The Unfinished House
Architecture Residential United Kingdom Of Great Britain And Northern Ireland
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Description
OEB Architects have completed the Unfinished House, an industrial-style refurbishment and extension in East London for a collector couple and their 6 cats. The 1950s house has been completely transformed to expose the textures of the original floors, bricks and plaster. A large factory-like rear extension adds a vibrant open-plan living space, creating a house of varied atmospheres, dramatically changing natural light, and spaces with age and character.
The new full width extension is formed with plain off-the-shelf construction materials, with stepping floors and ceilings that create a dynamic feeling of height and space. The existing house was refurbished by removing and repairing existing elements and finishes giving unexpected character and texture in each room. These plain and rough surfaces are a foil for the brightly coloured and intricate collection of street art figurines, and the numerous recycled lights and fittings sourced by the client.
Windows are positioned to track the path of the sun throughout the day: in the morning the raised central clerestory catches the rising sun, then the main facade glazing takes over during the day, with finally the roof light over the kitchen washing the wall with the evening sun. The clerestory also gives a moment of dramatic height to the space, and a roof profile akin to an industrial structure.
Simple lo-tech materials are used for the extension: white painted plaster and brick, red-oxide painted steel beams, while the exposed roof is made from standard softwood timber and grey fibreboard. Across these surfaces galvanised electrical conduit link the rough-cast aluminium light switches with salvaged factory light fittings.
The proposals take a bold and innovative approach to renewal and extension, prioritising tactical removal of areas of the existing building and retention of as-found textures and materials. The extension purposely contrasts with the narrow rooms of the 1950s house with a plain yet distinctly modelled figure. It accommodates a large full width living space formed by opening up the existing rear rooms to the new space, making an interconnected interior landscape.
Client Quote:
‘Space, light and flexibility - are just three reasons we love our extension with its integral kitchen and ‘snug’ area. During the day it serves as the cats’ sun lounge, a breakfast bar and lunch time hang out for days. working at home. In the evening it’s a gym, communal kitchen and cosy TV area. Twice a week the space doubles up as a dojo for virtual kendo practice, with the extra height of the clerestory a real bonus. The multiple windows across different planes generates natural light that continually changes during the day connecting us with the outside world.’
Questions and Answers
Can you discuss the materials and sustainable practices used in the renovation? How do they contribute to the overall aesthetic and functionality of the house?
The project has a low-tech environmental strategy: to build simply, using a modest amount of standard materials with low embodied energy. The extension walls are timber framed, insulated in the most efficient and break-less technique with external insulation and render. The intention was also to maximise efficiency of the existing structure to maintain as much of the already embodied energy on site as possible. Sufficient sections of the existing walls are retained to provide lateral stability and allow openings to be formed by simple beams rather than requiring box-frames or steel columns
The ambition of the project was to investigate and demonstrate how simple, readily available or found materials can be used to create a rich and surprising set of spaces. The project is not a piece of fine-carpentry: sometimes elements line-up, other times they don’t, materials are not precious and the method of connection is often crude. Timber joists are softwood, not oak; the soffit is gypsum fibre board, not veneered ply. Existing mottled grey plaster or brickwork is left exposed, timber floor boards are sanded and refused, new architraves and skirtings are unpainted. These elements are used to build a house of varied atmospheres, dramatically changing natural light, and spaces with age and character. The furniture, fittings, and collectibles brought by the clients were also a key aspect of consideration - the house was designed to display a collection which in turn complements or contrasts with the built fabric
What inspired the industrial-style transformation of the 1950s house, and how did you incorporate the unique needs of a collector couple and their 6 cats into the design?
The character of the project was developed with the clients, who were keen to have spaces with rough and exposed finishes and reclaimed objects, a look they defined as industrial. The clients approached OEB with references of large exposed brick warehouse conversions, drawn to the rich textures and often unusual spaces provided by these old industrial buildings.
However they had just purchased a rather squat and boxy 1950s house. The challenge for OEB was how to translate these references to the new domestic context. In the existing spaces a process of selective opening up and uncovering removed the layers of stained chintzy wallpaper and revealed the rough material beneath.
As this was not a warehouse conversion but a 1950s house, discussions revolved around which parts might be left exposed or rough in contemporary domestic construction, and how elements might be combined in unusual ways for the context.
In parallel the design for the extension uses readily available materials and simple construction methods to achieve similar qualities of layering and texture. A standard softwood stair is painted oxide red to match structural steel lintels, with a perforated galvanised balustrade and keyclamp handrail. Non-structural linings are made evident by curving the interior lining away from the structure beneath, subtly giving a softened corner around the window seat, and more extravagantly in the forms and finishes of the bathroom.
The realised design is responsive to the site and the activity it contains, but loose enough to be an adaptable and intriguing sequence of spaces.
Details
| Completion date | 2021 |
Project team
| OEB Architects |