HOUSE IN THE FOREST
Extension, East Sussex
2021-
Extension, East Sussex
2021-
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Re-configuration and extension to a detached house within the boundary of Ashdown Forest in the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Set within a clearing on the edge of the forest, the house was originally constructed in the early 20th Century as a brick works, one of a series of industrial buildings established to exploit the surrounding clay formations.
In order to preserve the character of the existing dwelling and the openness of the setting, the new single storey extension is cut into a raised bank to the east of the house and largely buried below the existing ground level with an intensive green roof making it practically invisible from the surrounding landscape. The existing rear terrace has been internalising to create a courtyard with a new wing providing additional bedrooms, an office, and studio space, naturally lit by a light well to the rear. The house and extension are linked by a gently ramped curved loggia which follows the outline of the overhanging tree canopy, whilst at the south a curved canopy encloses the courtyard. The proposed palette of materials, including a combination of natural and stained timber cladding and solid timber doors and windows, has been selected to ensure that the new extension beds gracefully into the surrounding landscape and sits quietly alongside the existing house. The courtyard is lined with a combination of natural cedar shingles and butt-jointed vertical boards which will be allowed to naturally weather creating a warm tone to the enclosure which is viewed as an outdoor room and an extension of the existing terrace which wraps around the house. Above this, the parapet is lined with black-stained cedar boards, creating a datum which demarcates the transition between sunken ground floor and roof (the black cladding on the existing gables being retained). A new language of natural timber fins has been used selectively in the new extension and the dormer window creating some commonality between the house and the extension and providing depth, shadow, and rhythm on the facades whilst avoiding larger areas of continuous glazing which would not be in-keeping with the original architecture. 
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