New Classic American Houses: The Architecture of Albert, Righter & Tittmann

Named one of the best architecture firms of 2008 by Best of Boston®, Albert, Righter & Tittmann Architects create finely crafted houses that pay homage to classic American house styles yet are adapted with skill, mastery, and a good dose of irreverence to suit contemporary American life. At first glance, the Cambridge Cupola House looks like a typical mid-nineteenth-century Greek Revival house, but on closer inspection, one realizes that nothing is quite where it should be. The grand, cupola-topped rotunda entrance, for instance, is located not in the front, but on the side of the house! The reason? To increase the living space for the inhabitants. Illustrated with specially commissioned photographs, as well as with plans, drawings, and watercolors, this sumptuous volume celebrates AR&T’s timeless, innovative designs and explores the historical styles on which they are based—from Classical to Shingle, from Carpenter Gothic to Cape. Advance praise for New Classic American Houses: The Architecture of Albert, Righter & Tittmann “Brew a hearty cup of tea, sit down by the fire, and waltz through the pages of Albert, Righter & Tittman’s magnificent portfolio of work. New Classic American Houses is an architectural page-turner brimming with creative interpretations of traditional forms. AR&T’s four decades devoted to mastering the art of the new old house shines through designs that are intoxicating. This classically crafted monograph will be an elegant addition to any traditionalist’s library." Russell Versaci, AIA, Architect and author of Creating a New Old House and Roots of Home “The important and irreconcilable categorical choices in architecture are not modernist versus postmodern or avant-garde versus traditionalist, but excellent versus mediocre, pleasure-giving versus oppressive, rigorously well-made versus slapdash -- and Albert, Righter and Tittman's work is impeccable on all counts. The civilized pleasures of these houses are deep and authentic and, to me, irresistible.”--Kurt Andersen, Columnist and author of Reset and Heyday
Host, Studio 360 “This book is a new classic: beautiful and intelligent. The work of Albert, Righter & Tittmann pulls off the nifty trick of being strong, elegant, and charming; their whimsical flights of fancy are grounded in refined, traditional sensibility. This book is a useful resource not only for people building their dream houses, but for architects who want to study the work of masters.”--Dominique Browning, Author of Around the House and in the Garden
“Quite simply the most inventive American houses of our time. AR&T’s luscious assemblages of forms, gardens, colors, and materials literally glow against the deep green of the New England woods. These meticulously detailed houses are comfortable homes, yet have a mysterious, magical quality that defies words. Bravo!”--Alexander Gorlin, FAIA
 
“What a pleasure it is to have an architecture so beautifully naturalized—to site, to purpose, and to tradition.”--Robert A. M. Stern, From the foreword of New Classic American Houses
 
“The architecture of Albert, Righter and Tittmann is a marvelous presence in the American landscape. These houses are original, stylish and beautiful. Sophisticated in their origins and elegant in their presentation, they are also deeply humanist: these are houses built for living. They are comfortable, practical and a perfect delight to inhabit. I know this because I live in one, which is a joy and a privilege.”--Roxana Robinson, Novelist, environmentalist and garden writer, Author of Sweetwater and Cost