Heads Together

Mark McMenamin -- Interior Design, 8/1/2008 12:00:00 AM

Architects and contractors can get along. Honestly. Mark Gould of Mark Gould Architect proved this improbability as he built a house in Chappaqua, New York, for a client who was certain to dissect the details: Stephen DiGiacomo of the construction company S. DiGiacomo & Son. Gould and DiGiacomo had forged a level of trust while working on a New York penthouse for clients, but it's always different when things get personal. Happily, the two men's sensibilities meshed—as did dualities of color, pattern, and provenance. The wrought-iron lantern in the foyer may look traditional with its patterned float glass, while the Christian Liaigre sconce in the library has the simplest of bronze armatures and white parchment shades. To partially screen the library's mullion windows, Gould strung together brass disks from the 1950's. Below sits Chris Lehrecke's mahogany daybed, its color meshing perfectly with the wall paint. Throughout the two-story, 6,000-square-foot house, serious American walnut flooring is juxtaposed with lyrical wallpaper.

In the end, DiGiacomo got a home befitting a progressive country squire. And Gould got a contractor who actually answers the phone.

1. Wallpaper custom-printed by Optical Grays for the foyer and family room. 212-686-7371.

2. The dining-room doorway's custom steel corner blocks, which the Arcadia Manufacturing Group cut out by water jet. 800-354-4466; arcadiawaterjet.com.

3. One of the library window treatment's 1950's brass ornaments, bought at Tepper Galleries and patinated by hand. 212-677-5300; teppergalleries.com.

4. Rugo viscose-polyester blend by Christopher Hyland on the living room's sofa and armchair. 212-688-6121; christopherhyland.com.

5. The dining room's custom linen tablecloth by Optical Grays.

6. Grand Thistle wallpaper by Timorous Beasties above the library fireplace. 44-141-959-3331; timorousbeasties.com.

From top: 1950's brass ornaments strung together on steel rings form a window treatment in the library. The room also features a daybed by Chris Lehrecke and a sconce by Christian Liaigre; photography by John Hall. Principal Mark Gould and design director Charm Su head up the firm Mark Gould Architect; photography by Blaise Hayward.