ampuero yutronic strips back victorian house to create bright + spacious dwelling in london

step inside the ‘Eleanor Road House’ in hackney

London-based practice Ampuero Yutronic reconfigured and extended a previously dilapidated three-story end-of-terrace Victorian house in Hackney — transforming it into a large and spacious family dwelling. Dubbed ‘Eleanor Road House,’ the project occupies a quiet residential street within the Graham Road and Mapledene Conservation Area, close to the popular green spaces of London Fields. According to the architects, previous ad-hoc alterations and additions to the existing house had created irregularly shaped rooms with disjointed connections and circulation. The size of the rooms and the impractical arrangement did not lend themselves to modern functions and the way the young family wanted to live in their home.

images © Matteo Bonotto, Ampuero Yutronic

a floor-to-floor reconfiguration by ampuero yutronic

In light of these conditions, Ampuero Yutronic (see more here) stripped the structure to a shell, creating bright and airy spaces by reconfiguring internal levels, adding new circulation routes, reinserting interior partitions, and developing external additions. The practice also reconfigured the front entrance to ‘Eleanor Road House’ to form a new hallway area with access to the main staircase and a new guest toilet. Meanwhile, the ground floor was extended to provide a single open plan floor comprising large living, dining, and kitchen spaces, while the floor level was lowered to the rear of the house, creating a seamless connection to the garden.

Additional interventions include rebuilding the previously ramshackle first-floor outrigger to the rear of the house; adjusting the internal floor level; forming a new vaulted ceiling to maximize the internal height; and lastly, opening up the loft at the front of the residence to provide additional volume to the interior, creating a double height space main bedroom.

‘Eleanor Road House’ occupies a quiet street in Hackney

using a neutral palette for a relaxed aesthetic

Materials-wise, Ampuero Yutronic opted for a neutral palette to shape a relaxed interior aesthetic for ‘Eleanor Road House. Exemplifying that approach is the subtle combination of light and dark wood joinery in the living/dining area and bedrooms, and special work on the kitchen surfaces, adding a unique character to this muted interior space. Furthermore, the new exterior additions at the back respond sensitively to the overall arrangement of the existing street. At the same time, the ground floor extension was formed in carefully composed vertical and horizontal pigmented concrete panels. Finally, a new dark metal-clad dormer roof and window completed the new additions. ‘The simple forms and subdued palette of materials add a refined yet dynamic intervention within the overall composition of the garden elevation,’ adds the practice.

The project was completed this year alongside Constant Structural Design and Lee Harris Developments.

a single open plan floor comprising large living, dining, and kitchen spaces