Tucked away in a suburban garden in Uxbridge, west London, a residential annexe nestles into its context, offering both privacy and connection. Designed by architecture studio Bureau de Change, Uxbridge Bower is built to be lively and expressive, taking on at the same time, a contemporary and functional, geometric form.
Uxbridge Bower, west London
The client requested discrete living quarters for one-half of the couple's mother to stay in, when they visit from their native Greece. The resulting single-storey 30 sqm pavilion allows for effortless intergenerational living when the family's three generations are united in London.
The annexe’s compact design accommodates the height and mass planning restrictions within the area. The architecture studio made the most of each square metre of the plot, making sure to create a comfortable, open space. Their aim was to avoid the feeling of being cramped.
A bedroom faces onto the garden, which is connected to a private ensuite bathroom. Taking in the greenery, the pavilion still ensures privacy, keeping away from the garden storage at the rear, evoking a quirky urban retreat.
The build's hexagonal plan was born of a strategy centred on ‘minimising the mass of the pavilion while creating heightened drama.’ Columns frame the elevation, which creates a seamless, flowing line. Glazed panels are fitted with sliding doors, allowing for easy access into the garden, and veranda.
The design nods to the 20th century's Art Deco movement, featuring abstract geometric shapes and bright colours. Decorative panels enliven the entrances, featuring hammered terrazzo - the same type that lines the veranda floor. However, the interior palette of this Uxbridge annexe is warm and natural. The ochre paint on the underside of the ceiling gives an organic and cosy feel to the space throughout the seasons.
-
Our Tech Editor's selection of new and upgraded audio players covers the full spectrum of formatsWhether it’s vinyl, cassette, CD or mp3, or even sound sources you’ve captured yourself, you’ll find a suitable device in this round-up of pocketable and portable audio players
-
This Swedish summer house is a family's serene retreat by the trees and the Baltic seaHorsö, a Swedish summer house by Atelier Alba is a playfully elegant retreat by the Kalmarsund Sea and a natural reserve
-
A new exhibition retraces 50 years of Pierre Paulin’s history around the table‘Les Tables de Pierre Paulin’ shows a lesser-known side of the designer’s creative world, accompanied by a new book tracing his wife’s hospitality around his iconic table designs. ‘A creator is never alone in his creation…’
-
The Museum of Shakespeare set to open in east LondonThe Museum of Shakespeare puts the remains of the ancient Curtain Playhouse at the centre of 'The Stage', a new urban development in the heart of Shoreditch
-
Paddington Square transforms its patch of central London with its 'elevated cube'Paddington Square by Renzo Piano Building Workshop has been completed, elevating a busy London site through sustainability, modern workspace and a plaza
-
Architectural Association's newest show uncovers the architectural legacies of rural China's lost generationThe Architectural Association’s ‘Ripple Ripple Rippling’ is not your typical architecture show, taking an anthropological look at the flux between rural and urban, and bringing a part of China to Bedford Square in London
-
This unassuming London house is a radical rethinking of the suburban homeStation Lodge by architect Andrei Saltykov in South West London offers a radical subversion to regional residential architecture
-
Join our tour of London Zoo, its modernist architecture and moreLondon Zoo is a well-established magnet for younger visitors, but there's plenty for the architecture enthusiast to admire too; our tour explores its modernist treasures for guests of all ages
-
Load into this reimagined Fortnite cityscape, courtesy of Zaha Hadid ArchitectsA collaboration between Epic Games and ZHA, Re:Imagine London brings the architects’ modular forms into one of the world’s most popular multiplayer games
-
Elemental House adds a Danish twist to a 1970s London houseArchmongers' Elemental House transforms a 1970s terraced house in London's Hackney into a functional, light-filled, Scandinavian-inspired family home
-
East London's disused gasholders are being reinventedRegent's View by RSHP reinvents a pair of disused gasholders in east London as contemporary residential space and a publically accessible park
