Private Client | Deeside, Scotland 2015 - 2016

Located on a steep sided natural levee overlooking the River Dee, the proposal has been designed to have the minimum impact on the public domain and the amenity of neighbouring properties while maximising the experience within the house of the beautiful south facing site. The client is a respected ecological scientist and so the impact of the design on the existing site, provenance of construction materials and approach to energy use is of paramount importance in the design.

The geometry of the pitched roof has been established with a pronounced ‘skew’; enabling a lofty interior along the centreline of the house but with an overall form that resolves to very low eaves at the diagonally opposed corners where the proposal abuts neighbouring properties. The centre of the house is anchored around a two storey granite pillar that is situated behind large areas of south facing glazing and contains the fireplace and hot water system – the granite mass forms a large passively and actively heated ‘thermal battery’ in the centre of the home.

The section steps down the slope of the levee to a drystone faced lower level containing an ensuite bedroom and private study. The drystone walls then continue to step down the slope forming garden terraces to the bank of the Dee.