design + energy + excellence

Category: Conservation (Page 4 of 4)

Phase 1 at Brandon House Hotel Nears Completion

The original building of the Brandon House Hotel is a Protected Structure built between 1841-1874 and located in New Ross, Co. Wexford, Ireland. The property has been maintained reasonably well but many inadequate repairs have failed to resolve the problems. Isabel Barros Architects was appointed to assess the condition of the building envelope and provide recommendations and alternative solutions to repair and conserve the building.

The recommendations were consistent with the Burra Charter guidance. The Burra Charter is widely accepted as the standard for heritage conservation practice. Good conservation practices aim to promote minimum intervention into the historic fabric of a structure. Conservation works should do as much as necessary, yet as little as possible to the structure to ensure its future.

 

 

14.83_Progress Photos Chimney 1

 

14.83_Progress Photos Chimney 2

 

Isabel Barros Architects has also prepared Specifications for the emergency Works and administered the contract for Phase 1 of the Works.

 

The works involve replacing extensively eroded bricks with matching bricks, repairing minor erosion to bricks with colour matched lime mortar, removing cement mortar joints and cement renders, repointing joints with lime mortar, replacing chimney flashings and treating timber elements. Protum was commissioned to carry out the works.

 

 

 

Extension to House Over 100 years Old in New Ross, Wexford

Note: This post was previously titled ‘Extension to 1950’s House in New Ross, Wexford – SketchUp Animation’. During works we discovered the walls were not what we expected and some investigation confirmed the original house was built between 1888-1913! (The owners were not aware of this.)

We feel that our proposal is like the missing piece to complete this house puzzle.

14.75_Existing_and_Proposal

 

The original house used to be a Council house and it was built in the 1950s. The owners had already built different extensions to the house but they left a big problem unsolved: the entrance and the circulation and flow of space within the house.

They approached us to get a bigger kitchen more suitable to their lifestyle. We listened and we were sensitive to all energies we could capture. We proposed a holistic approach that embraced the existing house, respecting it and making the all space a much better place to live in.

We like to think the new entrance works like the “spinal column” of the house, supporting it, organizing it and allowing the spaces to flow naturally from there.

From the entrance a new wall – the “shoulders” – is built to hold the two new extensions – the “arms” – that will hug and embrace the existing house respecting it in a complacent manner.

 

 

We felt the existing black and white palette needed a different material/texture to make it more interesting and with a warmer feeling. We propose to cover the two “arms” with timber cladding. This is a type of cladding found elsewhere on this site and it has the beauty of being a natural and environmentally friendly material that easily blends with the landscape.

Working with an existing house with a number of (more recent) extensions is always a challenge. We are often restricted by a number of factors and it requires years of experience to turn them around in our favour. We are delighted with the result and we cannot wait to see it built.

See what our clients had to say:

14.75_R Collins Comment 1 14.75_R Collins Comment 2

 

See more animations here.

 

Do you have a similar project? Talk to us today!

 

As featured in the journal.ie

 

Newer posts »