Project Description
2004 CHDA
Accessory Building / Merit Award
“If you were a kid, you’d be thrilled with this,” said one of the judges of this jewel of a playhouse. But from the entire jury’s reaction to the structure, children aren’t the only ones it will thrill; plenty of adults will enjoy it too.
This little folly was designed and built for a fund-raiser for the Providence, R.I., Children’s Museum. It’s meant to be a miniature version of a vernacular New England cottage, explained architect William Burgin, but one that’s generic enough to allow kids’ fancy to take flight, imagining it as a beach cottage, fort, Newport mansion, or a village railway station.
As an actual building, the judges admired the playhouse’s high level of detailing, its perfectly downsized scale, and its crisp, simple design. They also admired it as an act of goodwill; both the architect, who is a member of the museum’s board of trustees, and the builder donated their services. The materials were donated by local businesses.