31/44 Architects designed Six Columns as a home for its architect owner and family. The house in Crystal Palace, London, occupies a previously undeveloped side garden on a residential street in south-east London. Set among predominantly two-storey houses, it provides over 160 square metres of accommodation across three floors.
From a distance, the house sits comfortably alongside its neighbours. On approach and entry, its architectural character becomes more apparent. References are drawn from the house next door and from buildings and places encountered over time, including Denmark, Milan, and Barcelona, alongside memories of houses previously inhabited.
Architectural references and street presence
Conceived as part farmhouse and part Californian Case Study House, Six Columns draws on post-war American housing experiments and, in its construction detail, the directness of 1950s British architecture.
The street elevation incorporates a stepping brickwork wall, rustication, pilasters, and a green marble panel. These elements establish a formal frontage while introducing texture and detail to the entrance area. The composition reflects 31/44 Architects’ belief that houses should contribute to the city beyond the private lives they contain.
Form and landscape
The building twists and steps within its trapezoidal plot, responding to shifting boundaries and following the existing pattern of the street. The plan moves forward before turning, resolving changes in boundary character.
The house is sited on a previously undeveloped side garden containing a protected sycamore tree. A strategy was developed with an arboriculturist at an early stage to ensure the tree would not be adversely affected. The positioning of the house, slab levels, foundation design, and rainwater strategy were developed in response to the existing landscape and its long-term preservation.
Two gardens are formed on either side of a light-filled kitchen and living space: a low-maintenance rainwater garden and a terrace. A south-west-facing sunken court incorporates an outdoor kitchen that mirrors the main kitchen inside, extending the domestic programme into the garden.
Structure and construction
Six Columns sits on a series of steel screw piles, avoiding conventional concrete-piled foundations. Developed in consultation with the structural engineer, the screw piles were selected for their low impact and flexibility in positioning around the roots of the protected tree. Their structural resistance was measured during installation, allowing tighter design margins. Concrete piles are typically oversized due to uncertainty in bearing capacity.
The house is constructed with a brickwork outer leaf and concrete beams. Eaves and roof edges are formed in timber and clad in a lightweight six-millimetre cement board. While the building has a visually weighty appearance, the structural strategy reduces reliance on carbon-intensive concrete.
At ground floor level, exposed brickwork and a concrete frame define the primary structure, with joinery used to subdivide spaces. A limited number of concrete beams allowed wide openings to both gardens, supporting flexibility in layout. On the upper floors, internal masonry is replaced with a timber frame and open loft volumes. Timber spans are arranged to remove the need for structural steel.
Interior organisation and adaptability
Across three floors, the house prioritises shared spaces for gathering while individual sleeping areas are deliberately compact. Circulation is minimised, with few corridors. Enclosed rooms are balanced by more open areas, allowing the plan to shift between containment and openness. The result is a sequence of spaces that feel connected yet distinct, supporting daily life without prescribing how it should unfold. Views extend through the kitchen and living space into both gardens, while a bedroom and family room at ground floor level are set back from view.
Since practical completion in 2021, the house has been conceived as an ongoing project. The design ethos accepts that it will remain unfinished, resisting the notion of a fixed or perfected dwelling. The brief therefore called for interiors that could adjust to future requirements and tastes.
Bespoke joinery is simply finished to allow adaptation over time. Much of it is formed from oiled and unpainted pine, avoiding plaster and paint finishes and their associated carbon emissions. The approach draws on Italian artist and furniture designer Enzo Mari’s Autoprogettazione, a self-help guide to constructing furniture from wood and nails, as well as early modern joinery techniques associated with Le Corbusier. Materials are applied directly, allowing careful control of budget while supporting flexibility. The interior is conceived as a loose fit, able to evolve as the family grows.
