The Aperture House | Studio McW

Studio McW has extended and refreshed a tired Edwardian semi-detached house in North London, inserting a series of architectural apertures to maintain the clients’ connection to nature and each other while working from home.

The clients, a young couple working in journalism and psychiatry, became acutely aware of the shortcomings of their existing ground floor layout during the first lockdown of 2020. Studio McW was promptly appointed to reorganise the plan to better accommodate both clients working from home, and introduce a flexible floor plan for cooking, dining, and relaxation. The clients briefed Studio McW to maintain strong visual connections to the rear and side gardens, and enhance the natural light levels of the home.

Studio McW met the brief designing a series of carefully placed apertures and openings in the facade, roof and joinery to maintain the clients’ connection to nature and each other while home working, without sacrificing privacy needed for meetings.

To accomplish this, Studio McW shifted the mass of the extension back towards the rear garden, creating an offset volume which allowed space for a small central courtyard to provide light to three rooms at the core of the home. A single, off-centre aperture in the pyramidal roof form is orientated to capture the slithers of light between the neighbouring buildings and sit directly above a bespoke dining table.

A custom oak storage wall designed by Studio McW acts as a partition between the side entrance and new living and dining area, providing storage for shoes, pet accessories and coats. The chocolate stained timber continues into the kitchen, drawing inhabitants through the house. A large nook seat in the joinery offers multiple uses; a place to sit and remove shoes, a booth to read, the extension of dining seating and creates garden views from entry.

The architects designed oversized thresholds to create purposeful entry into the home and promote a sense of relaxation. Openings in the new extension were set back within deliberately deep, angled brick thresholds, which were designed to retain views through the house and into the rear garden, let in light at specific times of the day and encourage cross ventilation.

The interior palette features natural materials including soft terracotta floor tiles and clay plaster to maintain good interior air quality. The kitchen has its own apertures to allow for kettles, toasters and preparation equipment, ensuring surfaces are clear and easily cleaned.

Greg Walton, Director at Studio McW says;

“The antithesis of modern open plan terrace extensions, the Aperture House provides calm, flexible spaces for our clients to work in the day, but also enjoy time cooking and hosting friends on their terrace outside. Residential architecture needs to work harder to meet the modern demands of modern home owners; the open plan, expansive layout is no longer a romantic aspiration for all.”

Tom and Billy Boland, clients say:

“It’s wonderful to have this haven. We have far more light than we had before, particularly south-facing light which we didn’t expect to end up with, and it has completely changed the space. The rich timber and terracotta, matched with the segmentation of the layout, makes the space very welcoming and warm which we love.”

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Project credits
Location: London, United Kingdom
Project size: 50 square metres
Construction began: March 2021
Completion:October 2021
Client:Tom Platt and Billy Boland
Architect: Studio McW
Interiors:Studio McW
Design team:Greg Walton, David McGahon
Contractor:Greene
Joiner: Idle Furniture
Photographer:© Lorenzo Zandri