DeSilver House by John Black Lee + Harrison DeSilver | 1961

New Canaan contains one of the most significant - and arguably the world - collections of modernist residential architecture in America. DeSilver House is no exception.

"New Canaan, to its considerable surprise, has become an architect's battleground, and everyone talks houses."

- Holiday Magazine, August 1952

John Black Lee + Harrison DeSilver designed the house to demonstrate that good design and construction could be built without compromise and that it could be done within a modest budget. They achieved both objectives by developing a six foot by six foot modular system. The exterior panels were prefabricated and consisted of a solid six foot wall panel and a six foot glass wall panel.

Passive shelter is provided to the ground level patios by the deep overhang on all four sides of the house. The roof of the house extends well beyond the footprint of the house and provides summer relief to the second- floor balconies and the floor-to-ceiling windows. The outer edge of the roof is supported on thin piers that anchor DeSilver House to the bucolic landscape.

Original Project Team

Architects: John Black Lee A.I.A + Harrison DeSilver A.I.A

System House Inc 1963

35 Grove Street, New Canaan, Connecticut

Builder: Ernest R. Rau

Year: Designed and Built 1960-1961

Awards: Awarded the 'Homes for Better Living' Award 1964.

Sponsored by the American Institute of Architects (AIA) in corporation with HOUSE & HOME and the American Home.