Larson Architecture Works

06/20/2025

Last week, the New York Society Library gave its board and donors a sneak peek of the renovation that Larson Architecture Works has been working on for several years. Its landmark Trowbridge and Livingston townhouse on East 79th Street is being added to and reorganized to accommodate more books, to create more member spaces and to improve staff office areas.

We began planning back in 2018, broke ground in 2024 and the second of three phases is almost complete. The Henry S.F. Cooper Room, unveiled last week, will be a reading and writing room for members of the Library. It is on the same floor of the Library as the rare book reading room and the conservation studio and can be used for lectures and receptions when needed. The semi-rare high density storage system in the rear yard is already largely complete (see post from March 5), and we are underway creating the new staff offices on a lower level (see post from March 19th).

New York Society Library

06/05/2025

Larson Architecture Works congratulates the Stissing Center on its $1.5 million award from the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA). The grant will help progress the renovation and addition to the Stissing Center's historic building, including essential building stabilization, roof repair, and completion of the lower level community and performance space. Executive Director Patrick Trettenero, said "as a gathering place for arts and the community in our small town, Stissing Center is proud to contribute to the local economy by creating jobs while at the same time supporting the unique rural character of Pine Plains and helping it grow as a welcoming destination for visitors and weekenders.”

05/22/2025

Larson Architecture Works was pleased to be recognized by as a 2025 Gold List honoree this past April.

This project, featured in the July-August 2024 issue, was a substantial rebuild on an existing footprint, reorganized to take advantage of a nicely landscaped site. Collaborators included Terri Ricci Interiors , Joshua McHugh photography , Declan Murray Construction Management and Beitel Landscape Associates https://luxesource.com/gold-list/2025/larson-architecture-works-pllc

05/19/2025

Larson Architecture Works was pleased to be recognized by Luxe Magazine as a 2025 Gold List honoree this past April. This project, featured in the July-August 2024 issue, was a substantial rebuild on an existing footprint, reorganized to take advantage of a nicely landscaped site. Collaborators included Terri Ricci Interiors Joshua McHugh photography , Declan Murray Construction Management and Beitel Landscape Associates Luxe Interiors + Design

05/12/2025

God is in the details!

Some details, materials and finishes we have been using at the Stissing Center for Arts and Culbure in Pine Plains, NY. We have been careful to keep the romantic aged patina of the brick, concete, plaster and tin, while making contemporary interventions to meet code and acommoate modern uses. We have been using natural materials that reinforce a feeling of rusticity appropriate for a rural arts venue in a beautiful part of Dutchess County. We have made much progress, but theres more to go including a rear addition with an elevator, backstage support spaces, dressing rooms, etc... and a cellar venue with a kitchen. Attic gallery and offices up after that.

Check out the website, sign up for the mailing list, come to an event, and make a donation to help us finish! Blown glass chandelier by Joe McDonnell . Skip-planed white oak flooring from Concrete tile cast offs from

Photographed by Paul Clemence

04/16/2025

Variations on a theme... Stairs offer architects and designers the chance to design not just in plan, but in elevation. Stairs traverse horizontal and vertical space at once and are often an opportunity for sculptural expression.

Here are some staircases Larson Architecture Works has designed over the years, incorporating differing solutions to vertical connections, working within the constraints of the project, taking advantage of site-specific opportunities, and executed in several different styles.

Stairs become a vital and engaging part of the architecture—they create a sense of place, activate the spaces that contain them, and provide a stage on which to play out the drama of daily life.

04/01/2025

JMcLaughlin was founded in 1977 by brothers Jay and Kevin with a mission to create a new American sportswear brand that offers two key components: classic clothes with current relevance and a retail environment with a neighborhood feel. Doug Larson has been designing the JMcLaughlin stores for 30 years. The first JMcLaughlin was more than just a clothing shop. It was the kind of place where people lingered with its "welcoming, elegant and cozy chair" feel. Today, the company has over 180 retail stores in the United States. True to the brothers' vision, each store is entirely unique, attentively designed to reflect the town's color, character, and architecture. This attention to detail extends to exemplary customer service and local philanthropic engagement.

Photo: the new JMcLaughlin Store in Garden City. Photo by Daphnee Youree

03/24/2025

Beaux Arts Chutes and Ladders - The Rhinecliff, NY Amtrak station sits, jewel box-like, at the edge of a steep cliff along the Hudson River and is nestled amongst the charming houses in this romantic hamlet. The topography and views of the Hudson River bring to mind the towns namesake, the Rhine River Valley. The station, alas, is closed for renovations and we cant wait for it to reopen so we can see the interior. Until then, tell your weekend guests to arrive here and walk down the hill to meet you for dinner at Kipps Tavern.

03/18/2025

Out with the Old... Last week, removals began for the portion of our project in the lower level of the New York Society Library

This will allow this august institution to function more effiently by consolidating staff offices for the Acquisitions, Cataloging, Circulation, Development and Exhibitions departments, and freeing up more space for members in the formal rooms upstairs. This level, under the grand stair and the largest uninterupted space in the building, previously held storage for semi-rare books (see March 6 post) and these south-facing windows at sidewalk level on 79th Street have not let in any light since 1980!

03/12/2025

A substantial rebuild of this residence in Southhampton was created by a new layout of the principal rooms on the original footprint.Spacious yet cosy, the cottage is based in the English Arts and Crafts tradition and the style is expressed with a vocabulary of gables, dormers, bays, windows, eaves, dentils, columns, shingles and gates to achieve a charming silhouette and roofline for a cottage feel. Complemented by extensive grounds and an assortment of mature trees in the English park style, bountiful gardens and minimal terracing, the setting is relaxing and graceful for the family. A pool, garden, lawn and tennis court add to the well-landscaped property.

Photo: English manor house style staircase. c. Joshua McHugh

03/06/2025

A few minor plan changes near the foyer, allowed us to establish a clearer hierarchy of public to private spaces, to better limit views into passages, and provide places for the eye to rest upon special pieces of furniture. By breaking through a wall to the living room and moving the dining room entrance onto the same axis we created a gracious enfilade connecting the main public rooms. Opening the spaces along the window wall had the additional benefit of letting each room borrow daylight from its neighbor, preventing the dark dead-end feel of typical New York City apartments.

© Albert Vecerka/Esto.

05/27/2021

Fantastic home tour of one of our favorite projects!

Take a step inside the wonderful world of Barbara and Kevin McLaughlin. As the Co-Founder and Creative Director of J.Mclaughlin, an American heritage brand, ...