Behind its fairly typical brick Victorian façade, this house in Primrose Hill, north London, conceals a world of wonders. Designed by Jamie Fobert Architects, the newly completed project, a family home for a private client, balances a discreet, street-facing frontage with a distinctly contemporary interior of minimalist architecture and subtle spatial luxury inside.
Stepping inside from the front door, which does not distinguish itself from the rest on the quiet residential street, a modern interior unfolds, hidden inside the Victorian skin. Two original levels were matched by two new underground floors that add square footage to the period home. A flowing plan, openness and generosity of volume were prioritised in order to transform the historical spaces into a new architecture that, while respectful of its origins, is now fit for the 21st century and the client’s needs.
Jamie Fobert’s House in Primrose Hill
The new material palette also works to that effect, comprising Petersen bricks (used for the added volumes on the side and back of the property), in-situ concrete, travertine and Pietra Piasentina stone, walnut wood joinery, and various steel and bronze fittings, details and ironmongery. Large openings towards the garden, skylights and deep shafts help bring light to even the lowest level, making for atmospheric spaces, such as the underground swimming pool.
The project was a real, holistic labour of love for the architecture team. ‘The clients engaged us as architects to design so much more than just the shell of the building: we designed the kitchen, the joinery, a whole set of light fittings, and even their dining table in black steel. It is rare to be able to work so closely with a family to create something very specific to their needs with this breadth of exploration,’ they say, highlighting how bespoke details and products elevate this domestic design.
Fobert, who leads an award-winning, boutique practice in east London, has built a strong reputation for crafting impressive, gently luxurious homes, alongside arts commissions such as the prestigious Tate St Ives in Cornwall and Kettle’s Yard in Cambridge. The House in Primrose Hill is the latest in a list of residences by his practice that bridges spatial luxury and urban plots, giving us house envy every time.
INFORMATION
-
Designer Marta de la Rica’s elegant Madrid studio is full of perfectly-pitched contradictionsThe studio, or ‘the laboratory’ as de la Rica and her team call it, plays with colour, texture and scale in eminently rewarding ways
-
‘Nothing just because it’s beautiful’: Performance artist Marina Abramović on turning her hand to furniture designMarina Abramović has no qualms about describing her segue into design as a ‘domestication’. But, argues the ‘grandmother of performance art’ as she unveils a collection of chairs, something doesn’t have to be provocative to be meaningful
-
A local’s guide to Los Angeles by defiant artist Fawn RogersOregon-born, LA-based artist Fawn Rogers gives us a personal tour of her adopted city as it hosts its sixth edition of Frieze
-
A Danish twist, compact architecture, and engineering magic: the Don’t Move, Improve 2025 winners are hereDon’t Move, Improve 2025 announces its winners, revealing the residential projects that are rethinking London living
-
This Hampstead house renovation in London transcends styles and periodsThe renovation of a Hampstead house in London by Belgian architect Hans Verstuyft bridges the classic and the contemporary
-
London’s Sloane Street has been transformed into a ‘green boulevard’Iconic shopping destination Sloane Street has had a facelift, now boasting wider pavements, enhanced seating and lighting, and a massive planting scheme
-
New book takes you inside Frinton Park Estate: the Essex modernist housing scheme‘Frinton Park Estate’, a new book by photographer James Weston, delves into the history of a modernist housing scheme in Essex, England
-
Conran Building's refresh brings a beloved London landmark into the 21st centuryConran Building at 22 Shad Thames has been given a new lease of life by Squire & Partners, which has rethought the London classic, originally designed by Hopkins, for the 21st century
-
Inside Powerhouse: The redevelopment of Lots Road Power Station, which once fuelled the London UndergroundThe twin-turreted building has followed in the footsteps of Battersea Power Station, being transformed into luxury homes and retail units
-
Sadler’s Wells East opens: ‘grand, unassuming and beautifully utilitarian’Sadler’s Wells East by O’Donnell and Tuomey opens this week, showing off its angular brick forms in London
-
2025 Serpentine Pavilion: this year's architect, Marina Tabassum, explains her designThe 2025 Serpentine Pavilion design by Marina Tabassum is unveiled; the Bangladeshi architect talks to us about the commission, vision, and the notion of time
