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Architects: AR Design Studio
- Year: 2013
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Photographs: Martin Gardner
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Manufacturers: Kingspan Insulated Panels, HH Aluminium, Kloeber UK Ltd, Smart Systems, Stelrad, Stone and Ceramic Warehouse, Vincent Timber, Wetherby
Text description provided by the architects. Commissioned by two Winchester based Doctors; The Medic's House is the latest extension project by AR Design Studio. Upon the arrival of their new baby daughter, the need for additional family space meant that the client’s existing 1950s three bed house desperately needed extending. The brief called for two additional bedrooms upstairs and a large open-plan family space with light, views and access to the beautiful garden at ground floor.
AR Design Studio's solution was to create a large charcoal grey living box at ground level with a full height glazed opening elevation to the garden. A timber clad sleeping pod is perched above at first floor level providing the additional bedrooms.
At ground floor level the extension contains a utility, WC, kitchen, dining room and lounge area, fitted with 3 large eco-friendly sliding glass panels creating an uninterrupted view of the garden. The flush threshold and continuous floor surface enhance this connection with the garden by allowing the internal space to flow seamlessly out into it on warmer days.
The walls are constructed from super insulated block and oversized insulated cavities ensuring a very thermally efficient envelope. Large opaque glass panels to the sides allow etch light to enter deep into the plan of the space. The structure is hidden in strategically placed fins that suggest living zones within the open-plan space.
Upstairs, the western red cedar clad addition consists of a generous master suite with a separate dressing area and one other additional bedroom. This upper box is also fabricated in timber, allowing for a light weight structure that reduces the need for unsightly columns beneath. The construction contains over 250mm of insulation which AR felt was important at the upper level. This approach to construction was also carried through into the over insulated single-ply roof.
The fenestration was resolved as a series of verticals that celebrate the depth of the walls with a combination of recessed and flush frameless windows. The overall composition was influenced by the ancient Greek theory of the ‘Golden Section’ in order to provide a well-balanced and proportioned rear elevation.
