The site is a semi-detached, nineteenth century residence in the London suburb of Putney. It fronts a quiet road with a large garden to the rear which extends to the edge of the river Thames. The client's family had outgrown the existing accommodation and our brief was to maximise the available space and make use of the property’s unique location by re-orientating the focus of the house from the road to the river.
We extended the ground, first, second and third floors and created a large basement to develop the house as a gradual progression towards the river:now the basement forms the principle family living area with access to the river through the garden, it moves up to the ground floor, where the kitchen and formal dining area extend onto a terrace and stair to the garden. At first floor level, on the river side of the house we located the master bedroom, en suite bathroom and dressing room and the second and third floors have bedroom space with river views.
Throughout the process of design and construction the river was our point of focus. We aimed to provide the house with as much access to the water as possible, both physically and visually; constructing a large window with a river view in the master bedroom and sliding, folding doors in the basement leading to the garden and down to the river bank. We created a formal seating and viewing area at the end of the garden and even incorporated the Thames in construction work, transporting materials to and from site on river barges.
It is a family home, and we aimed to reflect this. We dedicated much attention to the children, creating several large, bright, playful spaces and merging them with quieter spaces for relaxation and entertainment.
Light and view are key to this design and the completed project makes strong visual references to the work of Eileen Gray through the use of colour and texture and the balance produced between the stark and the luxurious.