Into the woods: a Hampshire home by Alma-nac is the perfect retreat
The white, clean shapes of the 20th-century’s modernist villas and the sculptural outlines of brutalist concrete homes make for perfect juxtapositions against the softness and rawness of nature; but creating playful contrasts is not the only way to negotiate architecture’s relationship to nature. Often, a different approach can have just as striking results, and Alma-nac’s House in the Woods, a new modern home quietly nestled in a tree-filled site within the South Downs National Park, is a case in point.
Aiming to create a contemporary house for its clients, a family that owned a bungalow on site for over 60 years, the London-based practice chose to work with modern shapes but took a softer approach, opting for clean but relatively modest geometries, brick-clad volumes and a pitched roof that references local vernacular.
This being an area of outstanding natural beauty, it was important for the team to make the most of its surroundings, while respecting the setting. ‘Together with our client, we wanted to make the most of the views out to the landscaped garden and the South Downs beyond and a connection with the outdoors was essential’, explain the architects. It was equally crucial for the client to design a space that is flexible enough to act as a one-bedroom holiday home, but also accommodate larger family gatherings and guests when needed.
The result is a warm and thoroughly modern home that spans 240 sq m and two levels, featuring large openings that connect inside and outside visually through abundant glazing, and directly, with living spaces spilling out onto decks, terraces and gardens. A natural material palette of hand-cut brick, timber and natural slate also emphasise the house’s affiliation to the outdoors.
A generous, flowing ground level plays host to the main living spaces, including sitting room, and kitchen and dinning areas (divided by a feature fireplace), which are placed on the southern end of the plan. Double-height spaces underline a sense of lightness and space. Two large bedrooms are located upstairs, while further guest rooms are situated on the ground level’s southern side.
The project’s effortless connection to nature made it an ideal architectural setting for our outdoors themed fashion story, ‘Natural High’, featured in our June 2018 issue, out now.
INFORMATION
For more information visit Alma-nac’s website
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Ellie Stathaki is the Architecture & Environment Director at Wallpaper*. She trained as an architect at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece and studied architectural history at the Bartlett in London. Now an established journalist, she has been a member of the Wallpaper* team since 2006, visiting buildings across the globe and interviewing leading architects such as Tadao Ando and Rem Koolhaas. Ellie has also taken part in judging panels, moderated events, curated shows and contributed in books, such as The Contemporary House (Thames & Hudson, 2018), Glenn Sestig Architecture Diary (2020) and House London (2022).
-
The new Marantz Horizon is a circular wireless speaker with style as well as substance
The Marantz Horizon projects room-filling sound from its striking sculptural form, with a touch-sensitive interface and support for all forms of streaming
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Colin Greenwood's intimate portraits of Radiohead capture the band at work and play
Colin Greenwood's portraits of Radiohead have been collected in a new photography book, 'How To Disappear'
By Craig McLean Published
-
The best cocktail napkins for party season
From monogrammed minis through to hand finished Italian linen squares, these are the best cocktail napkins for parties.
By Rosie Conroy Published
-
Paddington Square transforms its patch of central London with its 'elevated cube'
Paddington Square by Renzo Piano Building Workshop has been completed, elevating a busy London site through sustainability, modern workspace and a plaza
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Architectural car parks to drive into, in the UK and beyond
Architectural car parks form an important part of urban infrastructure but can provide a design statement too; here are some of the finest examples to peruse, in the UK and beyond
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Architectural Association's newest show uncovers the architectural legacies of rural China's lost generation
The Architectural Association’s ‘Ripple Ripple Rippling’ is not your typical architecture show, taking an anthropological look at the flux between rural and urban, and bringing a part of China to Bedford Square in London
By Teshome Douglas-Campbell Published
-
Into the groove: Henriksen House is the UK’s first home extension featuring exposed clay block walls
Architect Michael Henriksen uses textured clay blocks, cork flooring and self-built joinery to transform his family home in St Albans near London
By Léa Teuscher Published
-
This unassuming London house is a radical rethinking of the suburban home
Station Lodge by architect Andrei Saltykov in South West London offers a radical subversion to regional residential architecture
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Join our tour of London Zoo, its modernist architecture and more
London Zoo is a well-established magnet for younger visitors, but there's plenty for the architecture enthusiast to admire too; our tour explores its modernist treasures for guests of all ages
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Elemental House adds a Danish twist to a 1970s London house
Archmongers' Elemental House transforms a 1970s terraced house in London's Hackney into a functional, light-filled, Scandinavian-inspired family home
By Léa Teuscher Published
-
East London's disused gasholders are being reinvented
Regent's View by RSHP reinvents a pair of disused gasholders in east London as contemporary residential space and a publically accessible park
By Ellie Stathaki Published