House for a Violinist

by Klas Hyllén Architecture

Client Private

Award RIBA South West and Wessex Award 2024

A gap in a terrace of Grade II listed 18th century weavers’ cottages in Bradford-on-Avon has sparked the creation of a wonderfully inventive home where modernity meets tradition in a cascade of spaces over five levels. Two adjacent three-storey houses had previously been combined, using the gap as a courtyard garden. The client, a professional violinist, bought them and commissioned the architects to remodel them into a single dwelling with space where he could play without his bow hitting the low ceilings.

A bold new intervention fills the gap, fitting in quietly with the terrace while having its own distinct character. The journey through the house is inventive and unpredictable. A dramatic new staircase made of blackened steel has been inserted to link the different levels, pulled slightly away from the walls to allow light down and expressing the height of the building.

Read the full citation from the RIBA Awards Jury on RIBA Journal.

Contractors Craft Renovations Ltd

Structural Engineer Malishev Engineers

Steel Fabricators, Internal Staircase Walcot Metal Fabrication

Gross internal area in m² 178