Famous Homes: The Round House

Greetings readers! If you've been following this blog and my Famous Houses series over the years, you will see that there is always something unique that makes a house a Famous House. And this installment's house is maybe one of the most unique you will find.

Sometime around 1966, modernist architect and Philip Johnson-collaborator Richard Foster (Foster worked with Johnson on the iconic New York State Pavilion for the 1964 World's Fair as well as Johnson's famed Glass House previously here) was driving on Olmstead Hill, Road near Wilton, Connecticut and came upon a green dip in the landscape which he referred to as "a perfect amphitheater." Shortly thereafter this four acre plot would become the site of his "Circambulant House" or as it is also known: The Round House.

Over the next two years he worked with various contractors and craftsman to construct a unique home for his family, one that could rotate 360 degrees and provide any room in the house a picturesque vantage point of the landscape. The house combines engineering from Germany, local Connecticut Steel and stone from the Dolemites. Foster went through 5 design concepts before arriving on the circular home. He felt that such a house would compliment the landscape by giving the inhabitants unfettered views from any room at any time.

The Fosters made the Round House their home for 35 years. The mechanisms that rotate the house have required little maintenance over the years. Features such as the corten steel circular porch, wood shingles, stone pavers have given the home a well worn patina while also connecting it to the local surroundings. When Richard Foster died in 2002 the home passed out of the family’s hands and eventually arrived into new ownership.

Thankfully, in 2012 the home underwent a deep restoration. Mack Scogin Merrill Elam Architects re-envisioned the interior of the space along with a renovation of the exterior garage and driveway. Home systems that were cutting edge in the late sixties were upgraded for the day and the exterior of the house was restored very much to its original finish.

But its most unique feature remains intact: at the flip of a switch, the house slowly spins--clockwise or counterclockwise--up to 5 feet per minute and takes 45 minutes to make a full rotation.

Happy designing!