November 3, 2025
By Jamie Marshall
As luminaries in the design world, Sharon residents Heide Hendricks and Rafe Churchill (the husband-and-wife team behind the architecture and interior design firm Hendricks Churchill) are known for their ability to breathe new life into historic structures—residential and commercial. “One of the things we set out to do when we merged our businesses in 2017 was to push the boundaries of finding projects that we could renovate and resuscitate and update for contemporary living,” says Hendricks.
Many of these projects are featured in Distinctly American: Houses and Interiors by Hendricks Churchill, the couple’s second monograph published by Rizzoli this past September. Filled with beautiful photos and evocative prose (as well as floor plans), the book offers a behind-the-scenes look at ten of their favorite collaborations, ranging from rural farmhouses to an apartment in a New York City high rise and an historic brick building in Brooklyn. Though each project was different in size and scope, what they all have in common is a sense of place and style that feels effortless—both inside and out.
“Each one showcases our holistic approach to interior design and architecture, as well as great landscape designers,” says Hendricks. “What our clients like is that when we do a home—whether in a country setting or an urban setting—the goal is for it to feel safe and comfortable and casual, with tactile layers and color and pattern that lets you forget about the backdrop and sink into ease and comfort and begin living your life.”
One of their most cherished collaborations is their own home, Ellsworth House, a renovated 19th-century farmhouse and dairy barn in the Ellsworth section of Sharon. It is the subject of their debut book, Our Way Home: Reimagining and American Farmhouse (Rizzoli). “When our publisher originally asked us to do a monograph of our top ten projects, we said yes on one condition. We wanted to do Ellsworth house first,” recalls Hendricks. “We told them it was important to start with who we are—just us, without a client, so to speak.” For Hendricks and Churchill, Ellsworth House is a showpiece for their passion for and commitment to designing houses that never feel formulaic.
“We try to design for the long term, and provide a vision that transcends the moment and current trends,” says Churchill. “Life evolves, and the house has to accommodate these necessary changes.” At its core, Ellsworth represents a pared-down traditionalism with Shaker tranquility, Arts & Crafts practicality, and bohemian chic—no surprise, considering both Hendricks and Churchill made their livings as artists before turning their talents to architecture and design. They have won numerous accolades and awards over the years including this year’s prestigious ICAA Bullfinch Award, for their sensitive renovation and design of an 1830s Greek Revival in Salisbury, which they bought in 2023 and turned into their office and showroom. They sold the space this fall (now the home to the Geary Art Gallery) and have relocated to a new studio that Churchill built at Ellsworth. “As a design firm you kind of have to be flexible and improvise a little bit,” says Hendricks.—hendrickschurchill.com
