Hurst House by John Pardey Architects, UK

Architect John Pardey has created an emphatically linear design for Hurst House in the UK, carving out living spaces on a grand scale

(Image credit: press)

By Ellie Stathaki

last updated 25 October 2022

in Features

open kitchen — The open-plan kitchen, dining and living area dominates the first floor, which is lined by a balcony that runs the entire length of the building

This opens up the fa&ccedil;ade — This opens up the façade while ensuring the flow between volumes is maximised

The linearity of the building sits in contrast to the rolling landscape around it

The architect's chief challenge was to create a unique, yet low impact design for this private home. The house's ground floor nestles into the slope at the front of the site, reducing the overall height by 1.4m, while the L-shaped footprint tucks the bedrooms towards the rear, forming a private, south facing courtyard and carport.

house outer side — The glazing retreats at the south end to form an upper outdoor living area that echoes the ground floor in a predominant east-to-west axis

Weston Underwood stone lines the ground floor (the quarry is a mere 40 miles away), while the timber is British grown Sweet Chestnut, and a contemporary touch is added by the zinc cladding

Strategic openings in the architecture give the building a feeling of lightness

The linearity of the architecture is echoed in the bathroom fittings

The working drawing package was sub-contracted to former Pardey employee Magnus Ström, who saw the build through to completion

The house peeks out from below the tree line, while the topography of the site shows off its contemporary features that nod discretely towards an all-mod-con 21st century living

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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).