Spurred on by the clients’ love of the National Theatre and its use of shuttered concrete, BVDS wanted to give them a reference to this within their home, whilst still being original.
The central spine wall became an exposed, shuttered concrete blade that sits between the existing corridor and middle room to open the space and make a feature seen throughout the whole ground floor. In addition, concrete is referenced in the main kitchen space with the distinct concrete blades which baffle and diffuse the natural light from the large rooflight. This coupled with Maxlight sliding doors at the rear of the property improves the openness of the property and blurs the line between inside and out.
The whole of the ground floor plan has been transformed into a single open plan space. While a mix of double and hidden doors make it flexible and interconnected throughout, room zones are defined via level and material changes. The dining and kitchen area is tiled with charred black wood flooring, chosen to produce a striking backdrop for the terrazzo kitchen and island, which is connected with a matching terrazzo floor. The prominent red structural column highlights the clients’ love of Bauhaus creativity and primary colours.
This home was inspired by the clients' personality and distinct taste to come together in a fun, adventurous exploration of materiality.
Who are the clients and what's interesting about them?
Young professionals working in central London with a love for raw concrete, the Barbican, National Theatre London. They wanted a very minimal feel to the interior.
What was the brief?
Create an open plan kitchen/dining area with a side return extension. The client has a love for concrete as a building material, it was important to incorporate this love for the raw form of concrete into the interior.
What were the key challenges?
Assuring the middle lounge got good daylight and wouldn’t have inferior living qualities vs the new kitchen/dining area.
Key products used:
The kitchen was supplied by Naked Kitchens. We used a Terrazzo worktops from Inopera Group.
The kitchen floor is charred end grain oak from Ted Todd. The kitchen tap is from Vola and the bathroom taps are from Crosswater. The garden sliding doors are supplied by Maxlight as well as the side return rooflight.
What were the solutions?
2 Removing the structural wall between the middle lounge and the new kitchen/dining area and supporting the outrigger with a new red column. 2 Lifting the side extension roof higher than the existing kitchen ceiling, glazing it and installing concrete baffles to diffuse daylight. 3 installing a new concrete spine wall between the lounge and the hallway.
How is the project unique?
A feature red column holds up the outrigger in between the middle lounge and the new kitchen/dining area.
A full length rooflight lets in plenty of light into the side return extension with concrete ‘fins’ frames the views of the sky whilst keeping out some of the strong sunlight.
A minimal palette of white/black and brass make up the material choices in the kitchen/dining area. The white kitchen is seemingly ‘carved out of the black wall and floor.
A monolithic kitchen island of terrazzo provide a sculptural quality to the kitchen island. The oversized black plinth goes round the whole kitchen aligns with the height of the middle lounge. An in situ cast concrete spine wall form a feature of the kitchen/hallway. The timber boards which formed the mould for the concrete were left as an imprint of it’s fabrication, celebrating the unique characteristics of the material.
