From the moment they set foot on the mountaintop property, Ron and Nancy Edgerton could hear its music—the wind rustling through the treetops, the delicate chorus of birdsong. The sweeping vista ranging from the Elk Mountains, through the Beaver Dam Valley to Downtown Asheville was thrilling. They knew they were home.
The site was inspiring but challenging, much like the elements of Ron and Nancy’s life. With two twenty-something sons, numerous social and cultural involvements and a career that required Ron to travel extensively, the couple desired a residence that would accommodate their public and private agendas. Their new home would need to address their values: devotion to family life, a passion for supporting the arts and a commitment to nature conservancy. They needed a living space that could embrace celebration and serenity while honoring the spirit of the landscape.
The couple had previously built a Craftsman style home in South Asheville and initially felt that they would apply a similar aesthetic at the new property. They engaged the team at Samsel Architects to help them realize their vision. Jim Samsel immediately saw a greater potential in the project.
He envisioned the residence as “a contemporary interpretation of Greene & Greene, architects in Southern California at the turn of the 20th century. The difference between their Arts & Crafts architecture and what you typically see around here is that theirs was Asian-influenced.”
“We didn’t know that we wanted an oriental influence, but when Jim came to meet us he recognized that we had collected a lot of Asian art in our home,” Nancy recalls. “So when Jim suggested it, we immediately said ‘Yes! Yes!’”
A key element in selecting the style was the topography. “It starts with the land and what makes sense from a physical impact point of view,” says architect Duncan McPherson, a member of the Samsel group, “working with the site rather than imposing—responding to what the land tells us as the springboard for the design.”
Samsel, McPherson, and their colleague Michael Robinson conceived of a contiguous perimeter of rooms arching along the contour of the mountainside, linked by a gallery hall positioned at the uphill side of the structure and an interlocking series of elevated terraces overlooking the valley. Although the footprint is expansive, the interiors retain a sense of intimacy and proportion.
“It’s a series of spaces that are connected, but each has its own identity,” Samsel explains. “They hang together in a harmonious way, yet each has a psychology in itself that’s appropriate for what’s going on in there.”
The relatively narrow profile contributes an airy feel. “The house is designed so that you can open the doors on both sides and have the breeze coming through. You can hear the water feature in the Zen garden out front,” notes Nancy. “And every room has a view through from front to back.” Throughout the home, the vistas reinforce the Asian appeal—tall panels of glass artfully frame the stunning landscape, creating the impression of finely rendered Japanese screens.
In addition to allowing a free movement of air and light, the layout is well suited to the large scale entertaining that the couple undertakes in support of their chosen causes. “The main level plan has a very open circulation, including a flow between the indoor and outdoor spaces,” Samsel observes. “It was very much designed for family gatherings, as well as their philanthropic interests which include land conservation and the Asheville Symphony. It’s comfortable for two people or for one hundred and two.”
Since many of their soirées benefit the arts, flexible performance space is integrated into the great room: a poet laureate once gave a reading standing before the panoramic windows, a pianist has serenaded guests from the balcony and a Russian trumpeter—a guest soloist with the Symphony—used the entrance steps as his stage. “I thought that the trumpet would just echo and bounce around the room,” Nancy says, “but the acoustics were terrific.”
The walls have even been used for a slide presentation during a lecture for a conservancy group. Given their concern for the environment, the Edgertons were very conscious of the building’s carbon footprint. The architects and builder Morgan-Keefe addressed this in the construction by incorporating many green building techniques.
“That was a major priority and focus in the home,” explains McPherson. “We considered the track of the sun and the prevailing winds. Much was achieved with the envelope itself—the thermal shell. We have an airtight building with high-efficiency windows and doors, heated and cooled by a geo-thermal system. And we used Energy Star appliances throughout.”
The selection of materials was part of the green building approach. “The house has a lot of wood and stone,” McPherson continues. “That’s part of the aesthetic. So sourcing those materials was key.” Tennessee blended fieldstone, sourced within 150 miles, was chosen for the foundations and much of the interior stonework, and the majority of the wood used is either reclaimed or sustainably harvested.
Much of the home’s character is established in the subtle interplay of its wooden surfaces. While the lines of the structure are spare, the ambiance is anything but Spartan, thanks to an elegant selection of finishes. “The flooring is kind of conceptual,” notes Nancy. “[Interior Designer] Susan Nilsson helped us with that.” Reclaimed teak floors define the living areas and stairways, transitional areas are slate and the bedroom floors are a warm cherry.
“Mahogany is the main wood in the house, used on all the trim and doors. To balance the mahogany, there’s black walnut, which is the secondary wood,” Nancy continues. “The beautiful lacewood ceiling is Jim’s inspiration. Some of the cabinets are burled maple, but the kitchen cabinets are a gorgeous zebrawood. John Smithies, who installed them, is an absolute artist—the grain matches so perfectly.”
The textures and patterns of the materials are, in themselves, works of art, yet they also serve to create an ideal background for the Edgerton’s assemblage of fine art. Blended with the exotica that they have collected on their world travels are works by a variety of local and regional artists in a wide range of mediums. And interspersed are paintings and prints by Nancy’s mother—a gifted artist—recalling that this is, at its heart, a family home.
On the lower level, which Nancy affectionately refers to as “Boy World,” the family can kick back and relax at billiards and games, work out in the gym, catch a movie in the spacious theater or enjoy a glass of wine from the well-appointed cellar.
In all its aspects, the true elegance of the home lies in bringing together the distinct melodies of the Edgertons’ lifestyle into a joyful symphony. “It’s been really rewarding to go back into this house and see how the owners have decided to celebrate the space that we’ve created for them,” says McPherson. “The house is an object of art and beauty in itself, but it’s also a backdrop for their art, their style and their daily lives.” And that is sweet music, indeed.