Visit a Peckham house like no other

Post-war British architecture comes in all shapes and sizes, but many of the modern homes of the period have a certain austerity that suits the current mood. What is less welcome, however, is the build and material quality of the time, none of which makes for a comfortable – or efficient – modern home.

Rear facade of the Peckham house conversion by Sandy Rendel Architects — The new garden facade is protected by a roof

The Case of a New Peckham House

These were the problems Luke Pearson faced when he bought a three-storey terraced house in Peckham, in the south of the country. London. The understated but handsome 1953 building was the kind of property that was often overlooked in an area best known for its Victorian and Georgian housing stock.

Acquiring not just one but two properties on the terrace presented a huge opportunity. Without detracting from the simple, austere facade (“it’s very unassuming on the street,” he notes), Pearson wanted to open up the rear to create one large living room opening onto a large south-facing garden (designed, it points out Pearson, without input from his brother Dan, an esteemed landscape designer).

Pearson came into contact with the award-winning work through the Sandy Rendel Architects website Slothuisa small infill building next to Rendel’s own family home, just a few hundred meters away. Nominated for the RIBA House of the Year 2021The meticulous construction and packaging drew on Pearson’s product design experience. ‘It was a small space, but very much appreciated. I could see that he was an architect interested in details and precision.’

As co-founder of Pearson LloydPearson’s experience extends from design Lufthansa Business Class seats Unpleasant office furniturebut also interiors Virginal travels and other places where limited space was a driving force behind the design. “The idea of furnishing a small space very well felt very natural,” the designer admits.

Subtle colored skylights add detail to the new living space

“The plan was always to separate (the two properties) in the future,” says Pearson, explaining how the services and structure are set up to make a subdivision as painless as possible. “I thought it would be more interesting to think of it as a temporary intervention,” he adds.

For Rendel it was almost a novelty to find a client who was not looking for a big spatial statement. “Most people’s expectations are different,” he says, “(Luke) felt even more comfortable with things like a smaller bathroom and kitchen.”

Considering future demands, it was, in Rendel’s words, about creating a ‘series of fun, thoughtful moments’. The modest galley kitchen, which overlooks the street, is exactly as large as necessary, allowing, for example, a downstairs toilet to be placed in the hallway. The kitchen opens onto the L-shaped living room with glass wall and triumvirate of subtly colored skylights.

The new double-wide living space

(Image credit: Percy Weston)

There is also an office space and guest room on this floor, with a new staircase serving as a hub around which the rooms are arranged. The new staircase, made of oak and folded blue steel, ultimately resembled a three-dimensional puzzle connecting the three floors of the house.

“I’ve always loved ships and I wanted a steel staircase (nautical style) so it could be thinner,” says Pearson. “It was a very collaborative process.” He continues: ‘In product design you literally touch everything; architecture, on the other hand, has a spatial element. But they have to work together; for example, all our products must fit into spaces.’

The galley kitchen leads to the L-shaped living space with the garden behind it

(Image credit: Percy Weston)

Throughout the process, Pearson was very hands-on, but not in a way that would make an architect tremble. His interest in compact spaces and familiarity with prototyping meant that many rooms were recreated at full size using wooden frames and cardboard ‘walls’ to get a sense of the space. “As an industrial designer, I don’t want to do the architecture,” he admits, “but I wanted the same quality as the Castle House, which is such an artisanal private space, a bit like a Japanese house.”

The project presented plenty of challenges. “We always like a good assignment, instead of a blank canvas,” says Rendel. ‘You want limitations so that you get structure.’

The new stairs on the landing of the first floor

(Image credit: Percy Weston)

An example of the collaborative nature of the project were the rain chains that drain the flat roof of the rear building. “They don’t always work brilliantly,” says Rendel, “but Luke has prototyped a number of different spouts to make them work more efficiently. He also determined a large part of the spatial planning.’

Pearson loved being a client who could spar creatively with his architect. ‘It was exactly what I wanted,’ he says, ‘someone who could say ‘yes…but’. I really think it’s a much better house because there are a lot of voices involved.”

Detail design of kitchen cabinet

(Image credit: Percy Weston)

Upstairs, the site at the end of the terrace was exploited by extending the first floor over the side exit, creating a generous landing leading to a bathroom and two large bedrooms, one at the front of the house and one at the rear. The extra space was extremely welcome.

“Normally you have to put in a lot of effort just to get some storage space in the closet,” says Rendel. The third floor accommodation consists of a bedroom and bathroom, with far reaching views over South London.

The new oak and steel stairs

(Image credit: Percy Weston)

The upper floors of the second house are furnished as an independent apartment with its own entrance; It is only the ground floor that benefits from the double width.

The large living room offered other possibilities, not least because of its lighting. Next to Louis Poulsen With lighting fixtures and a long, low storage bench, the space is by no means confining, but can be used in many different ways. The three skylights are subtly angled to catch the sun, especially when it is lower in the sky in winter. The color choices, soft lemon yellow, orange and magenta, are so subtle that they are almost unnoticeable in certain lighting conditions.

Subtle paint colors in the skylight openings change tone throughout the day

(Image credit: Percy Weston)

That sense of conversation also extended to materials. “For example, the rear extension was originally going to be built using specialist architectural stones,” says Rendel, explaining that Pearson’s late father instead encouraged him to celebrate the original. ‘So we have the standard cheap post-war brick, which you would normally never use for a job nowadays.’

The two notable extravagances are the staircase and the large glazing to the rear, both of which are fundamental to the feel of the space. The lengthy construction process, hampered by Covid but also aided by Rendel who lives down the street, is not yet 100 percent complete, but you get the feeling that this is a space that will be tinkered with forever.

The diagonal floorboards add another layer of intrigue to the space

The diagonal floorboards add an extra layer of intrigue and dynamism to the space

(Image credit: Percy Weston)

Rendel founded his studio in 2010 after working with James Gorst and Tony Fretton. Recent projects include a barn conversion in West Sussex and a new country house in the South Downs; the latter is shortlisted for the 2024 Manser Medal.

SandyRendel.com

PearsonLloyd.com