A pink extension brightens up a row of Victorian terraces in north London. Welcome to Beacon House, the latest residential completion by dynamic architects Office S&M, headed by Catrina Stewart and Hugh McEwen. The transformation brings together the practice's signature bold, architectural use of colour and the clients' love for 'municipal architecture'.
Beacon House: a pink extension hints at a colourful interior
The redesign is externally clad in handmade glazed tiles in a pink shade, which the architects picked to complement the original brick's colouring. Meanwhile, stepping inside, a bigger splash of colour awaits, especially in the living space, where a deeper, richer pink hue wraps the interior.
The kitchen, by contrast, feels lighter, featuring white and light green tones, alongside textured fabric and terrazzo surfaces. Many of those elements were created bespoke for the home, in collaboration with local artists and craftspeople.
The softness of curves in the interior treatments is another key element in the design concept – alongside the approach to colour. Many of the tailor-made design gestures were accomplished using recycled materials, which were chosen to work together with added insulation and other environmental strategies to support a home that draws on principles of sustainable architecture.
'At Office S&M we love exploring new and innovative materials and so it was such a joy to be given the opportunity to work with so many different craftspeople to develop bespoke pieces for the project,' said Office S&M founding director Stewart.
The clients, Alex Torrance and Ella Kirby, said: 'We really enjoyed working with Catrina and Office S&M. They have designed us a beautiful, colourful, joyful family home. They helped us through the design process and listened to our needs and design ideas. Office S&M reassured us throughout the more technical aspects of the project and were on hand to answer questions and offer advice when needed.'
-
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
