Art Fort by Studio MM Architect
Art Fort is a two-level house in Kerhonkson, NY, United States, by Studio MM Architect. Built for a professional painter, the project pairs a welcoming home with a purpose-built studio, framing daily life around light, storage, and easy hosting. The house leans into the hillside and uses outdoor rooms to expand gathering areas, creating a practical, cost-smart residence that supports work, rest, and visits from friends, family, and curators.
Morning light skims the hillside and lands on a quiet deck before slipping into the rooms beyond. Entry arrives at the upper level, then steps down to a world made for work and unhurried evenings.
This is a house with a studio, not a studio with a house. In Kerhonkson, NY, Studio MM Architect organizes daily life around clear roles and calm transitions, letting an artist live, host, and work without compromise. The plan separates home and practice while keeping costs in check through strategic outdoor rooms and a compact, efficient interior.
Enter On High
Arrival happens at the second level, level with the slope and close to the kitchen for easy unloading from the carport. A modest foyer opens to living and dining, where wrap-around windows pull daylight across warm surfaces and set an easy rhythm for daily routines. Circulation is short and direct. Guests move from door to deck in a few steps, and meals spill outside without fuss.
Work Below Grade
The studio sits on the lower level and is reached by an exterior stair, a simple move that builds a mental reset between home and work. Inside, a large glass garage door and clerestory windows wash benches and easels with steady light, while a ventilated spray booth and ample storage keep tools, canvases, and materials in order. It stays functional year-round. A flexible guest bedroom with a built-in desk and a compact bath rounds out the program for visits and short residencies.
Outdoor Rooms Multiply
Terraces stand in for extra square footage and cut costs without cutting use. A dining deck near the entry steps down to a firepit tucked against the slope, turning the hillside into an evening hangout for friends and family. On the opposite side, an upper deck faces long forest views and sunsets—lounge chairs, conversation, and quiet reading find easy footing here. Below, the studio opens to a patio partially shaded by the deck, a practical open-air painting zone in warm months.
Rooms That Work
Interior rooms stay modest in size, simple, and comfortable, with wrap-around windows in the living room and main bedroom doubling as light catchers and facades. Local cabinetmakers contribute fitted millwork that concentrates storage where it matters, leaving floors clear and circulation calm. The plan favors adjacency where it pays off. Kitchen sits close to the carport for groceries and gear, while the studio’s separate entry keeps deliveries and studio visits out of the family routine.
Slope Into Order
A steep site sets the structure two stories high, with the lower level tucked into grade and stormwater managed to protect the house and patio. Engineers and landscape work align runoff control with pleasant outdoor ground, so gathering happens beside the hill rather than fighting it. It’s practical and quiet. The hillside becomes collaborator, not burden, and the home meets it with clear, durable moves.
Evening returns across decks, patios, and the studio threshold, each step cued by light and purpose. The house carries work and welcome in balance, finishing the day with the same easy clarity that starts it.
Photography by Brad Feinknopf/OTTO, Lauren K. Davis/Feinknopf Photography/OTTO
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