“The Burgess Residence was designed as a cluster of floating pavilions organized under a sheltering parasol for a wealthy battery magnate who had purchased a small island south of Sarasota. The structure is fabricated of typical flush panel doors set within a post-and-beam framework, which was transported to the site by boat. A low plinth forms the base of the entire composition with a discrete entry path leading to the central courtyard. This project is unusual in that it was designed for a remote site without any relationship to the ever-present automobile.”
Domin, Christopher, and Joseph King. Paul Rudolph: The Florida Houses. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2002. p. 172.