This replacement dwelling was created following the demolition of a detached cottage which was vacant and is in a very poor state of repair.
The existing house was positioned fairly tight to the north-west corner of the site, and did not take advantage of the site setting and aspect, and woodland nature of the garden.
The brief to the Wincer Kievenaar from the applicants was that the home should be a simple, contemporary house designed with a modernist approach to fit their life style and more importantly its immediate site and surroundings. Given the dense lanscape to the perimeter, the design was developed to be inward looking, focussing on the site as its own oasis of trees set in undulating Suffolk farmland.
The house was designed to be a home primarily, but provides space for work, individual interests and extended family. The building is mainly single storey, the annexe a simple single storey wing set at right angles to the ‘main body’ of the house, with the staircase turning the corner, the ‘fulcrum’ of the composition.
The annexe wing forms the short leg of the ‘L’ shaped plan and encloses part of the outside, a protective arm, symbolising the symbolic relationship between inside and outside. To the north, the first floor balcony sets out the main wall of the building, forming a covered walkway, again breaking down the boundary between inside and outside.
The main body of the house encloses the kitchen and sitting room, with the dining room and entrance, forming a simple symmetrical arrangement.
The first floor is much smaller than the ground floor, comprising the main bedroom suite with balcony access, and bedroom 2. The balconies allow access to the roof and rooflights for maintenance as well as to view the surrounding trees.
The client described the house as ‘the dissolving house’. It is, in effect, a simple house, which aims to intrude minimally into the landscape of the site.