Quatrefoil House RIBA South Shortlisted
Volume up + press play
We are truly delighted that our recently completed Quatrefoil House in Oxford has been shortlisted for the prestigious RIBA South Regional Awards 2022. Our latest project was one of 18 shortlisted out of a total of 36 entries.
Following on from the shortlisting announcement, this journal post explores the history of the project and the ideas and research that have informed this highly detailed home.
Origins
The project is located in the heart of the North Oxford Victorian Suburb Conservation Area. The client brief required a five-bedroom home, with a lower level entertaining space, guest accommodation feeding into a secluded garden.
Retrofitting + Updating
The existing 450sqm building stands as a proud example of the Gothic Revival style from the 1870s. When our clients purchased the property it was vacant for many years. The home was in poor condition throughout and significant renovation and retrofitting works were required.
Objects
As part of our Hyde Objects offering, a total of 90 bespoke components were developed in close working relationship with our client. These included an internal bridge that connects the main home to the kitchen addition, door handles, a wine rack, table lights, custom beds and various furniture pieces.
A Facade of Meaning
Externally, the design is primarily a dialogue with the past. Inspired by the Gothic revival style of the existing 1870s townhouse, the new contemporary intervention is an exploration and celebration of ornament. Expressed using a quatrefoil tectonic tile in steel and bronze. These symbolic tiles seen throughout the conservation area configure the facade with an intelligent play of motif and symbolism. The new addition communicates built meaning visually through a series of regulating lines, moulding datums and proportional relationships derived from the original facade tracing. Expressed playfully as an imprint of imagery in the form of steel channels, inverted concrete supports, framed brick facades and of course - the almost floral bronze quatrefoil tiles themselves.
The new addition suspended above the carport to the rear and side elevation is supported on the dominant public elevation by a singular white concrete column. An inverted copy of its Gothic arched window counterpart, embedded within the existing house façade. Both elements new and old are entwined in an interplay between solid and void. A conversation across time.
Interior Layout
Internally we removed corridors, eliminated spatial inefficiencies and opened up the existing central stair to form a large 9m central core - allowing light deep into the plan of this 4 storey home. The kitchen and dining space was then pushed out of the existing envelope to form a cantilever and carport. The result is an open-plan ground floor with triple-height spaces and layered horizontal spatial sequences, allowing the family to feel connected.
Materials + Construction
We conducted a complete external fabric reinstatement. This included the rebuilding of the main roof, repointing brickwork and renovating the existing ornament detailing. Structural additions included a steel frame superstructure with timber framing and frameless glazing detailing. The primary materials used on the project included Cast Bronze, Black painted steel, reclaimed oxford brick and American walnut for the internal timber joinery detailing.
Ornament - Signifying Context
Our study of ornament has been inspired by the writings of architectural theorists such as Semper, Loos and Sullivan. The new addition can be deconstructed into a series of conscious elements and components that are wholly dependent upon the language and matrix of the main house.
Conclusion
We would be happy for Quatrefoil House to be seen as an example of contemporary architecture’s ability to converse with the past while celebrating the present. We hope the building’s external additions will be understood as a collage of built meaning, referencing local history, identity - time and place.
We’ve also included below some ‘deep dive’ links to our Journal posts. These writings explore the research our studio has undertaken in developing Quatrefoil House.
View the project page for Quatrefoil House.
Unwrapping Architecture at Oxford.
Crafting Up North.
Concrete Shoes.
Authenticity in Chelsea.
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