Bonhôte House

The architects have removed an area of floor, merging basement and ground levels at the front of the house to create a double-height gallery into which a new decorative stair descends from the entrance hall. This brings natural light into the basement living space, and creates expansive walls for the display of large artworks and for the storage of valuable books.

On the upper levels, non-structural walls have been relocated to shape a range of spaces appropriate to the family’s lives. New doors and internal windows connect individual rooms while maintaining distinctions between them, offering glimpses through the house itself, and then out into the city beyond.

The bare walls are enriched with bespoke timber profiles created from the facial profiles of family members – a reinterpretation of traditional mouldings. Used as skirtings, architraves and linings, these ornamental features ensure each room is uniquely tailored to its inhabitants.