Photo by Kevin Scott / Olson Kundig

Agate Pass Cabin

Olympic Peninsula, Washington

The home of principal/owner Alan Maskin, this project reflects his longstanding interest in the various uses of history. Throughout this 1,100‑square‑foot renovation and addition to a 1938 beach cabin, including interior design and landscape design, modern design interventions delineate the house’s two different eras: the 1930s and today.

The original one-story cabin, which overlooks Agate Pass on Washington State’s Olympic Peninsula, had low ceiling heights and an attic. The interior walls and ceilings were clad with wide planks of Douglas fir, which would have been plentiful in the area 100 years ago. Throughout construction, a “what comes down must go up” policy for the original wood panels meant that each panel taken down for an alteration was repurposed in the new additions, becoming cabinets, new ceilings and storage areas. Modern interventions were demarcated with different wood types from the original planks, making it clear to see what was “then” and what is “now.”

In the living room, a 17-foot-tall cathedral ceiling was created by removing the attic floor. A new structural steel moment frame secures all levels of the home to the foundation, with the exposed frame screening the new bedroom loft added above. A new stairway leads to the bedroom – orange plexiglass risers allow light into the bathroom under the stairs. In the bedroom, floor-to-ceiling glass windows give expansive views of the water and Agate Pass. A small second floor terrace was added atop the original screened-in porch, which was converted to a dining room and office. These rooms have views of two gardens, including one with hardy plants inspired by Maskin’s visits to tropical areas.

Maskin designed several custom furniture pieces and casework elements throughout the home. Many incorporate glulam engineered plywood as the main material, including a daybed in the living room, an armoire, and a bed with built-in storage underneath.

Agate Pass Cabin features works by Scott Fife, Sutton/Beres/Culler, Leiv Fagereng, Karen Rudd, Rebecca (Raven) Lucan, Chris Crites, David Eisenhour, Mary Larson and Klara Glosova amongst others.

This cabin serves as the ideal antidote to my daily life, where I am constantly working on intense projects, going to meetings, and traveling. Out here there are no streetlights, very little noise. It’s monastic in a way that I really love. Alan Maskin
Design Principal

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