Devon Vista House

The dwelling is an early 19th century Georgian house set within an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The property comes with a substantial area of land, much of it steeply sloped. There is also a stream running through the site and down towards a cove. The house sits along the northern edge of the site and there is a small walled kitchen garden plus a larger walled garden with views towards the sea.

YSA have been asked to refurbish the main building and outbuildings plus design the addition of a small single storey rear extension to the main building. The work includes the insertion of additional windows, the removal of unsympathetic additions and upgrading the fabric to current building regulations. The proposed development also includes inserting a new driveway plus the rebuilding and alterations to some of the existing Devon stone garden walls.

External works include the walled garden and terracing the approach to the house to give a more sculptural effect to the tabula rasa of the Georgian sensibility.

We designed a new stair linking the front and side gardens. This new stair is conceived as another metal structure inserted into the corner of the extended lower terrace. It has a secondary language of stone steps that are partially set into the ground at the front.

The design lowers the walls to the north of the house forming the rear courtyard. Reducing the height of the walls alleviates the wind pressure on these walls and lessens potential structural issues over time.

The design intent inserts new openings and adapts other existing openings to suit the proposed layout. The proposals draw on the dramatic surrounding landscape. The new exterior interventions are conceived as metal objects, unifying the new additions, and creating an architectural language that is sympathetic to the existing stone structure. The desire is to preserve a rural aesthetic through the use of metal. Planning was achieved on this challenging site with a sensitive approach, careful attention to detail, and use of materials.

The extension is conceived as a metal clad object that nestles between the existing stone walls. It is proposed to insert metal reveals into some of the existing stone openings, highlighting the openings that lead through to the rear entrance lobby and front door. These openings include metal canopies or simply lined openings. The steps associated with these openings also become part of the metal aesthetic, formed from folded metal plates connected to the projecting reveals.

Our design of the interiors references the colour palettes and materials of the surrounding landscape. While corten steel was specified to pick up the streaks of iron found within the strata of the Devon stone, stone and timber are used throughout the house to celebrate the abundance of nature.

YSA harnessed light deep into the plan through the use of a large rooflight above the main stair that floods natural light to the ground floor below.