ISPA Conference & Expo
ISPA Conference & Expo
ISPA Conference & Expo

Feature

Dedicated to health

Architect Robert Henry has created a healthy home to support the wellness of the Kutsak family in Rumson New Jersey. He talks us through the project


Michael and Michelle Kutsak approached us with the goal of creating a healthy home for them and their three children.

As the founder of a successful sleep health company, which he launched in 2008, longevity and wellness is in Michael Kutsak’s DNA.

He later sold the business and embarked on a project to create his dream home with his wife, Michelle.

Their goal was a home featuring a range of wellness facilities, including a couple’s massage suite, hydrotherapy exercise pool, fitness arena, steam and sauna and the desire to focus firmly on wellness as a lifestyle.

Michael discovered the perfect location, a three-acre parcel of land in New Jersey, with views of the Atlantic.

Key wellness elements
I asked the couple what healthy habits they practice and how open they are to new modalities that will underpin their family’s longevity. They both share a passion for open water – the beaches along the Côte d’Azure and the healing power of the ocean, for example – which led to the integration of both indoor and outdoor salt water pools on the property.

The whole lower level of the house is dedicated to health and relaxation. The indoor pool includes space for an aqua-bike that can be used to increase cardiovascular capacity and we complemented this by adding hydro-jets that massage the calves, thighs and lower back, the muscle groups linked to Michelle’s favourite workout.

The couple likes to exercise together, so Michael can be working out in the gym while Michelle exercises in the pool.

Both spaces share a view toward a sunken exterior wellness-garden, which has a 20 ft fire-ribbon hearth so it can be used most of the year for socialising and relaxing.

Treatment room and spa bathroom suite
Tired muscles crave massage, so we positioned a couple's massage suite next to the exercise areas, providing the couple with quality time after their workout.

It’s important to integrate activities people love into their home, to create a rounded wellness lifestyle and transform the exercise experience from a workout into a bliss-out.

The lower level of the home also includes a family-fun room, with games and pinball machines and a screening room with a large day-bed that cocoons the entire family.

For smaller intimate gatherings, the lower level also has a wine cave and tasting room which is surrounded by thermostatically controlled wine towers.

The upper level of the house has seven bedrooms and a master bedroom spa suite, while a sunlit gallery overlooking the gardens and pools below, links the separate sleeping and bathing areas of the property.

At night, motorised shades provide complete black-out of the sleeping area, promoting deep restful sleep.

Temperature, lighting and window treatments are all operated via smart technology and controlled from the Kutsak's iPhones. In the master bedroom, an oversized fireplace facing the bed creates that sense of tranquillity that only a blazing fire can produce and helps the Kutsaks wind down in the evening.

The master bathroom has an 8ft x 8ft experiential couples shower and steamroom built from full-height 'glass and stone slabs. Behind the shower a window provides a dramatic view to the ocean beyond.

A deep double steeping tub sits next to an outdoor garden terrace, with sheer curtains providing privacy. The children’s and guest rooms are located in a nearby wing.

The estate’s main ground floor is approached along a winding driveway that leads to a porte-cochère which links a guest house to the main residence.

The ground floor features a two-story entrance hall with a sculptural staircase, a formal living space, kitchen with breakfast nook and a formal dining room.

A discreet corridor leads to Michael Kutsak's private office, which adjoins a festive champagne room.

Healthy materials
The materials used throughout were natural and sustainable and in addition, all paints, adhesives and other construction products emit low or zero levels of VOC.

This healthy home is the foundation of a sustainable lifestyle, making it easy for the entire family to work out and relax, while creating a legacy for generations to come.

Gallery
Click on an image to open the image gallery
company profile
Company profile: Willmott Dixon
Willmott Dixon delivers the social infrastructure that people depend on in their daily lives. We partner with our customers to focus on the services they want to provide, not just the building we construct, and we are committed to achieving a higher social purpose through our work.
Try cladmag for free!
Sign up with CLAD to receive our regular ezine, instant news alerts, free digital subscriptions to CLADweek, CLADmag and CLADbook and to request a free sample of the next issue of CLADmag.
sign up
features
Prince-Ramus with a model of the Perelman, showing the exterior staircase which doubles as a seating area
Prince-Ramus was the founding partner of OMA New York, before rebranding the firm as REX in 2006
"If there are many possible solutions, we choose the one that is most beautiful"

Rem Koolhaas’ protege on the challenges of designing a truly flexible arts centre for Ground Zero

The 2,000sq m Ayurah Wellness Centre fuses spiritual and medical care, with a range of medical 
and spa facilities
Kenzo Takada fashion designer
"Kenzo has created an unparalleled private island"

Designing interiors for a new Cambodian wellness retreat

The three cultural organisations are set around a flexible public space
Jakob Sand
"Maybe a project ends up looking like a BIG building, but there’s no blueprint. If you have a good idea, we will look at it, whether you’re an intern or a partner."

On BIG's French adventure

Catalogue Gallery
Click on a catalogue to view it online
To advertise in our catalogue gallery: call +44(0)1462 431385
features
Happy by Design has just been published by Ben Channon via the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA)
Ben Channon
"I hope architects gain a genuine understanding of how buildings and spaces affect our mental wellbeing and how their design can be tailored towards making people happier and healthier"

Ben Channon has written Happy by Design, a new book about how architecture affects our mental health. He explains how we can all be happier at home

The Baltic Center for Contemporary Art, UK
Patrick Bellew, founder, Atelier Ten
"It’s a wonderful extension to the existing modernist MOMA museum by Snohetta"

Working with Zaha Hadid, Heatherwick and more, Atelier Ten helps create sustainable buildings. Patrick Bellew speaks out

Facilities include a spa
DMAC’s Dwayne MacEwen
"The hotel concept came late in the game, but it was an inspired idea"

The newly renovated Chicago Midtown Athletic Club features a boutique hotel, a pool-come-ice rink and spaces designed by Venus Williams

features
"It was born from the sheer anxiety of having to submit something brilliant in a very short timescale"

How a moment of desperation led to BIG’s CopenHill, the clean power plant that’s doubling as a skiing and leisure destination. Magali Robathan speaks to the architects that made it happen

RCR designed a public space in place of the demolished La Lira theatre in Ripoll, Spain
"Winning the Pritzker is a great joy and a great responsibility"

On winning the Pritzker Prize

cladkit product news
Mather & Co and ITV unite to create Coronation Street Experience
Mather & Co has transformed the visitor centre into the ultimate haven for ardent Coronation Street viewers
Magali Robathan
Experience designers, Mather & Co, have orchestrated a remarkable collaboration with ITV to unveil the new Coronation Street Experience, a ...
Eden project uses drones to spell out climate change warning
Magali Robathan
Almost 300 drones were used to signal an environmental message above the Eden Project’s biomes, during the UN Climate Change ...
Siminetti unveils iridescent decorative panelling range inspired by plants
The Clematis design
Megan Whitby
The Botanicals is Siminetti’s newest Mother of Pearl decorative panelling collection, inspired by the distinctive patterns found in botany and ...
cladkit product news
Jaffe Holden helps bring Academy Museum of Motion Pictures alive
Jaffe Holden provided architectural acoustics for the Academy Museum
Magali Robathan
Acoustical consulting firm Jaffe Holden provided architectural acoustics and audio/video design services for the recently opened Academy Museum of Motion ...
Codelocks develops new glass door smart lock
The new lock model allows facilities and building managers to create and manage access via an app or online portal
Megan Whitby
Codelocks has launched its first glass door smart lock to bring intelligent access control to modern spa, leisure, fitness and ...
Eco Resort Network conference to convene in Mauritius this May
The event will be hosted in the Mauritius in 2024
Megan Whitby
Hospitality industry event Eco Resort Network is set to take place at the Ravenala Attitude Hotel, Turtle Bay, Mauritius, from ...
cladkit product news
Alberto Apostoli and Newform collaborate to launch the A.Zeta showerhead
The showerhead offers two modes; rainfall or waterfall
Megan Whitby
Italian architect Alberto Apostoli has renewed his partnership with Newform – an Italian wellness company – and designed A.Zeta. A.Zeta ...
Koto Design introduces wood-fired hot tub
Koto is known for crafting modular, energy-neutral cabins and homes
Katie Barnes
A striking wood-fired hot tub has been unveiled by Koto, an architecture and design studio which has a passion for ...
Alberto Apostoli designs tech-forward Wellness Therapy furniture collection for Varaschin
The furniture collection draws on absolute geometries, pure lines, neutral colours and strong references to nature
Megan Whitby
Furniture manufacturer Varaschin has unveiled the new Wellness Therapy range, designed by Italian spa and wellness architect and designer Alberto ...
ISPA Conference & Expo
ISPA Conference & Expo