jay osgerby opens his south london home to views of the horizon

‘for me, one of the things I missed, living in london, has been the ability to see the horizon,’ explains designer jay osgerby, who grew up near oxford, UK. ‘we spend our days wandering around underneath these canyons of architecture, man-made vista and views. it’s something I missed from my childhood, growing up in the countryside.’ located in south-east london, he renovated his 1870s house, creating a pure white kitchen-cum-living room that has recaptured this lost view of the horizon with the help of sky-frame.

jay osgerby sitting in his kitchen-cum-living room that features a wall of windows
all images courtesy of sky-frame

‘volume and light are the two most important ingredients to make a great space,’ continues osgerby, who trained in design at undergraduate level and then in architecture at masters. he was able to lower the ground floor of his london home by 1.5 meters to create a vast space. the side facing the garden has been opened up by integrating windows, offering inspiring views overhead. ‘we’ve created an opening in the building, to let light in. and in doing so, we’ve created a view out. the larger the view, the bigger the aperture, the more you can be absorbed in the view and the more you become part of the landscape outside.’

the sky, the horizon and the details these both frame are inspiring to the designer

the influx of light and the interplay it has with the fabric of the old building was a key feature in the project. after visiting the vitrahaus in weil am rhein, south-west germany, osgerby realized his home vision was possible. ‘the sky-frame system was the best system I could possibly find. I wanted a system which was pretty much invisible when it was closed – to avoid running the risk of feeling like you’re in some kind of prison.’ instead, the windows let the natural light flood, brightening the room, furniture from his own portfolio, and collector’s items.

his orientation to the horizon and thus his childhood is reflected in his photography

osgerby in london

jay osgerby bio:

jay osgerby attained his master’s degree in architecture at london’s royal college of art and began the eponymous london-based design studio barber & osgerby in 1996 with fellow alumnus edward barber. in 2001 barber & osgerby established the architecture and interior design practice universal design studio and in 2012 they founded map project office, specialising in research and strategy-led design. their diverse body of work spans industrial design, furniture and site-specific installations as well as limited edition pieces. this includes designs for leading global manufacturers axor, B&B italia, flos, hermes, knoll and VITRA. public commissions include the london 2012 olympic torch and projects for the royal mint.