Tuckey Design Studio has skilfully reworked a converted chapel in South Devon, giving the simple masonry and timber structure a new lease of life.
Tuckey Design Studio (formerly Jonathan Tuckey Design) has reworked a converted chapel in South Devon, creating a spacious and light-filled family home. Located on 520-square-metre plot in an area of outstanding natural beauty, the chapel was built in the first half of the 20th century, before being converted into a dwelling in the 1970s. There followed a series of unremarkable interventions in the 1990s.
The architect’s main aims were to uncover the character of the original building and create more appropriate and characterful spaces for family life. Earlier interventions have been removed and the former north entrance has been transformed into the main stair hall, improving circulation between the ground-floor bedrooms and first-floor living spaces.
“The clients approached the studio with the ambition of re-appropriating the converted chapel into a series of generous living spaces that would accommodate their permanent family home,” said Jonathan Tuckey, director, Tuckey Design Studio, speaking to Architecture Today. “The proposal sought to remove a series of clumsy interventions added in the 90s that had no architectural value and covered the chapel’s raw elemental beauty.Â
“Work began by scratching away at the surface of paint and plasterboard to uncover the honesty of the original building. The clients sensibilities very much aligned with our own; of utilising and restoring what the building had to offer rather than demolition or wholesale alterations. The outcome is a building that is perfectly equipped for its new domestic use whilst being confidently distinct and proud of its historic use.”
A single-storey extension, sited between the south-west corner of the chapel and the stone boundary wall, houses a small study, bathroom and utility area. A roof terrace above the extension is accessible externally and from the first floor. The bedrooms open onto calm and well-planted patio spaces, while niches set within the plastered walls increase storage capacity. The material palette is simple and includes timber floors, white-painted walls and exposed floor joists.
Lime plasters and paints enhance the building fabric’s breathability, improving the air quality inside as well. Hard landscaping features outside have been removed to mitigate rainwater runoff (rainwater is also now recycled and collected in tanks for use on site), while drought resistant planting has been employed to maintain a verdant landscape during the summer.
“The implemented ‘new’ material palette originated from a local reclamation yard – kitchen worktop, shutters, tiled staircase, ceiling timber boards, ground floor joinery,” added Tuckey. “The building is landlocked and suffered from minimal natural light suitable for a home. We opened the building up on two sides adding additional windows, a courtyard and a subtle glazed ground floor extension. These factors contribute to all rooms being naturally lit and cross ventilated.”
“The scheme future proofs the building’s new-found guise as a home, with open plan configuration and multifunctional rooms adapting to the needs of family life. Remnants of the past (floorboards, windows, stone gables) are a reminder of what came before and are paired with contemporary motifs, such as decorative niches and eccentric ‘nougat’ terracotta stairwell.”
The open-plan first floor comprises a living room, dining area and kitchen. An additional ensuite bedroom has been added in the attic space. This takes the form of a timber box inserted above the kitchen and behind an arched stone wall, and is reminiscent of a choir/pulpit structure.
“The nave is now a spacious open plan living area, revolving around a central wood burning stove, with slender arched windows framing the coastal topography beyond,” continued Tuckey. “Reclaimed timber boards line the stripped-back ceiling, intermittently broken by restored rhythmic joists accentuating the drama of the pitched eaves. Levitating above the kitchen is a plywood insertion housing an additional bedroom and study space which can be reached from a new stairwell wending its way between a re-pointed stone gable.”
“Downstairs the crypt has been extended to accommodate generous south-facing bedrooms that overlook a sloping garden and intimate courtyard. Recurring niches have been recessed into the existing stone walls, housing subtle light fixtures.”
Additional Images
