How a midcentury ‘mess’ was resuscitated in Marietta

Atlanta architect Alan Phillip Clark doesn’t pull punches in describing the state of a Cobb County renovation project he took on in 2016.

“It looked like Thomas Jefferson remodeled a midcentury home,” Clark, the head of boutique firm Alan Clark Architects, tells Curbed Atlanta. “It was a mess.”

Clark’s commissions have run the gamut from an early 1800s vernacular log cabin and historic Midtown fire station to a Decatur craftsman home.

But the “really sad” canvas in Marietta, near Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park, presented a particularly fun opportunity, he says.

“Before” images courtesy of Alan Clark

The result exemplifies how an unremarkable and dated suburban dwelling can be remade into a thoughtful, highly functional showstopper. The $850,000 renovation budget made that possible.

The 1960s ranch had undergone several previous renovations, and Clark was charged with reducing it all to bare studs and reimagining each space.

“My office was asked to strip back the previous work,” he says, “and reset the palate.”

Additions with “modern farmhouse undertones” included a chef’s kitchen, guest suite, family room spaces, and beefed-up garage and home offices.

Fresh landscaping around the property and an enticing lap pool with multiple seating options (including a cozy, screened porch) completed the redo.

After new furnishings were purchased, the owners and their children moved back in recently. Which means it’s not for sale. At least not yet.

“[The] clients are super happy with the house and want to stay until the kids are in college,” says Clark.