An Architect’s Dream: Four Architect-owned Homes for Sale
A busman’s holiday? A total breakdown of the work-life balance? It would be fair to assume that an architect would find bringing their work home – in the most literal of senses – a bit of a drag. But as this collection of architect-owned homes attests, there is a creativeness that comes with having total control over the process. It becomes a space to marry ideas of how things should look with how one should live. Here are four homes where – on viewing – you might find that the architect is indeed, in the house …
Ty Hedfan Pontfaen, Powys
Cantilevered elegantly over the dark and foamy waters of the River Ysgir is Ty Hedfan (Welsh for ‘hovering house’). This bespoke and highly site-specific house is the brainchild of architects Sarah Featherstone and Jeremy Young, founders of Featherstone Young who fashioned this five-bedroom house for themselves and are now bringing it to market for the first time.
If the articulated wings and masterful medley of local materials seem familiar, it’s likely you’ve spotted Ty Hedfan before. It featured on George Clarke’s Amazing Spaces and received multiple prestigious awards when it first took flight in 2011. Since then, it has served as a uniquely uplifting retreat, truly ensconced in its site in the Brecon Beacons.
Garden House, Southwell, Nottinghamshire
As its name suggests, this spectacular seven-bedroom house designed (and lived in) by Allan Joyce is firmly rooted in its generous grounds. Not only is it surrounded by nature, but clever landscaping gives the appearance of the building having been reclaimed by its environment: a herb garden has been planted on its flat roof, while the perimeter is bounded by borders of herbaceous perennials.
Multilayered floating mezzanines imbue the house with a deliberate playfulness. Taking an inverted layout, the house’s living spaces unfold across the ground-floor level to make the most of its copious amount of glazing. Joviality is balanced with serious business, though: a rigorous approach to environmental performance makes this a home that performs as impressively as it looks.
Oakdale Road, London SE15
You’d be forgiven for assuming that Oakdale Road, with its impressively intricate brickwork, was a continuation of its Victorian stock-brick neighbours. Its architect owner, the founder of practice Enclosure, has done a masterful job at designing a house that slots into the surrounding 19th-century vernacular whilst cleverly crafting a sleek, contemporary interior.
Internally, the configuration lends itself to flowing, fuss-free living. The living spaces occupy the entire ground floor and have been left open to create a natural circularity from the front door to the rear garden (and back again). The story is the same upstairs: elegant, structural finesse has been married with a practicality that makes every inch of space work as hard as it possibly can.
Sutherland House, Rosebury Square, London IG8
Located in the heart of leafy Repton Park, Sutherland House is almost entirely hidden from view. Its original architect, G.T. Hine, designed the building as a purpose-built hospital, its verdant surroundings acting as a restorative backdrop. This apartment’s second architect (and current owner) has reimagined the space entirely, utilising its tall, Victorian proportions to create an atrium that houses a sculptural spiral staircase.
Other recent additions include the introduction of rich materials, high-quality fittings and joinery. Perhaps of a lesser visual appeal (but no small feat) are the architect’s efforts to improve the apartment’s eco credentials. Given Sutherland House’s Grade II-listed status, its B-grade Environmental Performance Certificate is particularly impressive and was achieved through mindful interventions including a new boiler, double glazing and added thermal insulation.
