Although Dublin-based Boyd Cody Architects is a firm generally better known for its work on urban projects, it was for two rural homes in counties Kilkenny and Clare that it was recognised in the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland architecture awards this year.
Bleach Road, outside Kilkenny, was named Best House of the Year — Leinster, and Teeroneer in Clare was crowned Best House of the Year — Munster.
While the two projects are different in many ways, there are similarities — not least of which is that they are both reimaginings of older properties, marrying character-filled structures with sleek, contemporary creations.
Teeroneer is built on the site of an old farm settlement in Co Clare, which its owner had inherited in 1999. The property was in ruins, consisting only of a free-standing gable, a low retaining wall and a derelict barn. After a couple of failed planning applications, the owner got the go-ahead in 2010 for a new two-storey house. It was completed early this year.
The new house rises from the footprint of the old dwelling, bookended by a large beech tree and an oak tree. The gable was secured, the wall extended and the barn repaired using stone from the original structures, which had been disposed of in the nearby lake. There is a sheltered, west-facing undercroft (the crypt of a church) at ground floor level, and a generous terrace beneath the overhanging crown of the tree above.
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While discreet from a distance, Teeroneer is striking at close quarters — most notably because of its sunken kitchen, which uses floor space as work space.
The siting of the build was hugely important, says Peter Cody, a partner at Boyd Cody. “When you’re standing in the field above Teeroneer, it looks like a single-storey building,” he says.
The same went for the property at Bleach Road, which overlooks the river Nore in Kilkenny. There was already a thatched cottage on the site, but at just 95 sq m, the owners needed more space. They wanted to add a 215 sq m split-level, two-storey building to the rear, but there was a catch: one of the planning conditions was that no part of the new build would rise above the ridge of the cottage, which is a listed building.
The owner of Bleach Road bought the cottage as a ruin about 20 years ago. A thatcher by trade, and always interested in vernacular buildings and architecture, he set about completely refurbishing it. When he, his wife and their daughter outgrew the cottage, they chose to expand.
The most important consideration when planning the project was that they retained the view over the river Nore. They wanted a free-flowing house rather than individual rooms, and they wanted it to be warm and cosy. Boyd Cody went for simplicity with its materials, which are chiefly concrete, timber and handmade brick.
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The new building is set into the raised ground to the rear of the cottage such that the upper floor relates to the established garden level to the north and east. All the main living space is upstairs, while the bedrooms, a study, entrance area and utility room are downstairs.
Given the discreet nature of both buildings, the architects had to take extra steps to ensure enough light would flood into them. At Bleach Road, this was done via a series of small courtyards attached to the bedrooms at the lower level. At Teeroneer, meanwhile, all the bedrooms have a terrace and large windows.
Also common to the projects was the widespread use of wood. “In both cases, it was because of the context,” explains Cody. “Teeroneer is in a rural, woodland setting and we wanted an alternative material to use alongside the stonework.
“At Bleach Road, we wanted to work with something that would be sympathetic to the existing thatched cottage, and the client also wanted to use wood, which ages very well.”
Cody says the awards are a recognition of the clients as much as the architects.
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“It was their vision as much as it was ours; they had an ambition to build something of quality and they were prepared to work with an architect to do so. It’s important to acknowledge that.”