W11 Townhouse, Holland Park
Internal refurbishment to a Grade II listed house in Holland Park, London, W11.
Built in 1862 to the designs of master builder and architect Francis Radford, the detached house is located within the Holland Park Conservation Area in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. The house has since been split up into several smaller apartments; our proposal focuses on the ground floor and garden area.
Holland Park is situated within the former Holland Estate, which comprised the nearly 200 acres of land surrounding Holland House purchased by Henry Fox, the 1st Baron Holland, in 1768. In August 1859, shortly before the 4th Lord Holland’s death, architect brothers and master builders William and Francis Radford entered into an agreement to develop part of the park to the rear of Holland House. The result was a series of uniform detached villas of three storeys (plus basements and attics), each with coach-houses and stables to the rear. These houses were laid out over three connected streets, collectively known as Holland Park.
The apartment was in a very poor condition having been neglected for many years. Various partitions and additions had been introduced throughout the last half a century. Careful consideration was taken to retain as much of the historical architectural fabric as possible, including elements of the decorative plaster cornicing still present which will be repaired and reinstated to its original condition.
Existing poor quality internal partitions that were added by the previous occupant will be replaced to improve the spatial efficiency of the layout. The creation of two new bedrooms and bathrooms will define the rear of the home, whilst the front entrance will be opened up to create a grand vista when entering the dwelling, with full height views of the sunken private garden.
Oak panelling will dress the walls (up to a height of two-thirds) to form a continuous line throughout the home, which emphasises the generous ceiling heights and forms a contemporary picture hanging rail. The panels help protect and preserve various historic parts of the building that could otherwise have been blocked up and plastered over. The oak is fixed in sections and can be simply removed in the future if required, with minimum disturbance to the building fabric. A clean, contemporary appearance is achieved with the contrast between white ornate cornicing at high level and warmer stained oak panelling below.
