Architect Robert Gurney and builder Darren Kornas have seen their fair share of unusual requests, but this was a first: A client asked for a regulation-sized volleyball court in his new custom home. “A volleyball court requires an immense amount of height,” relates Kornas. “I wondered how it would look.”

The client had invited them to tour a site he and his wife had acquired in a Virginia suburb. The three-and-a-half-acre parcel descends gently to mature woods and a sizable pond. While visiting, Gurney had a lightbulb moment. “I had to find ways to minimize the size of the court,” he recalls. “This lot would work because we could bury half the court into grade and visually reduce its volume.”

All agreed that the abandoned 1970s-era house on the property had to go, so the architect began designing a new home in its place. Embracing wellness and sustainability, the couple sought a secluded, modern abode with a strong connection to nature, a layout conducive to easy entertaining, and eco-friendly systems that would minimize their carbon footprint.

Gurney conjured the residence along an axis, in four distinct, interconnected volumes strung like a necklace of vertical and horizontal gems. On the far left side, the 35-foot-high volleyball court nestles in the hillside—as does a nearby 60-foot-long indoor-outdoor pool. A three-story, perpendicular mass houses a garage at ground level, two ensuite guest rooms above and a gym below. Further west, the main entryway and a screened porch support an upper structure containing the primary suite and terrace. The kitchen, living/dining area and wife’s office unfold on the ground level of a fourth volume. The husband’s office occupies its upper floor while downstairs, a party-ready game room awaits.

“I separated spaces and organized them in a logical and functional way,” the architect says. “The idea was to give the owners an environment where they didn’t feel like they were living in a giant house. This also created an interesting sort of architectural piece.”

Interesting, to say the least. At 18,595 square feet (4,152 of which are volleyball court), the home presents a bold interplay of forms and materials, from mahogany details to blackened Shou Sugi Ban panels, Corten steel walls and spans of fiber cement. “It’s a big house with lots of exterior surfaces so I chose materials that wouldn’t require a lot of maintenance,” Gurney explains, adding that they “also felt right in this woodsy environment.”

In the project’s early days, interior designer Therese Baron Gurney and landscape architects Kevin Campion and Steve Makrinos joined forces with Kornas, Gurney and project architect Nicole de Jong. Together, the team seamlessly integrated indoor and outdoor areas and celebrated connections to nature at every turn.

Windows frame views of the ever-changing landscape in living areas and long passageways that connect all volumes on two levels. Outside, stone paths and stairways link the front and back yards, from the volleyball court to the pool and screened porch. Orchestrating “the way you go through a series of outdoor terraces created challenges, but also opportunities,” observes Gurney. “Moving from one space to another creates dynamic and interesting moments.”

There are also moments of wonder—such as the kitchen volume that cantilevers 14 feet over the side lawn. And the primary suite terrace, enveloped in mahogany and perched high in the treetops. And the stream that the landscape architects devised to manage runoff and keep the pond clean.

Today, the home’s flourishing gardens are a far cry from the conditions that Campion and Makrinos initially encountered: Invasive Japanese stiltgrass had overtaken the site and the pond was a brown mess. “Our strategy,” Campion explains, “was to replace the invasive species and develop a manageable plan that connects the home’s modern forms with a modern, environmentally smart landscape.” The hillside harbors drifts of billowing grasses in muted colors that change throughout the seasons.

“It’s a very simple regimen,” Makrinos explains. “You let the grasses grow, then cut them back once a year.”

Except for a side plot reserved for outdoor volleyball, lawn areas were kept to a minimum. Corten steel retaining walls enclose sloping berms that play off the planes of the house and lead guests into the rear yard. A bridge over the stream—created by pumping water from the pond—leads to a half-mile loop through the woods.

This tableau inspired Baron Gurney’s interiors. “We selected furniture appropriate to the scale of the home and also sought comfort and ease of entertaining,” says the designer, a frequent collaborator who happens to be Robert Gurney’s wife. “The owners love color; we also paid respect to natural colors and forms.” Examples of her approach: game room seating upholstered in saturated shades of orange, and the great room’s Enzo Berti side tables pairing “pebble” bases in marble with rounded wooden tops.

Sustainability also drove the designer’s selections. “We chose materials that don’t give off PFAS and VOCs, which was really important to the owners,” she recounts.

From solar panels on the volleyball court roof that fuel a Tesla Powerwall to a geothermal energy system and radiant-heat flooring, the project was conceived to be eco-friendly—including the landscape. “We inherited a property that was almost a monoculture and have probably introduced 30 or 40 pollinator plants and a few thousand grasses and perennials,” Campion reports. “That makes a significant impact on biodiversity.”

Whether working out in the pool or gym, hosting a volleyball match or tending to vegetables and fruit trees they’ve planted, the couple is immersed in health and nature. Even contemplative vistas, says Makrinos, promote a sense of well-being. “On the first floor, you’re met with a 360-degree view of trees, and the owners’ suite looks down on a stream,” he marvels. “Seeing green everywhere you look has a huge meditative quality.”

RESOURCES

THROUGHOUT
Home Automation: casaplex.com. Windows: westernwindowsystems.com.

HALL TO KITCHEN
Flooring: krukowskistone.com. Light Fixtures: 8lighting.com.

DINING AREA
Table: andrejoyau.com. Table Base: tuohyfurniture.com. Leather Chairs: cassina.com. Light Fixture: camerondesignhouse.com through illuminc.com.

LIVING AREA
Sofas: bensen.com through m2l.com. Throw Pillows: maharam.com. Sofa Fabric: carnegiefabrics.com. Lounge Chairs: walterknoll.de/en through m2l.com. Chair Fabric: kvadrat.dk/en. Occasional Table: kreoo.com/en. Rug: silkroadruginc.com. Paint: Pure White by sherwin-williams.com.

KITCHEN
Cabinetry: Custom through lieberknechtdesign.com. Stools: kff.de/en through m2l.com. Sink Fixtures: dornbracht.com. Cooktop, Hood & Ovens: gaggenau.com. Wine Refrigerator: subzero-wolf.com through abwappliances.com.

PRIMARY BEDROOM + TERRACE
Bed: poltronafrau.com. Wall Covering: weitznerlimited.com. Custom Area Rug: silkroadruginc.com. Outdoor Lounge & Ottoman: en.egoparis.com. Cushions: sunbrella.com.

OWNERS’ BATH
Vanity: poliform.it/en-us. Mirror Cabinets: robern.com. Tub: noorth.it/en; fantini.it/en-us through konstunion.com. Glass Panel: riverglassdesigns.com.

GAME ROOM
Modular Sofa, Swivel Chairs & Poufs: bensen.com through m2l.com. Sofa Fabric: carnegiefabrics.com. Swivel Chair & Pouf Fabric: gabrielfabrics.com. Throw Pillows: maharam.com. Coffee Table: andrejoyau.com. Custom Area Rug: silkroadruginc.com. Stools: kff.de/en through m2l.com. Billiards Table: elevatecustoms.com. Pendant Lights: sklo.com through illuminc.com. Basement Bar Countertop: Golden Eagle through marblesystems.com. Flooring: krukowskistone.com. Paint: Pure White by sherwin-williams.com.

POOL
Chaises: royalbotania.com. Pool Deck Flooring: krukowskistone.com.