Modern Barn

The site is a sloped plot above the south-west coast, replacing an older house. The brief asked for a three-bedroom home for two — somewhere they could sit out for the long evenings, but with sheltered rooms for the rougher months — and a sense that the buildings belonged to the hill rather than sat on it.

The plan is three single-storey volumes arranged along the contour: bedrooms in one, a study and utility in another, and a long shared living, kitchen and dining room in the third. The volumes step apart so each room has its own door to the terrace and the garden runs between them.

Outside is untreated larch, which weathers to a silvery grey, on a base of locally sourced limestone. Inside, the same timber lines the walls and runs across the ceiling, so the rooms feel held. A bamboo yurt at the bottom of the garden gives guests somewhere to sleep under the stars.