Awards for architecture at two Herefordshire homes

Designers of the Barn House at Risbury, near Leominster, and Middle Hunt House Bridge at Walterstone, near Pontrilas, have won 2019 RIBA West Midlands Awards from the Royal Institute of British Architects.

Barn House owners Steph and Alex Wilson and their children Lydia and Ollie lived in a caravan for three years as they tried to make their rural home dream a reality.

It hit the headlines when it was covered by Channel 4's Grand Designs TV programme last year.

It is built on the site of Stephanie’s grandparents’ farm and is the culmination of her 20-year quest to return to live in a place she’s loved since her childhood.

The couple bought the land in 2015, but when Alex was suddenly made redundant the project was in major financial trouble.

They sold their bungalow and moved into a caravan as they reviewed their entire strategy.

Then Stephanie approached an old school friend, Jessica Barker, an architect with the Stolon Studio, who designed the new home and became project managers.

The award winners were announced at a prestigious ceremony at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, Birmingham City University.

The event was hosted by Deborah Walsh, RIBA West Midlands regional director, and Philip Twiss, West Midlands regional chairman.

Ms Walsh said: "All winning buildings have been awarded because of the way they carefully and thoughtfully respond to the brief of a client, the delight they bring to their users, and the positive impact they have on communities. I am sure they will continue to improve the lives of many for years to come.”

Stolon Studio, the practice behind Barn House also won RIBA West Midlands Small Project of the Year Award while Jessica Barker of Stolon Studio won RIBA West Midlands Emerging Architect of the Year Award for her work on the project.

Middle Hunt House Bridge by Michael Crowley Architect was RIBA West Midlands Client of the Year.

RIBA West Midlands Award winners will now be considered for a highly-coveted RIBA National Award in recognition of their architectural excellence, which will be announced on June 27, 2019.

The shortlist for the RIBA Stirling Prize for the best building of the year will be drawn from the RIBA National Award-winning buildings later in the year.

What the RIBA jury said about Barn House

Inspired by its setting, Barn house has been thoughtfully crafted to deliver a wonderful family home.

Its simple form and minimal black exterior treatment hides the wonderful playfulness of light and space that exists within its interior.

This contrast is a joy to experience and is hinted at as one approaches the building and its chamfered gable wall of glass.

The design makes great use of standard construction systems to minimise waste and to provide an exceptional building for the very tight budget available.

Constructed within a disused quarry that had been cut into the hillside of the farm, the house sits as a simple black corrugated-clad barn-like form.

This deliberate form to provide a building that, as the client requested, looks like a house, provides a simple envelope to contain the deceptively large interior.

The side and rear facades are peppered with numerous windows that perforate the facade in a playful but considered fashion. These slot-like openings have been cleverly positioned to frame views of the landscape and slowly reveal the setting as you move around the house.

The chamfered end helps set the building in its landscape by providing the big reveal of the setting, which is contrast to the other windows.

The oversailing roof and first floor balcony help provide solar shading to this fully glazed gable wall.

Internally the simple palette of materials has been brilliantly detailed to provide a calm and serene interior.

From the double-height lobby an elegant blackened timber screen acts as a portal into the house extending up to form the balustrade at first floor. This device both creates a porch to the house but also a vestibule to the client’s home office and thereby separating business visitors from the heart of the house.

The rooms have been well detailed using simple but effective solutions that ensure that the house feels like one of a much higher budget.

The flow of space and the open volumes of the house maintain interest and utilise the full volume of the building's form to create a dynamic and lively interior.

The building has been well insulated and incorporates triple glazed windows along with a photovoltaic array a bio digester and a heating system designed to take a air source heat pump once funds allow.

In addition, an 8kw wood-burning stove positioned in the heart of the house provides an effective heating system that the whole house can benefit from.

Overall this is an exceptional house for the budget that is full of well-considered detail.

The architect has clearly worked hard to provide the client with a wonderful family home which flows effortlessly and is very much part of its setting.

The team work between client and architect to get there clearly shows in the result.

What the RIBA jury said about Middle Hunt House Bridge

Although small, this bridge link is a wonderfully joyful connection between two existing buildings that has been beautifully crafted into its setting.

The owners have acted as architectural patrons to deliver an architectural moment that is far more than a way of simply connecting between two buildings.

The sense of connection to the landscape is wonderful and the integral bench within its wall offers a welcome rest point to sit and connect with the mountain landscape in all weathers and seasons.

The bridge has been exquisitely detailed and constructed to sit as a wonderful addition to this farmyard setting. Constructed by local craftspeople the build was managed directly by the client and it has clearly been a labour of love, the end result being an exquisite addition to this farmyard setting.

The diagonal plan of the bridge means that as you enter it from the house your first view is of the wonderful Black Mountains via a full height glazed wall and not your destination.

The floor of the bridge then lifts and widens slightly at the centre of the span adding to the feeling that one is truly crossing a bridge before leading you to the solid oak doors of the entrance to the studio.

The walls and ceiling flex around you to continually alter your spatial perception and focus your attention on different aspects of the ‘building’.

It provides a truly wonderful architectural experience of light and space in just a few square metres.

The slender blue tubular steel frame reminiscent of a bicycle frame gives you a sense of the overall structural concept while the oak flooring and walls wrap around it giving a sense of warmth in their materiality.

The glazing has been minimally detailed while the bright orange yacht hatches playfully provide ventilation to the space from behind the slender oak rain screen cladding.

Externally the bridge sits between the two existing structures as a series of oak and glass origami panels that flex effortlessly against each other.

At the junction with gable walls a neat shadow gap sets the structures apart allowing the bridge to almost hover in the void between the two buildings.

This is much more than a crossing between two buildings. It is a piece of architecture in its true sense.