Modern Barn in Dorset is where crisp geometry meets English countryside

Modern Barn by Coffey Architects offers contemporary design and views over the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site

Modern Barn by Coffey Architects
Modern Barn by Coffey Architects
(Image credit: Phil Coffey)

The aptly named Modern Barn, is a crisp, contemporary house created to look over the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site and designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Dorset, UK. Its author, London-based studio Coffey Architects, conceived the home, a commission for a local family, as a 'sustainably crafted coastal home', which draws on its distinctive location and the region's architectural vernacular, while serving the client's 21st-century needs. 

aerial view of Modern Barn by Coffey Architects

Modern Barn by Coffey Architects

(Image credit: Phil Coffey)

Modern Barn: crisp geometry meets English countryside

The residence's design was composed as a cluster of three pitched volumes. They are all placed on a plinth, which forms the structure's foundation, sturdily made of local Blue Lias stone. Larch timber wraps the volumes, juxtaposing the solidity and rough texture of the rock with the smooth, warm feel of the wood. All volumes are across a single level, making for a low, carefully articulated mini campus set within a wider, generous, 1.8-acre site. 

side-view of Modern Barn by Coffey Architects

Modern Barn by Coffey Architects

(Image credit: Phil Coffey)

The separate volumes were not created by chance, or because of an architect's creative whim. Modern Barn's brief outlined a home that can allow for independence, and spaces where users can autonomously live, work and sleep, all at once but also separately, when needed. The spatial arrangement allows for that to happen. 

Modern Barn by Coffey Architects

Timber roof details of Modern Barn by Coffey Architects

(Image credit: Phil Coffey)

This architectural response ensures high functionality for the residents, while the carefully chosen textures mark a structure that feels entirely at home in its rural setting above the bay of Lyme Regis. Meanwhile, a series of terraces outside the main living spaces – the kitchen, living room and bedrooms – make the most of the green nature and sea vistas beyond the property's carefully curated garden. 

inside Modern Barn by Coffey Architects

Interior view from Modern Barn by Coffey Architects

(Image credit: Phil Coffey)

Practice director Phil Coffey said: 'At Modern Barn there is a seamless integration of the external pattern and interior shadows which offers a compelling experience, imbues the building with a unique identity, and fosters a genuine sense of belonging to its surroundings. With a focus on sea, sunlight and warmth of materiality, this is rich internal landscape in which to live.'

kitchen interior Modern Barn by Coffey Architects

Kitchen at Modern Barn by Coffey Architects

(Image credit: Phil Coffey)

Yurt addition to Modern Barn by Coffey Architects

Guest Yurt addition to Modern Barn

(Image credit: Phil Coffey)

Modern Barn by Coffey Architects

Modern Barn by Coffey Architects

(Image credit: Phil Coffey)

night view of Modern Barn by Coffey Architects

Modern Barn by Coffey Architects

(Image credit: Phil Coffey)

dusk view of Modern Barn by Coffey Architects

Modern Barn by Coffey Architects

(Image credit: Phil Coffey)

coffeyarchitects.com

TOPICS

Ellie Stathaki is the Architecture & Environment Director at Wallpaper*. She trained as an architect at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece and studied architectural history at the Bartlett in London. Now an established journalist, she has been a member of the Wallpaper* team since 2006, visiting buildings across the globe and interviewing leading architects such as Tadao Ando and Rem Koolhaas. Ellie has also taken part in judging panels, moderated events, curated shows and contributed in books, such as The Contemporary House (Thames & Hudson, 2018), Glenn Sestig Architecture Diary (2020) and House London (2022).

Read more
Cotswolds home
This modern Cotswolds home draws on its ancient woodland context
North Sea East Wood, a Norfolk bungalow by Hayhurst and Co
A Norfolk bungalow has been transformed through a deft sculptural remodelling
Discovery Bay House by Dekleva Gregoric Architects
On the shores of Discovery Bay, this wooden house is the ultimate waterside retreat
Cabin House by Rusafova Markulis Architects
Cabin House is a simple modernist retreat in the woods of North Carolina
tranquil interior of Catskills home
Hilltop hideaway: Colony creates tranquil interiors for a Catskills retreat
The Family Cottage by Barbora Vokac Taylor
A new lakeshore cottage in Ontario is a spectacular retreat set beneath angled zinc roofs
Latest in Architecture
Severance scene
The Eagan house from 'Severance' is available to rent
frank lloyd wright walser house chicago
Why this rare Frank Lloyd Wright house is considered one of Chicago’s ‘most endangered’ buildings
 Costa Navarino K-Studio
A Costa Navarino house peeks out from amidst olive groves to ocean views
Valeriane Lazard parisian apartment
Stay in a Parisian apartment which artfully balances minimalism and warmth
the brutalist rains headquarters in denmark
Step inside Rains’ headquarters, a streamlined hub for Danish creativity
Conrad Buff II Residence, Pasadena house
Buy a slice of California’s midcentury modern history with this 1955 Pasadena house
Latest in News
the lavery london restaurant review
At The Lavery, Anglo-Italian cooking caters to London’s design obsessive
perfume bottle archive Cristalleries de Nancy
This perfume bottle archive was nearly lost. Now, it offers a rare whiff of fragrance history
AMR-C01-R from Curv Racing Simulators
Curv teams up with a British sports car brand to create the ultimate luxury racing simulator
frida kahlo
A major Frida Kahlo exhibition is coming to the Tate Modern next year
vases PAD Paris
At PAD Paris, Omar Chakil’s new alabaster works for Galerie Gastou fuses Egyptian heritage and contemporary design
Aston Martin Vanquish Volante
Aston Martin looks set to make a bigger splash with its new Vanquish Volante