Beautiful custom home in Jackson WY. Photographed for owner, Hoyt/CTA Architects and Stewart Construction.

1. *+
+* Star
Dancer
A thoughtful match of land and structure houses one
I t was written in the stars. After four years of looking, one
of Jackson Hole’s most majestic and best kept real-estate
secrets became known to a couple from Fairfield County,
Connecticut. At the end of the road near the highest point
on a steep, north-facing aspen-treed butte, this key 4.7-acre
the first to know and we immediately flew to Jackson. It was
a wet, grey day with heavy clouds cloaking the peaks as we
stood on the property and looked north. Our realtor held up,
in front of our faces, a picture postcard of the entire Teton
Mountain Range taken from atop this butte. Sold.”
property had been reserved for the development of a residents’ Brad Hoyt, a Jackson, Wyo. architect with CTA Architects
family and its heritage in the wilds of Wyoming club. But that all changed. The owners remembered: “We were Engineers (of Billings, Mont., with several Rocky Mountain
W r i t t e n b y t. H a m i s H t e a r a fire lookout inspired piece is the first to welcome visitors to the series of pods stretching out around the natural amphitheater. upper level living enhances the views
from the public spaces. a fortress-strong base supports the lighter, view enhancing upper level.
PHotograPHy by karl neumann
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2. regional offices) was originally asked to design a
traditional home that would provide a haven for
extended family and friends, yet would also com-
pliment and accommodate copious Beidermeyer
antiques — heirloom family furniture from a sto-
ried heritage as far back as the 1820’s — to be
moved from Fairfield County and Pittsburgh.
However, Hoyt saw the natural amphitheater in
which the home would be nestled. He also saw one
of the most stunning views in Wyoming — in the
world — and that from a 500-foot elevated pedes-
tal looking out over a canopy of quaking aspen and
blue spruce trees.
“The lot cried out for a home that followed
the flow of this mini bowl, I had to preserve every
aspect of that situation and view,” Hoyt explained.
“The owners were open to my suggestion that a
barrel-stave roof on a contemporary home would
allow for so much more architectural creativ-
Left: the great room was specifically designed to feel com-
fortable for even small-sized groups. a large upper level
deck extends the living area during warm weather. Above:
numerous outdoor spaces accommodate sun or shade, views
of the teton range or more intimate favorites. Opposite page:
Panoramic views of the teton range have been maximized at
every opportunity including in the dining room where traditional
family furniture is showcased in a warm contemporary space.
120 Big Sky Journal HOME 121

3. ity than a traditional home with view-limiting Superbly crafted by Stewart Construction Services of
gable roofs and tighter design caveats.” And the Jackson, the whole is ingeniously designed around four ‘pods’
antique furniture? The juxtaposition works per- (guest house, entry tower, public area, master suites), positioned
fectly in a seamless marriage of old-meets-new, along the curved contours of the land, and joined by connecting
the interface between the honeyed maple floor- corridors. With an angular difference of 45 degrees, the upper-
ing and the dark-legged pieces meets a stunning level views feature Mount Glory (from the guest house) and the
collection of generations-old rugs and runners. Cathedral Group (from the master bedroom), the central parts
Modern design, in the shape of an electric eleva- of the range being enjoyed from the public area, its substantial
tor in the entry tower — which mimics a fire deck, and the entry tower.
look-out — with large windows on all sides, even Agoraphobics beware! The master shower’s vast clear
facilitated the task of moving-in the furniture and window threatens to launch one, hawk-like, out over the
appliances. tree-tops and on to the distant Wyoming valleys and peaks.
Meanwhile, from the rear south-facing kitchen window, a
Left: massive battered stone fireplace with custom steel reverse curve in the roof (which the family has nicknamed:
surround anchors the living room. star Dancer clues are the Gelande, or ski jump) lifts an eave, bringing more intimate
discovered throughout the home. Below: the kitchen bar
accommodates informal meals while the tangerine tile back- enjoyment of the close-in flora and fauna, and the skyline of the
splash converses with the dining room beyond. the detailing
butte immediately above.
is clean, yet warm.
122 Big Sky Journal HOME 123

4. The materials, in combination, marry the balance of elegant formality
to the ingrained organic elements of living out West.
With design-rich barrel roofs; sweeping ceilings of curved storage cubbies and benches set-up for serious partakers of ski-
and interconnected laminate beams; raised plates and lakes of ing, mountain-biking and all manner of outdoor sports offered
glass; the pods’ distinctive upper levels project an artistic yet by this Rocky Mountain lifestyle. Equally, industrial strength
substantial, Modern yet enduring superstructure. This, in turn, laundry, boiler and mechanical rooms line the south-facing
is carried by a no-nonsense lower level with fort-strong, bat- walls in further testament to the intent and longevity of this
tered limestone walls, and the only level of the home that is dug family domain.
into the hillside at the rear. It was most important to both Hoyt Intentionally, there’s not a full kitchen in the lower level,
and the owners that site disturbance be kept to a minimum. which requires that dinners be eaten en famille in the splendid
Whilst the upper level, the domain of the elders, speaks red-walled dining area upstairs — a desire of the owners.
of fine and tranquil living, of order and organization amongst This love flows throughout the house — there is a saying on
exquisite furnishings; the lower level is a fully-contained sum- a cushion that reads: “If you ever leave me — I’m going with
mer camp-like collection of rooms in two separate apartments you.” And there is love in the home’s name: Star Dancer — a
for immediate family. There’s a super-cool ship-like bunk room reference to a passage in The Little Prince — which memori-
for eight kids, three en-suite bedrooms for adults, a billiard alizes a lost daughter, and allows her to be with her family
room with a great stone fireplace, and a true locker-room with — every day. H
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