reuniting two townhouses to reveal a light-filled 


Tiam Architects has reunited two early-19th- century townhouses in Belgravia, London,   Following an intensive design process, the project  and stringent conservation-area constraints to 


When a young family acquired neighbouring 19th-century townhouses on the prestigious Chester Row, they imagined a single, sprawling home that would honour the elegance of the past yet speak fluently to contemporary life. Instead, they found two cramped and disparate shells: narrow corridors, dark living rooms, and a half-forgotten labyrinth-like lower-ground floor lurking in gloom. Strict conservation and estate freeholder regulations forbade a heavy-handed revamp. Tiam Architects delivered on the client’s vision to unify and rationalise the layout of the house with a deft touch. From the moment Tiam stepped inside, they saw the potential for light where others saw limitations. The 19th-century fibrous cornices, fireplaces and sash windows, the very features that made these townhouses special, were reframed as protagonists, not obstacles. Behind their dignified stucco façades lay the opportunity to weave together old and new, to stitch a seamless narrative through five levels of living. At the heart of Tiam’s intervention is a deceptively simple gesture:


carve open the rear and dig downwards, whilst respecting the wider historical context. Through the inventive and calculated use of roofl ights, Tiam have been able to draw natural light vertically through the building, avoiding any privacy issues from neighbouring properties. Where once the lower-ground felt warren-like, there now sits an open-plan kitchen and family lounge that spills onto a planted terrace through full-height sliding glass doors. Polished micro cement floors flow unbroken beneath the kitchen island; beyond, white oak stair treads glow softly under the skylight’s wash.


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