whitecross st, london

The client's family business has occupied the premises at 115 Whitecross Street since the 1850s. The existing four storeys date from the 17th century whilst, post war, additional residential accommodation has been built over the rear of the site that shares a boundary with a small park. Project Orange were approached with a tripartite brief; to redevelop the rear of the site to create a new family home, to upgrade and renovate the buildings onto the street converting them into rental apartments, and to retain and renovate the existing ground floor business use.

The aspect of the new-build house is refocused towards the park, opening generous areas of glazing to benefit from long views and light penetration. The glazing, together with the layering and depth of the façade, gives a spatial richness and light to the interior as well as enhancing the adjoining public space. The living areas are raised to first floor level and link the expansive areas facing the park to more intimate zones grouped around enclosed internal courtyards. These in turn flow through to refurbished areas of the existing buildings fronting the street. A sense of security and protection is afforded by the ground floor brick plinth upon which the new house is perched. The cubic forms of the new upper storeys are characterised by an armature of sheet copper cladding from which emerge volumes finished in rustic oak shakes, a reference to the Arcadian landscape of the park.

The construction design maximizes energy efficiency in its use of specialist insulation in the wall build-up and thermally efficient glazing. The main roof is to be in sedum. Heating is provided by air /water heat pumps that use the latent heat in the air to run underfloor heating and contribute to hot water requirements.