Cover Story
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“I tried to use materials that are common in the area.”
obviously you can build slightly bigger container homes to house families if
you so wish,’’ added Mr Bradley.
Two of the metal boxes extend from the entrance at the end of a gravel
lane. They both sit on top of the other pair of containers, which nestle in a
perpendicular orientation in the lee of a gentle slope.
The upper level cantilevers over the lower storey, culminating in a balcony
surrounded by steel fins that protect the interior from unwanted solar gain.
The stacked formation of the metal boxes also creates space on top of the
lower portion for a terrace, surrounded by a glass balustrade and connected
to the garden below by a minimal metal staircase.
“Even though it’s a house made out of containers I didn’t really want it to
look like a house or like an idea of a farm building. I actually wanted it to act
like a sculpture in the landscape but still blend in with its surroundings,’’ he
explained.
To ensure the building compliments the forms and colours found in the
local area, the containers on the upper level are clad in grey powder-coated
expanded metal sheets, while the lower portion is covered in panels of prerusted Corten steel.
“This is a very rural part of Northern Ireland so I tried to use materials that
are common in the area. The grey colour is similar to many of the agricultural
buildings around here and the Corten steel cladding was used to blend in with
the landscape and the rock that was already on the site.”
To make the containers habitable, they were insulated and weatherproofed
to prevent the build-up of condensation that could cause the metal surfaces
to rust.
The entrance on the upper level opens into a corridor. This leads past a
galley kitchen to an open-plan living and dining area, which looks out across
Bradley’s farm through full-height windows.
A staircase between the kitchen and living space descends to the lower
floor, where a window frames a view of the rocky earth.
“The way the house is designed with two levels creates an open space on the
top floor that makes the most of the views and then the lower two containers
provide a more private and intimate space,” the architect said. “The idea was
to create a completely different atmosphere between the two levels.”
Unlike any other house that has ever been designed and constructed within
Northern Ireland, Patrick’s house takes a completely new approach to rural
architecture in the Irish countryside. With the concept and appreciation of
agricultural buildings dotted throughout the rural landscape, the house is a
refreshing approach to contemporary 21st Century Irish Architecture.
On approach to the house you travel on a gravel laneway with dry stone
walling to both sides which separates the site boundary and surrounding
agricultural fields. At the end of access sits the house and with the smallest
elevation you find only the primary entrance door in bold orange with a
minimal cantilevered porch above.
The primary entrance to the house is located at the upper floor on the north
side of the site, which leads you through a small entrance ga \