In the London district of Blackheath the Coopers had for a number of years lived in the Pagoda, a tower-like structure originally built by the architect Sir William Chambers in the style of Orientalism. For their retirement however they wanted a modern, energy-efficient home, while preferably staying in this green part of the city. A good friend of the family suggested building within the grounds of the Pagoda and their son, Sam Cooper of E2 Architecture + Interiors, went on to design the new family home.
For Sam, the demanding design of the new building was a challenge: the house not only had to blend in with the adjacent listed buildings but also fit into the local conservation area. In addition, his parents - architect Philip and interior designer Caroline - had very clear ideas of their own. The result is an exemplary single-family home, which is one of the first private homes in the United Kingdom to have achieved Level 5 on the Code for Sustainable Homes.
The building's clean, straight lines blend gently and elegantly into its natural surroundings. Rooftop solar panels and a ground source heat pump provide more energy than the couple can use with the surplus energy they produce being sold to the national grid. Triple-glazed windows ensure the inside of the house remains at a pleasant temperature, while heat loss is kept to a minimum.
A KNX system was installed for the complex building control and the 'brain' behind the system is the Gira HomeServer, which brings together and evaluates all of the sensor information, and automates functions in the building to increase the comfort of occupants. The entire KNX building technology can be controlled centrally via the Gira Control 9 touch panel in the living area, and the intelligent technology can be upgraded or amended at any time in the future without the need of retiring existing technology or any extensive building work.
Caroline Cooper took on the primary responsibility for the home's interior with clear lines dominating the entire house. The eye-catching kitchen features a white kitchen block and is not only a haven for Philip and Caroline, but also her children and grandchildren when they come to visit, and their dog Eric.
Drawing on her professional training and her fine sense of aesthetics, she has combined modern design with precious family memorabilia. The light and airy dining room contains a large, wooden table, surrounded by white Italian dining chairs and the dressing room is the realisation of a long-cherished dream for Caroline, and is dominated by an eye-catching, antique mirror that she bought in a junk shop.
In keeping with the overall interior design, Gira E22 aluminium push button sensors were chosen due to their extremely elegant, high-quality appearance and very precise form, and the owners were just as concerned with safety as they were with design, so selected Gira for their door communication system.
In 2014 the house was voted UK’s Best Eco Home by readers of The Guardian national newspaper and in 2015 E2 Architecture + Interiors won The Evening Standard's New Homes Eco + Living award for the project.
