Dezeen Magazine

Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects

Red pyramidal rooms form Henning Stummel's London home

A cluster of red metal-clad volumes are arranged around a secluded courtyard at Henning Stummel's self-designed home in west London.

The Tin House is squeezed onto a plot surrounded and overlooked by traditional terraced houses in Shepherd's Bush. It was designed by Henning Stummel as a new home for his family, with a studio for his practice located in a separate brick gateway building.

Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects

When Stummel purchased the former car-breaker's yard at auction, it had planning permission for a flat-roofed bungalow in the centre of the plot, surrounded by a two-metre-wide garden.

Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects

The architect developed an alternative design that inverted the proposed layout and positioned the buildings around a cobbled courtyard, lending the house a sense of privacy and seclusion despite its densely populated context.

Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects

"The ambition was to create a tranquil and private place in a bustling part of London," Stummel told Dezeen.

"We broke the brief into its elements, so each main room is within a mini house with pyramidal roof," he added. "This allowed us to define our own courtyard and to minimise impact on neighbours. A taller building in this urban location would have been very controversial."

Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects

Russet steel cladding with raised seams applied to all the walls and roofs of the six interconnected blocks helps to create aesthetic cohesion between the structures, which each have unique dimensions.

Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects

The metal's warm tone was chosen to complement the natural hue of the surrounding London brick.

A shallow pool along one edge of the courtyard helps generate natural cooling by producing condensation, and creates reflections that play across the building's facades when the sun shines on it.

Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects

The pods each contain an individual room, while gaps between accommodate services including the toilets and stairs.

"As one moves through the building the layout gives a changing enfilade of vistas and views," said Stummel, "the geometric forms accentuated by the simple utilitarian finishes."

Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects

Directly in front of the entrance is a garage, with the rest of the pods containing bedrooms, an entrance hall, a living room and a kitchen and dining room. Two further bedrooms are situated above one of the ground-floor bedrooms and the adjacent garage.

Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects

Skylights at the apex of each irregular pitched ceiling direct daylight into the rooms. The interiors feature pale rendered surfaces that enhance the brightness of the spaces, with rich red-orange walls and cabinetry complementing the external cladding.

Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects

A wood-burning stove in the living room is accommodated in a recess surrounded by brick that references the materiality of the entrance gate and the fabric of the surrounding streetscape.

Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects

The house was named on the longlist for the RIBA's House of the Year 2016 award, with the winner set to be announced on 15 December 2016.

Photography is by Timothy Soar.

More images and plans

Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Site plan
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Ground floor plan
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
First floor plan
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Section one
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Section two
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Section three
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Section four
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Section five
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Section six
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects
Tin House by Henning Stummel Architects