Zac Monro Architects has designed Brut House in London, England.

This project is the story of a family who had outgrown their ex-council home in South London left with no choice but to take 'drastic' action – either by moving away from their friends and community, or undertaking their own self-build project. They chose the latter.

Sitting between a Victorian terrace and a 1960s ex-council terrace – with the resultant planning restrictions – the slope of the site meant that for this sustainable self-build, the only way was down.

A brutalist approach was taken, honestly expressing the mass required for the underpinning retaining walls to carve the space out of the earth – concrete being exposed with all its defects inside and out. The rest of the structure is a super-insulated airtight timber frame, clad in timber.

"Hidden amongst facing varying garden spaces, we like to call it urban-rural," said Zac Monro Architects.

This project has been longlisted in the urban house category of Dezeen Awards 2022.

Designer: Zac Monro Architects

Project: Brut House