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Sumit Singhal
Sumit Singhal loves modern architecture. He comes from a family of builders who have built more than 20 projects in the last ten years near Delhi in India. He has recently started writing about the architectural projects that catch his imagination. Merrydown in Dorset, UK by McLaren.ExcellMarch 8th, 2016 by Sumit Singhal
Article source: McLaren.Excell The house was originally the local Victorian girls school and latterly a single storey home that had been lived in by the same owner since the 1970s (the clients mother). The original layout was almost monastic: one large room with a single corridor off it with cell-like bedrooms and bathrooms to one side  Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell
 Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell Our brief was to strip the building bare and produce a scheme which delivered three things: The final scheme resulted in three bedrooms, two bathrooms, one loo, an open plan living space and an additional Study/ TV Room which is a smaller and more intimate space off the double-height kitchen. The first floor bedrooms and bathroom were not there before. We were able to fit two storeys into the existing building envelope by utilising space which had been previously ignored. Th e original ground floor was sitting above a one metre void, and the original ceiling had been suspended from the roof joists by a considerable distance. By claiming back these untapped voids, and with a generous existing ceiling height of three metres, we were able to deliver two storeys without underpinning the perimeter walls or increasing the height of the roof structure.  Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell  Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell We knew from early on that part of the building would have two floors (the bedroom end), and part would be double-height (the living end). The key question was: how will these two ends relate to one another? The open plan living room sits below a bedroom at first floor level and has a low ceiling height as a result. It was important that the bedroom above was completely suspended from the roof structure to prevent any supporting walls or columns from compromising the living room. This was achieved by concealing the bedroom structure wherever possible and, where this was not possible, it was disguised by using painted steel sections that were indistinguishable from the existing timber roof structure. The result is a deceptively simple ‘floating’ room that seems to defy logic and lends a wonderful sense of drama to the double-height kitchen.  Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell  Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell The house was never meant for day-to-day living and is intended to be used for holidays, weekends and short holiday rentals. The building is in the countryside and on a short break people typically tend to congregate in one focal space – so it was important that the kitchen and living room were tied together and formed the main room of the house.  Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell  Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell The principal living space is almost church-like in scale and arrangement, so befitting a pure and restrained selection of materials. Birch plywood, concrete, wood wool and brass are used through-out, and recycled wood/concrete blocks create a structural spine wall which forms the stairwell to the bedrooms above and provides a backdrop to the more intimate living area.  Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell  Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell The materials used are honest, hard wearing and low in cost. They have all been left in their natural state – ‘as found’ – and, together with the pleasing rhythms of the original building, combine to make a scheme of conceptual simplicity and spatial purity. We designed all the joinery and everything is bespoke and hand made locally.  Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell  Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell  Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell  Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell  Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell  Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell  Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell  Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell  Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell  Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell  Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell  Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell  Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell  Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell  Image Courtesy © McLaren.Excell
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