NCModernist

Sumner Winn's Masterpiece: The Owens House
Saturday, December 6, 10-2pm
812 Kenmore, Chapel Hill NC

Sumner Winn was one of the great midcentury Modernist architects in Chapel Hill, creating sweeping rooflines that brought in the sun or kept it out at just the right moments. NCModernist hosts a unique tour of his largest commission, the enormous Peg and Pat Owens House, built for the developers of the Lake Forest neighborhood. The house was later sold to Amway magnates Bill and Peggy Britt.

NCModernist Sumner Winn grew up in Worchester MA and graduated from Bowdoin College in 1950. After a year at the Sorbonne in Paris and four years in the Air Force in a MASH unit during the Korean War, Winn earned a BS in Architecture from the Rhode Island School of Design. He moved to Chapel Hill around 1960 and worked for Archie Royal Davis. In 1967 he worked as Winn/Condoret architects with Jon Condoret. In approximately 1968 he joined Don Stewart's CPAA as a partner. He left in 1973 to form his own practice in Chapel Hill. Most of his records and drawings were destroyed in 1994 when his Chapel Hill home office burned. With second wife Genie, he rebuilt the house in 1998 and spent his last years sharing an office in Carrboro with designer John Lindsey, known for designing the Wellspring Groceries (later Whole Foods), Magnolia Grill, and Aurora Restaurant. Winn's houses are known for beautiful corner windows, brick mass fireplaces, and extended post and beam exterior eaves. He died in 2000. See all his Modernist houses.

NCModernist's single-home tours showcase exceptional residential Modernist architecture, including new constructions, newly remodeled homes, and historically significant or endangered mid-century modern residences. NCModernist is a 501C3 nonprofit documenting, preserving, and promoting North Carolina residential architecture.

Tickets

Timed entry tickets every half hour. VIP tickets allow for entry anytime.

The Fine Print:

Tickets are not mailed; your name will be on a list at registration.

Once payment is made, there are no refunds for any reason except for tour cancellation. However, you can transfer tickets to others - just have them ask for the tickets in your name at registration.

Please do not attend if you are experiencing COVID symptoms or have tested positive within a week of the tour.

Participants must sign a liability waiver before entering.

Architects can get self-reported CEU hours if arranged in advance with the AIA.

Participants are welcome to take photos inside and outside.

Strollers are not allowed, but carried children are free. No food, drink, or smoking inside. Bathrooms are not available onsite.

For tour inquiries, please contact Devra Dubroff, devra@usmodernist.org.