BEULAH HILL

We were asked to extend and remodel the ground floor of this 1960s modernist house to suit a more contemporary open plan living style. As was typical of the era, the house boasted a spacious through living room, a large integrated garage and a wealth of original features such as teak cladding and sliding open shelf room dividers. However, the separate kitchen was unsociable and desperately in need of replacement. Additionally, in a move that would have once been innovative, the downstairs WC and boiler was housed in a bolt-on services block to the centre of the rear elevation. The position of these vital functions quite simply blocked any meaningful or generous feeling connection with the garden as well as much of the natural light.

The owners, passionate cyclists, had converted their garage space into a bicycle store and workshop. An important part of the brief was the need to be able to shower after a long cycle without having to traipse through the house. It was decided to create a new service zone behind the garage to house the ancillary functions; the working zones of shower, WC and utility. This freed up the rear elevation, opening up the newly extended and combined kitchen and dining space directly to the garden.

The original architecture is made up of a series of lighweight infill elements between heavy birckwork vertical elements. This seemingly rigid arrangement is punctuated with the playful accents of the changing fenestration types, patterned tiles and colourfully painted woodwork. The owners wanted the space to feel part of the garden, but to suit the original architectural character of smaller picture frame openings. We chose to introduce two sets of large format hardwood framed sliding doors. In a nod to 60s style and materiality, the playful arrangement of horizontal timber mullions breaks up the mass of glazing, framing different views of the garden. The central pier allows the interior space to be column-free and the deep set back glazing and recessed cast concrete lintels emphasise light and shadow adding further interest to the facade. Large format rooflights are introduced in the flat roof to ensure lots of daylight finds its way deep into the plan.