Siberian Larch cladding

The property is directly adjacent to Rye Nature Reserve, one of the most important conservation sites in Britain. The site is formed of undulating shingle deposits formed as the sea receded over centuries. The existing property was a small 2 room bungalow with a collection of sheds in various states of disrepair connected to the bungalow.   It was not possible to refurbish the existing building and hence our brief was to create a modern building that responded to the unique context of the nature reserve. The site looks out across the reserve to the Mary Stanford Lifeboat building. This is a grade 2 listed building constructed in 1882 in pre-cast shingle based concrete, a pioneering construction method in its time. The lifeboat statio... More

Garth Wood House is located on the boundary of forest and steep embankment, overlooking the confluence of the Rivers Lyon and Tay, in Highland Perthshire.   The pavilion style house has been designed with the living quarters to the upper storey, including the master bedroom, dressing room and study together with a large covered balcony to two sides, maximize the site’s outstanding 1,000ft views. This platform level sits above service accommodation and additional guest bedrooms at the ground floor that open out directly to the mountainous garden being planted with seedlings and edge of forest plants.   The entire house is designed around the central core adjacent to which are all the individual rooms. This is a library, t... More

Eleanor Palmer Science Lab is a learning environment for young children conceived as a ‘wonder room’ for enquiry and experimentation. Located in Kentish Town, London, it is designed by AY Architects who have also designed the Montpelier Community Nursery nearby. The Lab is one of London’s new facilities built to promote the teaching of science and technology in primary school communities. Delivered for a modest construction budget of £330,000, it is not an adapted or extended classroom, like most other projects, but a model typology of an autonomous building that can accommodate science-related activities for up to 31 pupils. During the design process we considered how architecture could be manifested through the means of the school curricu... More

Charcoal House is as a crisp, rectangular corner plot extension, clad with black timber, wrapped in glazing and set in a concrete landscape that highlights its sharp angles.The brief was to transform a dark, fragmented space into a bright kitchen/dining area, bringing natural light and garden views far into the house.Our proposal dealt with the challenges of having a property exposed to the street together with being located on a slope so respecting privacy and producing a seamless transition between floor levels were important design goals. The new building stands tall and mysterious towards the side street with a blind wall while opening up with large windows towards the top, front and back. The wrapped glazing strip allows for garden vie... More

The genesis of this house might have a somewhat peculiar narrative. The possibly reversed but certainly not unwanted process of conceiving and designing the space where the foremost sensory role has the nature itself. Initially, before everything else, there was a walnut tree, providing perfect natural shade and representing the first outdoor residing space. Over time, a terrace was gradually shaped around the tree, and eventually the idea of building the house emerged. The sloped terrain with its panoramic view overlooking the nearby forest and mountain scape together with the position of the existing terrace were the only determining elements in the process of designing this country house. Without any need for flirting with or referring t... More

The design approach for the café creates the impression of a small and well integrated building which houses a café and a small restaurant in the middle of Mountsfield Park in Lewisham, London. Apart from the café seating areas, the building volume includes a small but well equipped kitchen with well sufficient storage space. The display counter and till are positioned next to the north entrance of the café and allows for an area where people can queue to take away beverages without obstructing the seating area. Moreover, customers with small children entering from the north entrance can use the visitor entrance facility next to the door to leave their buggy before entering in the space. All the services areas of the café are plac... More

Orchard Spa is a new private spa on the western edge of ‘The Lakes by Yoo’, a holiday home development in 650 acres of regenerated landscape near the Cotswolds, which is being reclaimed for sustainable development, amenity and biodiversity. It is a private spa for residents of the estate and has been designed for them to use as if the facilities – including a 20m pool, children’s play pool, gym, sauna, steam, treatment and clubrooms – were in their own home. The spa is located on the boundary of the estate alongside a functioning gravel works. The challenge for the architects De Matos Ryan was creating an oasis of calm in the proximity of an operational industrial works. The volume, footprint and proportion of the new building are inf... More