Historic 1850s Camden warehouse renovated to rationalise internal spaces and to open up the building to more natural daylight.

The two-storey property had been neglected for years due to improper conversion from a warehouse to an office space as well as the lack of care and maintenance from previous owners. The building received little natural light due to tight site constraints and small windows. The main emphasis of the project was to open up the building to more natural daylight, creating a bright and uncluttered office space, using robust materials chosen for their longevity.

The first step was to gut the existing spaces, before adding a new storey on top. After grid ceilings and existing layers of plasterboard were removed, the layers of history started to appear. A unique patchwork of brickwork showing marks of previous uses. Marks of bricked up door openings were revealed at first floor level, dating back to when the street was filled with warehouses and stables and the building was connected to its neighbours. The cobblestones below ground floor slab revealed a glimpse of how the building operated in the 1850s when it was built. A loading door and a crumbling hoist were visible from the street, although from inside the building looked like any other mundane office space.

These discoveries fundamentally inspired the design and all new additions were carefully considered as an impression of the history without attempting to replicate it.

Sliding timber shutters echo original stable frontage when shut, whilst also providing control of light and privacy to the ground floor of the office. The timber lining continues inside, concealing a small kitchen and WC. A new storey was added on top with a large central skylight that pours light down into the spaces below. The rooftop extension, which is clad in black standing seam zinc, is set back from the front of the building and is barely visible from the ground level. The space is used as a private office with a long high-level window offering views of the treetops of the gardens behind.

To rationalise wasteful corridor space, the building is divided in two by a folded steel staircase that connects all three levels, defining more open and public spaces at the front and private spaces at the back that can be separated if required. Folded steel was chosen as a very deliberate reference to the building’s industrial past.

Due to site constraints and the extremely poor condition of the original building envelope, the project took almost two years from initial sketch to completion. Working on a tight budget, while investing time and most of the budget in ‘the invisible’ – such as safeguarding the original building and bringing it up to current standard, was a concrete decision.

Using rough and simple materials such as oak, walnut and light grey painted plasterboard in combination with focal elements such as the expressive mild steel staircase and adaptive front shutters, resulted in a minimal yet exciting scheme.