About
Who We Are
Architect Designed.
Site Specific.
Turnkey.
Upstate Modernist is a design-build firm specializing in architect-designed modern homes in Rhinebeck, New York and the broader Hudson Valley — including Dutchess and Columbia counties. We are architects, builders, and developers operating as one integrated team, controlling every phase of a home's creation from land selection and design through construction and delivery.
Our context-sensitive design approach integrates warm natural textures, sustainably sourced materials, and refined finishes within distinctly modern architectural forms. Each residence is one of a kind, shaped by the land on which it sits and delivered turnkey — so our clients move into something extraordinary without managing the complexity of getting there.
We are inspired by the idyllic and rural character of the Hudson Valley — its rolling topography, long sight lines, mature forests, and the particular quality of light that arrives from the west across open meadows. Every project begins here, with the land itself.
Unique
Each home is a unique site specific residence, designed by S3 Architecture in response to the natural characteristics of the land on which it sits. The result is a contextual structure naturally fitted to the site.
Modern
Our aesthetic is distinctly modern and marries natural textures and materials resulting in a warm modern style. Inspiration often comes from historic or local forms re-imagined with a modernist eye.
Sustainable
A core tenet of our firm, sustainability is key to our designs and building methods. Each home incorporates thoughtfully sourced and sustainable materials and is designed to be built with energy efficient systems and building techniques.
Luxury
Quality materials and designer fixtures and finishes are included in all homes. As an architecture firm first, our homes are never builder-grade.
TURN KEY
Our team is your concierge from design through construction.
Upstate Modern®
Our context sensitive design approach integrates warm natural textures, sustainably sourced materials and luxury finishes to distinctly modern architectural forms.
Each one-of-a-kind residence is designed with a modernist architectural aesthetic in response to the surrounding landscape - warm modern. Our team of architects and interior designers blend stylish fixture selections with sustainably sourced and artisanal touches. Our build team employs sustainable materials and methods during construction resulting in energy efficient homes and less waste.
Our Approach
Design · Build · Deliver
Blending a distinctly modernist aesthetic with natural materials, warm textures and traditional forms, the Modernist homes by Upstate Modernist and S3 Architecture offers a re-imagined modern lifestyle.
We’re inspired by the idyllic and rural character of the Hudson Valley of Upstate New York. Born from our focus on sustainability, the Modernist approach attends to intentional forms and thoughtful detailing, while respecting the land with a conservation focused and eco-conscious approach.
Each property starts with a site and preservation-focused plan maintaining natural spaces and sight lines. Every Modernist home is unique and site specific, designed to respond to the natural characteristics of the land on which it sits and built with sustainable and efficient building techniques - warm modern.
Site-specific design is the foundation of everything we do. Before a line is drawn, we study the topography, sun path, prevailing winds, mature tree lines, and long views of each property. Floor plans, window placement, roof pitch, material palette — all of it flows from those site conditions. Every Upstate Modernist home starts with a preservation-focused site plan that maintains natural spaces and sight lines. The architecture emerges from the land rather than being imposed upon it.
Most residential development involves a fragmented chain: a developer acquires land, commissions a separate architect, then contracts a separate builder — and the original vision erodes at every handoff. We have built our firm to eliminate that fragmentation entirely.
Leadership
Meet the Founders
Doug Maxwell
Co-Founder · Managing Partner
Doug Maxwell, Managing Partner and co-founder, leads business operations. Doug is a licensed real estate broker in New York and manages the firm’s marketing and sales in addition to contributing to interior and exterior space designs. Doug is an entrepreneur who has successfully launched and managed businesses in creative and technical genres offering S3 a blend of business, design and technology focus.
Christopher Dierig
Co-Founder · Registered Architect
Christopher Dierig, registered architect and co-founder, leads S3 architecture and design. Christopher is a Registered Architect in New York State, and is a member of the US Green Building Council. Christopher founded S3 Architecture in 2005 and manages daily operations of the business and studio staff. S3 Architecture is a Sustainable Architecture, Interior and Urban Design firm based in New York City.
The TeaM
Brennan Kearney
Construction Lead · Site Management
Brennan leads construction options and site management across all Upstate Modernist builds. Overseeing the UM construction team and relevant trades, Brennan is charged with realizing the Team’s designs and is a champion of construction quality with an eye toward building efficiency and sustainability. Before swinging a hammer, Brennan completed an M.F.A. and wrote for The New York Times, Martha Stewart Living and other shelter publications. Now, with 25 years of construction experience from Brooklyn to the Hudson Valley, Brennan's passion for home design and construction informs every aspect of her work for Upstate Modernist.
Allegra Jordan
Build Costing · Procurement
Allegra manages build costing and procurement for Upstate Modernist construction operations. As liaison with suppliers, vendors and artisans, she coordinates the relevant trades for resourcing and cost visibility and control of all UM builds. Allegra is an experienced construction professional as well as accomplished artist, lending a keen eye both aesthetic and technical to the Team.
Blithe Perez
Architectural Designer
Blithe is an Architectural Designer pursuing her license. With S3, she has worked on residential + hospitality hybrid development Sylvan Rock, a collaboration with and first private residence by Aston Martin Design. She received a Masters Degree from Columbia University and a Bachelor of Arts from Hampshire College. She has worked at multiple firms in Massachusetts and New York before joining S3 in January 2020.
Michael Sluchevsky
Junior Project Architect
Michael is a Junior Project Architect and graduate of the Cooper Union School of Architecture in New York City. He is originally from the NY Hudson Valley and is currently pursuing licensure in New York State. Prior to joining S3 in 2025, Michael worked for architecture firms in New York City and Boston, focusing on projects ranging from residential to large scale cultural and institutional buildings.
Austin White
Architectural Designer
Austin is an Architectural Designer with a bachelor’s degree from Kennesaw State University. His career began in aviation architecture, but he has since expanded into the residential realm to broaden his expertise. Actively working toward his architectural licensure, he is driven by a passion for design, the built environment, and creating lasting impacts.
Tabea Kobach
Design Coordinator
Tabea joined Upstate Modernist in 2024 as a Design Coordinator, bringing over a decade of diverse creative experience. With a background in design and fashion and her love for interior architecture, she founded her own Design Studio and has overseen projects in the Hudson Valley NY and New York City. Her unique blend of modern aesthetic and creative vision as well as her understanding of construction, positions her as a key contributor to the Upstate Modernist team.
Isaiah Graham
Junior Project Architect
Isaiah is a Junior Project Architect currently pursuing architectural licensure. He holds a Bachelor of Architecture from Temple University, Tyler School of Art and a Master of Architecture from Columbia University, GSAPP. His work spans the fields of art and design, with experience in the U.S. and Europe. With a multidisciplinary background and a deep interest in materiality and experiential spaces, Isaiah brings a thoughtful, design-driven approach to each project.
Selected Work
Notable Projects
& Collaborations
Residential · Hospitality · Collaboration
Sylvan Rock
× Aston Martin
Sylvan Rock represents one of the most ambitious projects in Upstate Modernist's portfolio — and a landmark moment in the intersection of architecture and automotive design. A residential and hospitality hybrid development set on 55 acres in the Hudson Valley, Sylvan Rock was developed in collaboration with Aston Martin Design, marking Aston Martin's first private residential commission. The project merges the precision and material sophistication of Aston Martin's design vocabulary with S3 Architecture & Upstate Modernist’s contextual, landscape-first approach, resulting in a property of exceptional architectural distinction.
Urban Development · Multiple Dwelling
Brooklyn Heights Farm
Brooklyn Heights Farm is a thoughtfully conceived multiple dwelling development that extends the firm's design principles — site sensitivity, sustainability, and architectural rigor — into an urban residential context. Led by S3 Architecture, the project applies the same attention to materiality and livability that defines Upstate Modernist's Hudson Valley work to a multiple estate residential program. The development demonstrates the firm's capacity to deliver complex, multi-unit residential architecture while maintaining the quality and design discipline that distinguishes their single-family work.