When Hastings Architecture partner David Bailey built a home for his family in Nashville’s Green Hills neighborhood, he was also building a commitment to Nashville, a city that has served him, and his career, well.
With a focus on sustainability, the conceptually-driven design is modern with a simplicity of form that serves his family’s lifestyle. Built around an open back courtyard, the structure shares a dialogue with the beautiful sycamore trees on the property.
“It’s a passion – and it’s also a responsibility – to build efficiently,” said Bailey. His firm created one of the first LEED-certified buildings in 2004 and Hasting’s distinguished reputation is interlinked with sustainability. Bailey was determined to follow the same ethos when building his own home.
“I’ve designed the house as a personal solution for my wife and our two daughters,” he said. “To live in a home that we’ve created, something that’s very comfortable and we know is high-efficiency and environmentally responsive, is a dream come true.”
Sycamore House is situated on almost three acres in the established Nashville neighborhood of Green Hills which has many traditional homes. It was important to Bailey that the house not be a ‘sore thumb’ in the community, so he looked to the natural lines and limestone bluffs in the area for guidance. Long, linear hand-crafted Petersen-style brick drove many house elements, especially the structure’s outside integration with the windows and doors, as well as the front porch. All exterior wood is teak, which was used for its weatherability, insect resistance and color. From the front entry, there is a second story on the north side for the children’s and guest bedrooms, and as you continue south, a fitness, movie room, wine cellar and garage. The front porch to the right of the main doorway, offers a direct connection with the neighborhood before the home recedes into private living areas.
Bailey embraces the clean Scandinavian designs he saw while traveling in Amsterdam, Stockholm and Sweden. The living room’s light, open interior, with its visual connection to the exterior allows the family to embrace all of Nashville’s very diverse four seasons – from the whites of snow to the deep greens of summer. Because the glass wall is at the base of the back courtyard, this room becomes the heart of the structure. The intimate gathering areas within the living room allow the family to get together, often after dinner, but still have privacy among themselves.
The built-in walnut unit and wall were sourced from a supplier in Dallas, and the local millwork shop created 10-foot tall pieces of veneer that are bookmatched. Automated shades control the natural light in the room, while the 16” clerestory windows bring additional morning light into the home.
The family moved into the house in Spring 2021, two years after construction started. Although Bailey initially envisioned his office as a casual area, the world, in the midst of a pandemic, had other plans.
“I wound up spending a good bit of time in my office as well as the rest of the house,” he says. It made him grateful for the attention he’d given to placement and positioning the house to connect with nature and the effect the sun’s movement would have within the rooms.
The natural light that flows into the airy dining room connects the exterior with the interior, including the repetition of the bricks, an homage to the area’s limestone.
“The connection to nature helped me drive a lot of things,” said Bailey. “I really thought about how the sun would move across the sky and how it affects the shading and the views.”
Wooden shutters are a functional solution to control the direct light throughout the house, while the chandelier by Roll & Hill sets the atmosphere for evening gatherings. The home’s wooden flooring features long planks of locally crafted white oak – some up to seven feet long. Because of the customized flooring needs, Bailey was often directly negotiating with the company owner. ”I did a lot of back and forth with him – but he was very patient with me to get to the right solutions.”
The kitchen, with radiant-heat flooring, is one of the most popular rooms in the house. It’s a gathering space in the morning, and then in the afternoon, Bailey’s daughters do homework in the open area. Because it opens to the outer courtyard there is plenty of opportunity for fresh air and indoor/outdoor living. The orientation of the house maximizes solar gains, but there are many behind-the-scenes features that also embrace sustainability. The HVAC system is powered by nine on-site geothermal wells, while all rainwater is collected in a below-grade cistern, providing non-potable water for irrigation.
“As I got into (designing) this one, I started realizing this wasn’t going to be a five or 10-year house for us,” said Bailey. “This was for the long haul and we wanted to make good, environmentally-smart, decisions about how this home would be built.”
Photography by Alan Karchmer.
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