Bottle Farm

The design hinged around providing a proposed, clear entrance to the site and a principle of ‘front’ and ‘rear’ to a confusing existing condition. This new found clarity upon arrival provided the opportunity for split level living around a central communal kitchen/living space.

Set within the North Kent Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, the materiality helps settle the building in the exposed rugged rural landscape. A Kent brick wall at ground level allows the building to feel domestic and contextual, while refined timber detailing at first floor level disguises what is a large footprint, providing private bedrooms. Massing studies defined the profile of the building and how proposed levels set within the surrounding landscape would help to provide a natural buffer.

Externally a series of protected gardens allow the family to connect with the outside with a hidden courtyard garden utilising the architecture to provide much needed shelter from the prevailing wind.

The project overall provides a large contemporary space for a growing family to settle within the area while challenging the concept of building in the rural countryside.

Project Team: Tim Hare, Karl Bowers, Geoff Pomeroy