property Infinity House
Located in the historic quarter of London’s Clerkenwell, Infinity House is an extraordinary grade II listed Georgian townhouse that has been dramatically transformed, following the demolition of a 20th century industrial workshop that covered the original garden. Planning Permission was granted for renovation, alterations, interventions and extensive additional spaces in 2012.
The clients, both internationally acclaimed artists, were very much a part of a collaborative design process established by the architects Spaced Out. The result is a design led transformation miraculously carved out from a very constrained site that substantially extends an 18th century Georgian Townhouse but remains completely masked from the street. The new spaces begin to be revealed once through the front door when the entire length of the house comes into full view. In consultation with their clients the architects defined their own ‘Clerkenwell’ palette of traditional and contemporary materials which combine to create an illusion of time, texture and space for Infinity House. The classic section of the Georgian townhouse has been seamlessly linked vertically and horizontally to new spaces. Soft reflections and floating details deliver magical transitions between the old, the new and nature. The imaginative planting of the sky gardens is visible from all the main spaces. Natural light penetrates at all levels through extensive roof and floor glazing deep into the section as far as the subterranean swimming pool and spa. The glazing alone is pushing the boundaries on the design of windows, with Hepco Motion applying their automatic sliding technology to create the UK’s widest vertical motorised sash window. This innovative glazing allows the space to be private by the switch of a button, or allows the user to see the sky from the swimming pool down in the basement, adding to the sense of sanctuary and tranquillity. Wellbeing is enhanced with smart controls and the recycling of energy making the home efficient and easy to run. Smart technology plays a critical role and here it is seamlessly combined with traditional architectural technologies within a period property. Privacy is maintained with carefully selected planting, traditional shutters as well as interactive glass interlayers. Reflections, and subtle reflections of reflections, layer the various spaces of the project combining the historic and the contemporary with one another, creating unique and provocative juxtapositions throughout. These reflections widen an elongated site, forming an illusion of infinite space. Lateral views, not provided by a terraced property, are developed with parallel and offset glazed materials applied to the party walls. This is emphasised with an internal and an external courtyard at the junction between the new and existing architecture. The Infinity House is a masterpiece that reflects the meticulous attention to planning and design detail exercised by the architects, Spaced Out, at every stage of the project, creating an exemplar on how to address and resolve the challenge presented in transforming a listed property.
www.spacedout.co.uk
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surreymagazineonline.co.uk
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