Anomalous on the Bay CreditTrevor Tondro for The New York Times

The story of how Richard Meier, one of the world’s most-celebrated architects, came to design a small, one-bedroom house on a barrier island likely destined for extinction goes back nearly a half-century.

It was 1969, and Phil and Lucy Suarez were newlyweds. Mr. Suarez, 27, would eventually become the business partner of the acclaimed chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten, but at the time he had just co-founded a company that became very successful at producing popular commercials and music videos. He and Mrs. Suarez, 24, had bought their first apartment, in Gramercy Park, and were contemplating a renovation. When Mr. Suarez asked a colleague to recommend an architect, he was given the name of Richard Meier, a rising star already becoming known for his dramatic stark-white buildings.

Mrs. Suarez had never heard of him. “So Lucy calls him and says, ‘I want to see your portfolio,’ ” recalled Mr. Suarez, now 73. “And Richard said, ‘Excuse me?’ ”

After seeing a photograph of one of Mr. Meier’s houses, though, she was astonished. “I saw this house and said: ‘Oh, my God! If you can do this, you can do our apartment.’ ”...Continue Reading

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