client : private client

location : peak district

sector : residential

sunart

upon engagement at sunart house, a-nd were introduced to a tired, lonely and complicated building which had previously been extended numerous times. what was left was a very unhappy house with no clear direction or hierarchy of space. luckily both the client and design teams vision saw the beauty in the site and location and agreed to rebuild. darwent architecture who have strong previous experience with building beautiful new builds were responsible for the build and worked closely with a-nd on the brief before breaking ground.

our brief was to create a neutral, durable, homely space which would bring the outdoors inside.

all finishes needed to be resilient and natural which would intentionally age over time and strengthen the schemes identity and pallet.

colours were considered in depth throughout. the final scheme is reflected from the outdoor surroundings and gardens – using deep hues and shades of greens, browns, reds and terracotta to keep a homely family environment whilst retaining an arguably neutral canvas for the busy lives of the client. 

natural light floods the whole house and played an integral part of our design, considering shape, surface material, texture and colour and how these aspects would perform within the  relevant spaces.

we consciously treat our residential projects with the same underpinned concept as our larger commercial schemes to adhere an overall sense of consideration and coherency. here, we used a minimal pallet that could be rolled out through the entire scheme and implemented in a number of innovative ways.

the fresh minimal pallet was repeated through all spaces to strengthen the core of the design adding a rhythm around the home. we always knew the house would become a busy house and a busy scheme would have clashed with the function of this residency.

a stacked library and open pantry highlight products and display both rooms function proudly for all to see. we didn’t want to create walls of cupboards to disguise the functionality and instead wanted to celebrate each space for its usage and intention, harmonise with the overall scheme. the house is a functional house for an active family so let’s celebrate proudly and never hide.

light is a vehicle for the rendering of form and space. The quantity, quality and colour of light all affect the perception of mass and volume.

We have large open plan spaces which frame the picturesque views by day and flood the house with glorious natural light. by night we worked hard with our soft finishes and window treatments to enable the house to be softened, closing up to create a warm and cosy retreat.