More than 60 years after Buenos Aires-born architect Julio Kaufman designed the distinctive Pyramid House, it remains one of Fire Island Pines’ most recognizable examples of the experimental modernism that helped define the summer beach community. Fire Island, a 31-mile-long barrier island just off Long Island‘s south shore, became something of a laboratory for architects in the 1960s, and Kaufman’s pyramid-shaped design is among the most memorable results.
Kaufman designed the roughly 2,100-square-foot house in 1960 for John Goodwin, a fellow architect as well as an arts patron and writer who was the nephew of financier J.P. Morgan. The property occupied a narrow 300-foot-long lot stretching from the bay to the ocean, and Kaufman shaped the house around the views, creating a living room where the views extend across the island and the water in multiple directions.
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The great room sits beneath the home’s signature pyramid roof.
Daniel Rodriguez
The house has gone through some significant changes since then, while retaining the spirit of Kaufman’s original design. Playwright Paul Rudnick bought it in 2001 and commissioned architect Hal Hayes to update it, with the project completed in 2003–04. The main house was gutted and opened up into a single living, dining, and kitchen space, while its eastern face was replaced with a floor-to-ceiling glass-and-steel system overlooking the dunes, ocean, and bay. Hayes also added a guesthouse alongside the pool at the front of the property, creating a private courtyard between the two structures. The guesthouse comprises three adjoining pavilions, each capped with a pyramid-shaped, semi-translucent roof that fills them with light.
The primary bedroom features horizontal wood paneling, a fireplace, and pool access.
Daniel Rodriguez
In 2018, real estate agent and vintage-modern furniture dealer Glenn Rice bought the property for $1.6 million and furnished it with pieces from his personal collection of 1960s and ’70s designs. Today, the property has three bedrooms and two-and-a-half bathrooms, with the primary suite occupying much of the lower level and including dressing areas, a bathroom, and a private study. Two more bedrooms, plus a bath, are in the guesthouse.
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The pyramid-shaped roofs on the guesthouse pavilions echo the form of the main residence.
Daniel Rodriguez
Recent work includes central air-conditioning, electrical upgrades, a new saltwater pool liner, updated pool equipment, and window film on the enormous panes of glass.
Rice listed the house for $6.5 million in 2022, and it later returned to the market with several price reductions, including a $4.3 million asking price in 2024. Now, he is offering it again for $3.3 million with Compass broker Esteban Gomez.
Click here to see more photos of the Fire Island residence.
Daniel Rodriguez
Authors
Abby Montanez
