A Charred Cedar Barn Replaces a Tumbledown Garage in Connecticut

On one level, architect Aya Maceda’s mission was simple. A couple with four children and a weekend house in Sharon, Connecticut, wanted a modern barn to replace the crumbling garage on their property. In addition to sheltering cars, it would store a variety of sports equipment.

But what a collection of gear! There were bicycles, tennis racquets, and snowmobiles, bundles of skis and piles of ski boots, all of which needed to be organized and kept handy for a family that redefines the word "active."

The clients, Rakesh Wilson, who works in finance, and Amanda Wilson, a psychiatrist, also wanted the new building to offer what their century-old white clapboard farmhouse across the wide lawn could not: private quarters for guests and a retreat for their children. As closet modernists in a traditional setting, they yearned for a streamlined, uncluttered environment that fit unobtrusively into the same footprint as the structure it replaced.