Not just a house

The Dutch Barn is an architectural stallion: a zinc clad, curved roof, new build home with oversized one-and-a-half -floor doors, inspired by the agricultural buildings on the stud farm that sold the land. 

The clients consider themselves custodians rather than owners, and say it’s “not just a house”. 

The challenge was to create a garden that settled this house into its surroundings. I needed to provide a softer space that the owners could interact with and enjoy, without competing with the bold architecture.

​

The design features an extended wildflower meadow, and is threaded through with an undulating metal sculpture that dips into and back up from the ground, leading you around the garden.