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Stones and shells from the seashore fill the walls of these eight contemporary British beach huts that London office Pedder & Scampton designed for the seaside town of Southend (+ slideshow).
Pedder & Scampton‘s design won a competition organised by Southend Council to develop “a new generation” of beach huts that offer a modern alternative to existing huts found along the local beaches.
“We have always enjoyed beach huts ourselves, and this fantastic site and simple project gave us a great opportunity to think imaginatively about materials and form,” architect Gill Scampton told Dezeen.
“We took the traditional elements of beach huts to be a strong rythmic repeating form, variation within an overall form, strong use of colour and individually customised spaces,” she added. “We wanted to propose an update for a traditional building form that responds to the very particular character of the site.”
The colourful doors and shutters of the eight huts reference the typical painted wooden structures that have been a popular fixture at many seaside resorts since the nineteenth century.
“The strong colours and industrial scale of the numbers respond to the scale and character of the Thames Estuary, which call for something more robust than the usual pastel colours,” Scampton explained.
Traditionally, beach huts are situated above the high tide mark and used as a place to shelter from the sun or wind, change into swimming gear and store personal belongings.
Rather than the linear formation found on many beaches, Pedder & Scampton’s huts are arranged along an existing concrete promenade at an angle to one another, creating individual private terraces in the spaces between each one.
The huts are constructed from prefabricated components that allowed them to be assembled quickly on site during the winter months.
Timber frames support walls made from recycled timber pallets, with plywood used to clad the internal surfaces and translucent polycarbonate sheeting covering the exterior.
The cavities between the two layers are filled with pebbles, gravel, glass chippings, shells and other recycled materials, which are arranged in layers to represent the tidal drift on the beach.
These materials provide thermal mass, as well as privacy and security, and can be seen through the translucent outer surfaces. They also provide additional strength and stability, which enabled the huts to withstand the strong winds of recent storms that damaged many of the traditional beach huts in the area.
Gaps left between the level of the infilled material and the roof create clerestory windows that introduce natural light into the huts.
The angled arrangement of the structures creates spaces through which the sea can still be seen from a promenade that runs along the rear of the site.
The sloping roofs create an irregular rhythm and are planted with sea-hardened sedum and other plants that can also be seen from the promenade.
Local publication the Southend Standard has reported that more huts are planned for a location nearby after the initial eight sold for more than £27,000 each. The design was developed in collaboration with structural engineers StructureMode.
Photography is by Simon Kennedy.
Here’s a project description from Pedder & Scampton:
New beach huts at Southend on Sea
Brits are set to enjoy a late spring heatwave according to the Met office, which is good news for those lucky enough to have bagged one of the eight new beach huts at Southend, designed by London practice Pedder & Scampton.
The British love affair with the beach hut has never been healthier. Bidding for the 7-year leases of the huts at East Beach was fierce given their location just an hour and a half’s drive away from London and perfect for last minute weekend getaways.
Pedder & Scampton’s competition-winning design responded to an ambitious brief from Southend Council calling for ‘a new generation’ of beach huts. It updates the traditional format with an eco-friendly design featuring green planted roofs, recycled materials and a distinctive slanted shape that gives each individual hut its own private terrace.
Coloured doors and shutters create variety and a feel-good vibe within the bold repetitive structure. The walls of the huts – which are built on the existing raised concrete promenade with great views of the sea – are formed from recycled timber pallets bolted into timber frames and faced with tough translucent polycarbonate sheeting to the outside and plywood to the inner faces.
The wall cavities are then filled with layers of pebbles, gravel, glass chippings and shells, laid in drift layers visible through the plastic, giving the huts a beautifully tactile seaside aesthetic.
The simple, robust interiors allow for customisation, and can be painted or fitted out by tenants, looking to create a home-from-home to make a brew or read the papers in, whist still enjoying the tang of the salty air.
The freeholds remain with Southend Borough Council who, through local agents Haart, are now actively seeking interest from prospective tenants for a potential Phase 2 of the development, which already has planning permission.
Pedder and Scampton beat more than 40 other entrants in the competition, which was launched in August 2012. The designs were developed with structural engineers StructureMode.
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makeover from Pedder & Scampton appeared first on Dezeen.
This school building in Bath, England, by local architects Mitchell Taylor Workshop features stone walls recalling the city’s historic architecture, alongside contrasting dark grey brickwork and window surrounds (+ slideshow).
The design by Mitchell Taylor Workshop was the winning entry in a competition for a humanities building at Kingswood School, to be built on the school’s picturesque Lansdown Road grounds.
Located within a designated conservation area and World Heritage Site, the materials used for the facility’s exterior had to meet strict planning regulations.
The use of stone references Bath’s historic buildings and the architects chose to add contrast by introducing a grey brick that resembles slate, a materials that is also part of the area’s architectural heritage.
“The choice of materials evolved from the desire to create a playful front and back tectonic narrative,” the architects explained. “After the planners had requested that stone be used, we then identified another heavily used material in Bath, slate, and argued that a long dark brick had the quality of a slate block, which they accepted.”
One of the two-storey building’s facades is angled towards an open grassy area and features gables clad in pale stone, contrasting with the tall grey windows that echo the front of the adjacent Ferens Building, built in 1924.
“The new design evolved to be a contemporary interpretation of both the Ferens Building and the local context of the world heritage site,” said the architects. “The form and proportion of the roof structure and openings is a response to the rhythm of the Ferens building’s facade, with the tall windows and perforated panels.”
Grey brick was used to clad the rear portion of the classroom facility, including a large gable end that combines with an angled wall to frame a tall glazed entrance.
An overhanging canopy on the opposite side of the building covers the main entrance, which leads to a central circulation area used as a conference, exhibition and social space.
Eight classrooms and three staff rooms are housed over two storeys in a pair of blocks arranged on either side of the circulation and display area.
The grey window frames that project from the southern facade provide solar shading and incorporate perforated panels covering windows that can be opened to provide ventilation in any weather.
Pupils in the upper-floor classrooms can look out across the lawn towards the surrounding countryside.
Photography is by Peter Cook.
Here’s a project description from the architects:
Kingswood School, Bath, England
Mitchell Taylor Workshop were invited by Kingswood School to submit a proposal for a limited competition for the design a new humanities building in May 2012. The site is located on the school’s Lansdown Road grounds in Bath within both the Conservation Area and with a World Heritage designation. The winning scheme was to house eight new classrooms and three departmental resource areas and a flexible circulation space that could be used for exhibiting work and for external academic and conference functions.
The form and orientation of the building was generated from site constraints in maximising the natural daylight and ventilation into the classroom spaces whilst controlling solar gain. The building is aligned along Fonthill Road to the north-east and is effectively divided into two blocks with the southern elevation orientated to the immediate open space and the extraordinary views beyond. The internal spaces unfold from a large overhang which provides a covered canopy and connects to an internal triangular plan shaped circulation area which allows for the pupils to display and exhibit their work and as breakout and social space.
Adjacent to the new classroom site is the existing Ferens Building, built in 1924. The new design evolved to be a contemporary interpretation of both the Ferens Building and the language of the heritage buildings of Bath with defined fronts and backs. The form and proportion of the roof structure and openings is a response to the rhythm of Ferens building facade with the tall windows and perforate panels.
The choice of materials evolved from the desire to create a playful front and back tectonic narrative. After the planners had requested that stone be used, we then identified another heavily used material in Bath, slate, and argued that a long dark brick had the quality of a slate block which they accepted. The proposal evolved to incorporate the stone on the south with the dark brick on the north façade creating a unique architectural composition.
Our experience of working with independent schools has brought about an expertise in a variety of building types from libraries, to boarding houses, theatres to classrooms, sports halls to energy centres. The Independent Schools have a strong identity and aspire to reflect this within the built environment. Budgets and time constraints are also well defined but this should not restrict the aspiration to produce interesting and relevant architectural buildings and places.
Mitchell Taylor workshop developed their proposal working very closely with the staff and pupils of the school. The school wanted to occupy their new building at the start of the 2013/14 academic year which meant a design and construction period of little over 12 months. The budget resulted in a construction value of £1,700/sq.m which meant that both the design and construction needed to well considered, co-ordinated and efficient as well as making a positive contribution to the built and academic aspirations of the school.
Gross Internal Floor Area – 632m²
Form of Contract or Procurement Route– JCD ICD 2011
Cconstruction Cost Per m2 – £1640/m2
Architect – Mitchell Taylor Workshop
Client – Kingswood School
Structural Engineer – Mann Williams
M&E Consultant – King Shaw Associates Ltd
QS – Bishopston Stephens
Project Manager – Bishopston Stephens
CDM Coordinator – Anderson FM Consulting Ltd
Approved Building Inspector – Bath & North East Somerset Council
Main Contractor – Beard
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contrasts pale stone with grey brick appeared first on Dezeen.
The interior of this east London cafe by local firm TwistInArchitecture features copper tubes, timber boards and metal light fittings, designed to reference the area’s trade history (+ slideshow).
TwistInArchitecture converted a run-down space on Commercial Street in east London for a cafe called Trade, retaining three separate zones from the original layout to use for display, coffee and food preparation and customer seating.
The firm’s designer and co-founder Andreja Beric said the philosophy for the build was to create a “contextually responsive environment” by re-using materials that were once traded by builder’s merchants along the street.
Copper tubes are used in different arrangements to create a screen in the centre of the cafe and clad the base of the plywood counter. They are also implemented as a staircase balustrade and to construct a grid that hangs from the ceiling, used to suspend low-hanging lamps.
“The space is kind of strange, it had three different areas that were quite different in feel so we wanted to have a common thread that combined it all,” Beric told Dezeen, referring to the lighting grid.
“Lighting was something that was quite important for the shop and we wanted to achieve rhythm with this, it made sense and visually it was quite good to repeat the element at a high point,” Beric explained.
“Copper and wood work well together, both are warm materials and contrast with the matte and shiny surfaces,” he added.
Pieces of laminated oak wood zig-zag across the counter top in the food preparation area and continue to where customer seating is located at the rear.
Recycled boards salvaged from a timber yard form a floor-to-ceiling feature wall.
The designers also demolished the back wall and inserted bi-fold doors to open onto a wooden deck, creating more room and allowing extra light into the space.
Existing wooden floorboards throughout the cafe were stripped of their painted surface and varnished.
Sections of exposed brick wall form a backdrop to the coffee machine, while the remainder of the interior is lined with white tiles.
Here’s a project description from TwistInArchitecture:
Trade
London-based architectural practice TwistInArchitecture – founded on the principle of creating buildings with an unusual twist – today announces the opening of a unique new coffee shop in London’s East End, on Commercial Street. As well as recusing a run-down space, the philosophy for the build was to re-use a number of materials which were once traded along Commercial Street by builders’ merchants and in the material yards, to create a contextually responsive environment.
For this reason, the interior is dominated by copper tubes – which are normally hidden away within wall cavities – serving both an aesthetic and design role, but also a functional one. Indeed, hundreds of yards of copper tubing has been used to create both the internal screens of the main bar fascia, as well as being suspended from the ceiling to carry electricity to the lighting fixtures (see Figs. 1 and 2). The signature use of copper has also been applied to the staircase balustrade and handrails, creating atmosphere through muted reflections and intricate shadows.
The new venue – appropriately called ‘Trade’ – also benefits from a number of modelling changes. It has a new staircase location, new large opening to the back wall to allow natural light to enter, and a complete re-work of the basement. The unusual geometrical twists of the copper are warmed by the use existing brickwork and timber floors, while the true heroes of the shop – it’s coffee and home-made signature food are given the most prominent position.
Trade is located two minutes away from trendy Spitalfields Market, and can accommodate 60 people, spread throughout its three zones: the display section at the front, the preparation area in the middle, and the seating section at the rear. The shop front itself is open and inviting.
Andreja Beric, co-Founder of TwistInArchitecture, said: “We’re very pleased to have completed this quirky project, which brings something new and interesting to Commercial Street, while also breaking away from the ‘shabby chic norm’ of so many other sites. The three internal spaces would typically have three different interior concepts, so we decided to allow these spaces to have their individuality but be tied together by the use of copper – at a low height through the counter, and at a high level through the lighting conduit. These threads work to complete the interior with one idea. It also helps that trade looks seriously cool, has awesome food and coffee, and is in tune with its surroundings and historical significance.”
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references city’s commercial history appeared first on Dezeen.
A wooden treehouse with circular perforations is suspended from the ceiling inside this space for a south London theatre company for disabled children, echoing round patterns on its facade (+ slideshow).
Designed by London firm Hawkins\Brown, the Oily Cart theatre company headquarters sits in the Grade II listed annexe of Smallwood primary school in Wandsworth.
The theatre was created to give children who have disabilities and learning difficulties a place to express themselves artistically.
“Oily Cart works with children who have multiple and complex learning difficulties, helping to bring theatre to audiences who might not otherwise have the chance to experience it,” architect David Bickle told Dezeen.
The exterior of the building features an original soot-coated brick facade and an existing Victorian staircase, which leads up to the studio.
“We were very careful to retain as much of the original structure as possible and wanted to incorporate the same energy into the building as the theatre puts into its productions,” Bickle said.
The architect also installed a bright yellow aluminium lift dotted with black and white spots, which connects the playground outside to the theatre and provides access for disabled children.
“The golden lift, which rises up to the theatre, creates a link between the ordinary outdoors and the extraordinary world of the theatre inside,” Bickle added.
The top of the lift shaft was inspired by the traditional Dutch gables that line the roof of the primary school and is designed to mirror the original Victorian architecture.
On exiting the lift, the first floor lobby leads into an office and admin area with a mezzanine level above. The architects were given permission to remove a dividing wall and create a multipurpose timber treehouse punctured with circles, which hangs over the space.
“The circular theme that runs throughout the build was inspired by the scented bubbles the theatre use to get in touch with their audience,” Bickle explained. “The circular motif that runs across the facade and treehouse are designed to be effervescent like the bubbles themselves.”
Spotlights built into the underside of the wooden cube are designed as an extension to the circular pattern and illuminate a table in the centre of the office.
Upstairs, the timber meeting room extends into the roof and features skylights that fill the box with natural light.
The firm also improved existing studio and storage areas to create a workshop for building original props on the ground floor. The addition of a costume wardrobe, furnished with sewing machines and work benches, allows for every element of the theatre’s productions to be managed on site.
The architects used a bold colour scheme throughout the structure, coating interior walls with primary colours to differentiate between the spaces.
A white-walled group room with suspended strip lighting offers space for the children to take part in drama workshops, while a combined lounge and kitchen provides a place for the children to relax in between rehearsals.
Oily Cart theatre was recently nominated for a Royal Institute of British Architects London Award.
Photography is by Tim Crocker.
Here’s some more text from Hawkins\Brown:
Oily Cart Theatre, Wandsworth, London
Located in the annexe of the Victorian Grade II listed Smallwood Primary School based in Tooting, Wandsworth, Oily Cart theatre works entirely with children, many of whom have complex disabilities and often attend special needs schools. The theatre group aims to provide cultural stimulation for these often under-serviced audiences.
Stirling Prize nominated architects, Hawkins\Brown, worked with the Oily Cart theatre to create an inspiring and playful scheme in keeping with the theatre’s ethos. The complete development of Oily Cart productions is housed in the annexe, from inception and management through to prop building, costume design and rehearsals. The scheme dramatically improves workshop, rehearsal and storage facilities for the theatre and reconfiguration of spaces as well as improving working conditions within office spaces.
The original theatre had poor accessibility for its occupants and one of Hawkins\Brown major interventions was the addition of an external lift with patterned anodised aluminium panels to access the first floor of the theatre, formerly only accessible via an external staircase.
Bold colours were used throughout the theatre to aid with orientation around the spaces and a new mezzanine level insert was added to the building that acts as a flexible meeting room, as well as clean and dirty workshops to make all of the necessary props, sets and costumes for the theatre.
The resulting building creates an inspiring, bright and tactile space for children to lean and play, as well as reusing and recycling materials and found objects from the site.
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headquarters by Hawkins\Brown appeared first on Dezeen.
This house in the Oxfordshire countryside was designed by London studio The Manser Practice with a Cotswold stone facade and a cantilevered terrace overlooking the woods (+ slideshow).
The Manser Practice created the building for a professional couple, as a place to live and work. Nestled into the woodland, it features a sheltered open-air swimming pool and a Cotswold stone exterior designed to fit in with the surrounding landscape.
“We looked at a wide range of stones and materials to use, but the Cotswold stone offered the best variation between the base tones and some blue hues which reflects the colour of the surrounding trees,” architect Mark Smyth told Dezeen.
Employing a local building technique, the firm worked with nearby quarries to source stones from the surrounding regions to clad the exterior of the house.
“We used a dry stone-walling technique where we back mortared the stone, so from the front it looks like it’s stacked. The stone was actually sorted into different sizes and is angled from the top to the bottom, which creates a camber,” Smyth explained.
A south-facing cantilevered terrace hangs from the steel roof, overlooking the woodland and providing views of an old birch tree on the property.
At the centre of the building, a glazed hall and steel staircase divide the two main wings and allow visitors to see straight through to the trees beyond.
Bedrooms are stacked on the north side of the house and face out to the east. The master bedroom opens straight onto the terrace and has an en suite and dressing room, while two guest bedrooms sit below.
“We wanted something to fit with the landscape and built the house up high enough to enjoy the spectacular views of the morning sun over the trees from the master bedroom,” Smyth said.
In the adjacent block, slender columns support an open-plan living, dining and kitchen area on the first floor, while a workshop below provides space for one of the clients – a medical scientist – to work from home.
The swimming pool is also located on this level and can be exposed to the elements by sliding back a glazed canopy.
Photography is by Hufton + Crow unless otherwise stated.
Here’s some more text from architect Mark Smyth:
House in Henley-on-Thames , Oxfordshire, England
This private house is set in deciduous woodland near Henley-on-Thames, Oxford and is a 500sqm home for a professional couple. The house is divided into a living wing and a bedroom wing – with a fully glazed stair hall forming the fulcrum of the composition.
The first floor living space and master suite benefit from spectacular views of the surrounding woodland. A cantilevered terrace runs along the length of the south facing façade, extending the living space into the landscape with dramatic effect. The exterior of the building is clad in Cotswold stone affording the house a great sense of solidity. The stone exterior creates an interesting juxtaposition with the buildings modern detailing and slender steel roof.
The house has a complex M+E system. House heating, hot water and pool heating are supplied by air source heat pumps located in the existing stable block. Major plant is also housed here and pumped via super insulated pipework in ducts under the driveway to the main house. A heat exchange system allows energy to be recovered from the living spaces and the pool.
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house by The Manser Practice appeared first on Dezeen.
Architecture studio Piercy & Company has slotted a family house behind a nineteenth-century stable facade in south-west London, creating a pair of rusted gable walls with a glazed stairwell in between (+ slideshow).
Located within a conservation zone near Kew Gardens, the three-storey Kew House was designed by London studio Piercy & Company to respect the scale and massing of its historic surroundings, but also create a generous modern home for a family.
To achieve this, the architect retained the ageing stable wall at the front of the property, then replicated its shape to create a pair of matching two-storey wings behind.
Both of these were then clad with pre-weathered steel, providing a counterpoint to the old brickwork. In some places the steel covers the windows, but is speckled with irregular perforations that allow an exchange of light and views.
“The deep orange tones of the weathering steel and the perforations within this skin echo the dappled light and autumnal palette of nearby Kew Gardens,” said the architect in a statement.
A glazed stairwell connects the two wings, framing an entrance patio at the front of the property and a secluded courtyard at the rear. There’s also a large basement that spans the site to unite the wings on the lowest level.
The interior layout was arranged according to how the family expected to use the space, which the architect says “ranged over imagining the children running about the house, summer dinners spilling outside and the balance of quiet nooks with social spaces, to pragmatic concerns like drying laundry and how to build a boat in the basement.”
Both wings contain living rooms on the ground floor and bedroom spaces upstairs. The kitchen and family dining room is located on the northern side, with a laundry room and pantry, while a lounge sits at the southern end and is sunken below ground by a metre.
Referred to as “the snug”, this room also features exposed brickwork, built-in oak-veneer cupboards and a narrow curving lightwell.
“The [rooms] are intended to be informal but rich with incidental spaces, unexpected light and complex vertical volumes,” said the architect.
The large basement allowed the architects to establish an on-site joinery workshop during the build. This allowed the team to experiment with different construction techniques and put together bespoke panelling and furniture.
The space now functions as a place where one of the residents, who works as an engineer, can focus on personal projects.
Photography is by Jack Hobhouse.
Here’s the project description from Piercy & Company:
Kew House
Set within the Kew Green Conservation Area of south-west London, the four bedroom family house is formed of two sculptural weathering steel volumes inserted behind a retained nineteenth century stable wall. The brief evolved through a series of conversations with clients Tim and Jo Lucas, which ranged over imagining the children running about the house, summer dinners spilling outside and the balance of quiet nooks with social spaces, to pragmatic concerns like drying laundry and how to build a boat in the basement. In response, Piercy&Company designed the house as a built diagram of the way the family wanted to use the spaces, with an internal landscape of alternative routes and levels connecting expressive spaces aimed at creating moments of delight for adults and children alike.
First and foremost a family home, the spaces are intended to be informal but rich with incidental spaces, unexpected light and complex vertical volumes. The house is formed of a simple plan to make the most of the constrained site, reduce the building’s mass in the streetscape and respond to the living patterns of the family. Consisting of two rectangles; one slightly smaller, set back and sunken 1m lower, the wings each have living spaces on the ground floor and bedrooms above. Connecting the wings is a glass encased circulation link which allows light to pour into the house whilst providing breathing space between internal spaces.
The two shells housing the main living and sleeping areas are formed of 4mm weathering steel, a hardworking combination of structure and facade. The weathering steel is maintenance free, essential for the enclosed site, and is softened by a patchwork of expressed welds and perforated panels. The deep orange tones of the weathering steel and the perforations within this skin echo the dappled light and autumnal palette of nearby Kew Gardens. Inside, oak veneer panelling and Dinesen flooring are the basis of a light, natural and refined palette of materials.
A list of planning constraints – including a conservation area context, a change of use and no access on three sides – formed a backdrop to the project. To overcome these challenges Piercy & Company inserted the house behind a retained 19th century brick gable end and split the house into twin gabled forms in keeping with local massing. The natural patina of the weathering steel with its marks, stains and perforations giving the surfaces different characters depending on the exposure and orientation, anchor the form into its context and impart a sense of permanence.
Kew House was an experimental build, driven by the architect’s and client’s shared interest in a kit-of-parts approach and the self-build possibilities emerging from digital fabrication. The weathering steel shells were prefabricated in Hull and then craned into place and welded together.
CNC milling and the on-site joinery workshop were used to create bespoke panelling, furniture and cabinetwork that could be fitted by the client and a small team of architecture graduates, testing the theory that digital fabrication can reduce the distance between design and production. The implications of this technology for house building are manifold with bespoke fit-out on a budget becoming increasingly viable.
Client: Tim & Jo Lucas
Architect: Piercy & Company
Structural Engineer: Tim Lucas (Price & Myers)
M&E Engineer: Arup
Sustainability Consultant: Price & Myers
Key Sub-Contractors: Commercial Systems International (CSI), Estbury Basements
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at Kew House by Piercy & Company appeared first on Dezeen.
This house in London by local studio De Matos Ryan sits within a sunken courtyard, surrounded by a secret flower garden (+ slideshow).
De Matos Ryan designed The Garden House for a pair of newlyweds who wanted extra living space for their seven children.
Situated in the garden of their Victorian house in Battersea, the new two-storey building was originally planned as an annex for the eldest children, but was redesigned to be more flexible following the arrival of a new baby.
“Given its location, we wanted the house to be distinctly different from the original house, bringing an element of surprise and delight when you discover it at the end of the garden,” architect Angus Morrogh-Ryan told Dezeen.
“The house is set within a sunken modernist courtyard garden, which allows its owners to escape the dramas of London and relax in a serene and calm setting,” Morrogh-Ryan explained.
Flowerbeds border the house and a canopy of trees offers privacy from the neighbouring properties. A secret raised garden also lies beyond the courtyard and features a hot tub at its centre.
The lower storey and courtyard are sunken below ground level, while a bridge connects the street to the main entrance above.
High-rise courtyard walls protect the property from risk of flooding by the nearby River Thames, framing an outdoor space where the family’s youngest children can play within sight of their parents.
On the ground floor, the outside wall continues into the property and glazed doors slide open to reveal an open-plan living and dining room.
A master bedroom faces the courtyard from this floor, while upstairs bedrooms are filled with natural light from skylights overhead.
“When designing for a family, the role of the architect is to create the right conditions; providing the best structuring of space with ventilation and light and to allow the family and their own personal preferences to flourish, bringing individual character and personality through use,” added Morrogh-Ryan.
Spotlights dotted around the courtyard light up the exterior at night.
Photography is by Hufton + Crow.
Here’s a project description from the architects:
The Garden House, London
De Matos Ryan has completed The Garden House, a new 179 sq m house at the far end of the rear garden of a Victorian house in Battersea, South West London.
A modern family conundrum was the unexpected catalyst for the creation of the new annex – the immediate need of a newly married couple bringing two families together and requiring additional space to accommodate seven children.
The practice was originally briefed to create a garden annex to replace a potting shed and greenhouse that the older children could move in to. The arrival of an eighth child midway through the design stages prompted a rethink of this arrangement and resulted in a change of plan; the calm and convenience of the new annex was deemed to be the ideal retreat for parents with a new baby and younger children whilst the main house would become the older children’s domain.
The design of The Garden House has been driven by three challenges including the clients’ ambitious requirement for increased space, the need to incorporate compulsory flood-proofing measures due to the site’s close proximity to the River Thames, as well as complying with planning restrictions to prevent the overlooking of neighbouring properties.
The new house comprises five bedrooms, three bathrooms, a study and a kitchen/living room. The garden was excavated to create a high-sided watertight concrete courtyard, which increased the floor plate of the property without affecting the single storey appearance at garden level. The living areas are at courtyard level and benefit from full height glazing; the bedrooms are arranged at first floor level in clean white volumes that gently float above the glazing.
A bridge at garden level bisects the white box and marks the entrance to the property. Windows are discreetly located on the side and rear elevations to comply with planning restrictions and frame views out. A combination of internal lightwells and rooflights ensure that the bedrooms are flooded with natural daylight. Top lit hallways and bathrooms connect the volumes.
It is the sunken courtyard, characterised by white pigmented concrete walls and floor that defines The Garden House and lends the house an exotic sensibility. Sliding doors open up the corner of the house offering a seamless transition to a tranquil enclosed landscape.
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nestles in a secret garden appeared first on Dezeen.
Eight intersecting arches give a towering symmetry to this copper-coated mausoleum erected in the English countryside for a revered Iranian philosopher (photography by Edmund Sumner).
Designed by emerging London studio Borheh, the structure was built as a memorial to Javad Nurbakhsh – a master within the branch of Islam known as Sufism, which is thought by some to be a philosophy of existence that pre-dates religion.
The structure is located within a dense thicket of woodland in Oxfordshire, on a site chosen by Nurbakhsh, who spent the latter years of his life in England.
Raised off the forest floor on a tiered plinth, it comprises a ring of copper-coated steel triangles. These are expected to change colour as they gradually oxidise, allowing the tower to show its age.
“The mausoleum’s blend of striking design and organic materials presents a refreshingly modern take on mysticism without detracting from its timeless spiritual ideals,” said the architect in a statement.
The arched forms chosen reference some of the characteristic motifs of Persian architecture, creating a tower intended to demonstrate “geometrical perfection and simplicity”.
“The mausoleum combines traditional Persian architecture with contemporary materials local to Iran, resulting in a construction that reflects the Iranian heritage of Dr Nurbakhsh, while remaining in keeping with the English landscape,” said the architect.
The structure was built as a series of modules using local artisanal techniques in Iran. These were then shipped across to the UK and erected onsite.
Photography is by Edmund Sumner.
Here’s a project description from Borheh:
Contemporary Sufi memorial brings Iranian mysticism to the heart of the English countryside
A mausoleum dedicated to the memory of a prominent Iranian Sufi master, Dr Javad Nurbakhsh (10th December 1926 – 10th October 2008), has recently completed construction. The mausoleum’s blend of striking design and organic materials presents a refreshingly modern take on mysticism without detracting from its timeless spiritual ideals.
London based multidisciplinary creative studio, Borheh, have unveiled the completed mausoleum which adds a unique spiritual presence to the Oxfordshire countryside. Located near Banbury, England, the mausoleum stands on a beautiful natural location chosen by Dr Nurbakhsh himself during his lifetime. It is nestled amongst a dense wooded grove, named “the Forest”, which was planted by Dr Nurbakhsh in the 1990s.
The mausoleum combines traditional Persian architecture with contemporary materials local to Iran, resulting in a construction that reflects the Iranian heritage of Dr Nurbakhsh, while remaining in keeping with the English landscape. The structure is created from copper-coated steel which will naturally change colour over time as it is exposed to the elements, allowing it to evolve and adapt organically within the forest.
Using traditional Persian architectural motifs, the mausoleum evokes the principles of Sufi mysticism with a unified display of geometrical perfection and simplicity. Eight overlapping triangular arches converge together in a form known as karbandy, maintaining a balance of strength and elegance across every point. The geometrical perfection of the form is manifested through its interaction with the sun, as the natural path of sunlight creates a unique pattern of shadows through the passing of the day.
For minimum impact to the natural landscape, Borheh utilised an innovative approach to construction by following a modular method. Each part of the mausoleum was constructed separately in Iran, using local artisanal techniques. It was then transported to the UK and reassembled on site. While this was by no means an easy endeavour, the process ensured both the protection of the natural woodland that would be home to the mausoleum and remained faithful to the mausoleum’s cultural heritage.
The project represents a combination of traditional artistic principles and cutting edge technologies – the ideal monument to the life and work of a modern mystic.
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honours an Iranian philosopher appeared first on Dezeen.
Behind the brickwork exterior of the new Everyman Theatre in Liverpool, England, architecture studio Haworth Tompkins designed a curved auditorium built from 25,000 reclaimed bricks (+ slideshow).
Haworth Tompkins was tasked with designing a new home for the popular theatre, previously housed in an nineteenth-century chapel, to make room for an expanding programme. Working on the same site, the architects tried to retain some features of the original building.
“The biggest challenge was to win over those who were worried the character of the Everyman would be lost in a new building,” project architect Will Mesher told Dezeen.
“The original Everyman had an informal character, described as somewhere you didn’t have to dress up to go to, but could wear a ball gown if you felt like it,” he said. “We tried to retain this spirit in the new spaces.”
The walls of the old building had to be carefully dismantled so that the bricks could be reused within the new theatre. These now form the main wall between the 400-seat auditorium and its surrounding foyer.
Another distinctive feature of the new building is an animated facade where over 100 sunshades are etched with the portraits of some of Liverpool’s residents, taken by local photographer Dan Kenyon.
A glowing red sign in front references the original signage, while a row of large ventilation chimneys give the building a distinctive silhouette. The rest of the exterior is built from a typical local brick stock.
“It is a common material in the area, both in the nearby Georgian terraces and in the industrial and warehouse buildings to the rear, so brick serves to tie the theatre in with the surrounding streets,” said Mesher.
The building’s interior is laid out over split levels to negotiate a slope across the site. This means public spaces such as the bar and foyer are arranged over several storeys, creating a tiered route from the street to the auditorium.
A concrete structure is left exposed throughout these spaces and sits alongside a palette that includes black steel, oak and recycled iroko wood. “We looked for materials that would be robust and age well,” said the architect.
As well as the main auditorium, which features a thrust stage, the building accommodates a smaller performance space, a large rehearsal room, exhibition spaces and a writers’ room.
Photography is by Philip Vile, apart from where otherwise indicated.
Here’s a project description from Haworth Tompkins:
Everyman Theatre, Liverpool
The Liverpool Everyman is a new theatre, won in open European competition, for an internationally regarded producing company. The scope of work includes a 400 seat adaptable auditorium, a smaller performance and development space, a large rehearsal room, public foyers, exhibition spaces, catering and bar facilities, along with supporting offices, workshops and ancillary spaces. The entire facade is a large, collaborative work of public art. The design combines thermally massive construction with a series of natural ventilation systems and low energy technical infrastructures to achieve a BREEAM Excellent rating for this complex and densely inhabited urban building.
The Everyman holds an important place in Liverpool culture. The original theatre, converted from the 19th century Hope Hall chapel, had served the city well as a centre of creativity, conviviality and dissent (often centred in its subterranean Bistro) but by the new millennium the building was in need of complete replacement to serve a rapidly expanding production and participation programme. Haworth Tompkins’ brief was to design a technically advanced and highly adaptable new theatre that would retain the friendly, demotic accessibility of the old building, project the organisation’s values of cultural inclusion, community engagement and local creativity, and encapsulate the collective identity of the people of Liverpool. The new building occupies the same sensitive, historic city centre site in Hope Street, immediately adjacent to Liverpool’s Catholic cathedral and surrounded by 18th and 19th century listed buildings, so a balance of sensitivity and announcement in the external public realm was a significant design criterion. Another central aspect of the brief was to design an urban public building with exceptional energy efficiency both in construction and in use.
The building makes use of the complex and constrained site geometry by arranging the public spaces around a series of half levels, establishing a continuous winding promenade from street to auditorium. Foyers and catering spaces are arranged on three levels including a new Bistro, culminating in a long piano nobile foyer overlooking the street. The auditorium is an adaptable thrust stage space of 400 seats, constructed from the reclaimed bricks of Hope Hall and manifesting itself as the internal walls of the foyers. The building incorporates numerous creative workspaces, with a rehearsal room, workshops, a sound studio, a Writers’ Room overlooking the foyer, and EV1 – a special studio dedicated to the Young Everyman Playhouse education and community groups. A diverse disability group has monitored the design from the outset.
Externally, local red brick was selected for the walls and four large ventilation stacks, giving the building a distinct silhouette and meshing it into the surrounding architecture. The main west-facing facade of the building is as a large-scale public work of art consisting of 105 moveable metal sunshades, each one carrying a life-sized, water-cut portrait of a contemporary Liverpool resident. Working with Liverpool photographer Dan Kenyon, the project engaged every section of the city’s community in a series of public events, so that the completed building can be read as a collective family snapshot of the population in all its diversity. Typographer and artist Jake Tilson created a special font for a new version of the iconic red ‘Everyman’ sign, whilst regular collaborating visual artist Antoni Malinowski made a large painted ceiling piece for the foyer, to complement an internal palette of brickwork, black steel, oak, reclaimed Iroko, deeply coloured plywood and pale in situ concrete.
The Everyman has been conceived from the outset as an exemplar of sustainable good practice. An earlier feasibility study had recommended a much larger and more expensive building on a new site, but Haworth Tompkins argued for the importance of continuity and compactness on the original site. Carefully dismantling the existing structure, all the nineteenth century bricks were salvaged for reuse as the shell of the new auditorium and recycled the timbers of the roof structure. By making efficient use of the site footprint Haworth Tompkins avoided the need to acquire a bigger site and demolish more adjoining buildings. Together with the client team they distilled the space brief into its densest and most adaptable form.
Having minimised the space and material requirement of the project, the fabric was designed to achieve a BREEAM Excellent rating, unusual for an urban theatre building. Natural ventilation for the main performance and workspaces is achieved via large roof vents and underfloor intake plenums, using thermal mass for pre-cooling, and the foyers are vented via opening screens and a large lightwell. The fully exposed concrete structure (with a high percentage of cement replacement) and reclaimed brickwork walls provide excellent thermal mass, while the orientation and fenestration design optimise solar response – the entire west facade is designed as a large screen of moveable sunshades. Offices and ancillary spaces are ventilated via opening windows.
The building has taken almost a decade of intensive teamwork to conceive, achieve consensus, fundraise, design and build, and the design will ensure a long future life of enjoyment by a diverse population of artists, audiences and staff.
Architect: Haworth Tompkins
Interiors and Furniture Design: Haworth Tompkins with Katy Marks at citizens design bureau
Client: Liverpool and Merseyside Theatres Trust
Contractor: Gilbert-Ash
Project Manager: GVA Acuity
Quantity Surveyor: Gardiner & Theobald
Theatre Consultant: Charcoalblue
Structural Engineer: Alan Baxter & Associates
Service Engineer: Watermans Building Services
CDM Coordinator: Turner and Townsend
Acoustic Engineer: Gillieron Scott Acoustic Design
Catering Consultant: Keith Winton Design
Access Consultant: Earnscliffe Davies Associates
Collaborating Artist: Antoni Malinowski
Typographer: Jake Tilson
Portrait Photographer: Dan Kenyon
The post Haworth Tompkins’ Liverpool Everyman Theatre
built with old and new bricks appeared first on Dezeen.
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