Lea Park Workshop
Leyton, East London, UK
Completed on site 2019
Situated above a 1940's warehouse in East London, a double-height living room stands at the centre of this house, designed for set builder Mark Griffiths
The house incorporates an identifiably modernist aesthetic - with exposed lightweight structural elements, timber cladding and large expanses of glazing.
The project explores atmosphere as an aesthetic category, making use of openness, natural light and materials in a variety of ways to enhance the experience of everyday living.
Conceived as a single volume completely open in plan, the programme sets out a dialectic relationship between ‘public’ and ‘private’ spaces with bedrooms positioned to the rear of a mezzanine overlooking the double height living room. Its sheer volume and openness adds to the spatial qualities of the interior.
A carefully positioned light well to the rear of a mezzanine draws the eye up two flights of stairs, its natural light threading through the buildings rich interiors to create a linear focal point, amplifying the overall sense of space.
A large wall of slim steel framed windows reference the sites industrial heritage and towers over the double height space, maximising natural light and casting shadows on the sawn oak cladding through the day.
Designed to be full width and full height the glazing abuts the timber cladding without nibs to ensure a seamless connection to outside in the modernist tradition, opening onto a large outdoor roof terrace with an abundance of planting.
Interior finishes have an emphasis on natural materials such as sawn oak cladding, dark stained exposed timber joists and polished concrete floors, finely crafted by the owner himself.
The studio is highly insulated with a thermal mass provided by its raw concrete slab at first floor level, and is passively ventilated via Bauhaus style opening vents to its front façade. An air source heat pump and photovoltaic panels reduce carbon emissions to 35% below current building regulations.
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