Proctor & Shaw uses limestone bricks for "powerfully tranquil" extension in London
Local studio Proctor & Shaw looked to Mallorcan villas to create a feeling of calmness at Stone Brick House, a London home extended with walls of pale limestone brick.
The terraced house was updated for a young family in Clapham and expanded with a new kitchen and dining space overlooking the garden.
According to Proctor & Shaw founder John Proctor, "airy Mallorcan villas" were a key influence on the design, informing its pale, natural material palette, which revolves around the use of low-carbon limestone bricks.
"The Can Lis house in Mallorca by Danish architect Jørn Utzon became a key precedent, and we sought to achieve a similar purity with material restraint and craft using muted natural clay plaster tones, oak and limestone brick," he told Dezeen.
"The stone brick was pivotal. It honestly expresses the construction, gifts a light reflective tone to the space and importantly provides high levels of thermal mass that assist the environmental temperance," he added.
"But perhaps most importantly, it is an ultra-low carbon construction product using about 93 per cent less embodied carbon than fired clay bricks."
Sinking the floor level of Stone Brick House's extension enabled a generous 2.9-metre ceiling height, which creates a feeling of spaciousness in tandem with a full-height sliding door into the garden and a large skylight above the dining table framed by thin oak beams.
The steps down into the extension are framed by bespoke oak storage containing a pantry. This wraps around the corner to become a backdrop to the kitchen, a long counter and a wooden island.
Opposite, a custom dining table sits alongside a built-in bench against a brick wall. The bench extends to become a window seat overlooking a planted bed in the garden.
Complementing the expanses of limestone brick are walls of natural plaster and a terracotta tiled floor underfoot, which extends out to become the garden patio.
"Providing space for entertaining was a key brief requirement, so the dining table, associated seating, kitchen counter and kitchen island are all generous," Proctor said.
"All the elements come together here; volumetric generosity, high levels of natural light, and serene material authenticity create a powerfully tranquil space," he added.
"Of particular note is the custom kitchen island with expressed simple timber frame construction and open shelves and drawers creating an airy, joyful central piece of furniture."
In the existing home, the front room and hallway have been opened up through the introduction of sliding wooden doors, allowing light and views along the entire depth of its plan.
Other London extensions completed by Proctor & Shaw include one in Peckham, which is topped by a tiered allotment, and another in north London designed as a timber-framed "sanctuary for wellbeing".
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