Built in 1810, Redhill Barn was originally an out-farm. The original building was beautifully built and laid out as a piece of agricultural engineering, with cattle housed below and a threshing floor above. We wanted to restore the building’s character in an original way and to be very clear about what was old and new, retaining the weathered beauty of the monumental stone shell and wild agricultural setting. To preserve the striking elevations, we made no new openings, restoring the original dynamics of light and space to the building. We designed the new doors and windows so that fenestration was set back and minimised, allowing maximum light to enter. Arched pivot doors allow the wide openings that were originally made for cattle to remain undivided, yet easily handled. We designed contemporary floor and roof elements to evoke the rhythm and simplicity found in traditional agricultural framing. We then placed a number of floating ‘boxes’ across the two levels. These define and serve the principal rooms, yet allow the barn to remain open and undivided, with the rhythm of the structure and scale of the space maintained.
I am blown away. This is a piece of history, and art. By London based architecture firm TYPE. (Photos: Rory Gardiner)

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