advance, the home’s weathertight shell came together in just four months. 

Since completion, the owners have settled into the rhythms the home was designed for, enjoying relaxed moments as a couple punctuated by gatherings with family and friends across the seasons. And, as the sliding wood veils shift, the architecture continues to adapt to the landscape that inspired it. 

"The site called for a quiet home, one that strategically welcomed in the elements," says Turkel. "We’ve created a place for the family to continue its relationship with the island—a setting where new memories can unfold alongside those that have shaped generations before."

Project Credits:

Architecture & Millwork: Turkel Design

Photographer: Draper White