Scotland

Woodbank Cottage is a work of art

Woodbank Cottage

EIGHTYSEVEN Architecture’s innovative design has won them a nod at the Aberdeenshire Design Awards,

David Vila Domini and Conrad Wiedermann started EIGHTYSEVEN Architecture some years ago to complement their teaching in Architecture at the Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen and are very pleased that their work on the beautiful Woodbank Cottage in Crathes has been nominated for an award in both the Sustainability and Conservation categories.

The £95,000 contract saw the architects convert the former coach house into an attractive home and artist studio.

Woodbank Cottage

Speaking of his delight at being nominated for such a prestigious award Conrad Wiedermann, commented:

“We’re very happy that the project has been nominated and we will keep our fingers crossed until the judges come to visit.

“It was a pleasure to work with our client, print artist Nicola Chambury, and through this very close working relationship we were able to design a building that respects the old structure whilst serving her particular needs.”

Woodbank Cottage was built as a humble but well proportioned coach house at the turn of the last century and as a result, EIGHTYSEVEN Architecture sought to maintain a traditional exterior materials palette including the local granite walling, slate and timber. The timber windows have been replaced, whilst large sliding doors have been installed in the place of the previous opening for the coach house.

Woodbank Cottage

The ground floor houses the printing workshop, exhibition space and a small shower room. Upstairs, the building has a gallery space that is currently used as a study, along with a spacious bedroom. The two floors are connected via an open void that also houses the staircase, creating diagonal views from the first floor to the ground floor.

One of the most interesting features is the treatment of the upstairs ceiling, which saw EIGHTYSEVEN Architecture raise the height and change the roof shape in order to create a vaulted ceiling that maximised the available space.

Insulation levels were significantly improved during the course of the project. Indeed, the quality of insulation is now so high that a traditional heating system is unneeded and just a single wood burning stove is sufficient to heat the entire building.

Main contractor for the project was James Fairley Design & Build.

 

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