British studio Tikari Works has completed an outbuilding for a south London residence that is framed by a latticed timber roof structure and configured to weave around a Lebanese cedar tree.
Tikari Works crafted the project, named A Room Around a Tree, to have a minimal impact on the woodland setting while accommodating a versatile internal space and adjoining terrace for the client’s family.
“The core concept of the design is to celebrate the mature cedar tree that is the focal point of the garden whilst creating a flexible space for our client’s growing family,” Tikari Works director Ty Tikari told Dezeen.
“The timber beams are extra deep and stained black to create a meditative internal atmosphere and bring the verdant greens of the garden to the foreground,” he continued.
Intending to create a dialogue with the landscape, the edge of the building was wrapped around surrounding tree branches and partially bounded by transparent structural glazing.
“The curved form of the project allows the building to engage with the language of the garden as the building edge weaves between the natural features on the site,” Tikari explained.
“Internally, this creates a sense of compression and expansion that is used to organise the building functions without the need for physical boundaries.”
Peckham apartment blocks by Tikari Works are covered in rust-red shingles
According to the studio, A Room Around a Tree was built using light-handed construction techniques to safeguard the vegetation, including a low-impact “floating” ring beam and mini-pile foundation system.
“The primary driver for the layout of the project was to ensure that the building maintained a minimum distance of two metres to all trees on the site, ensuring that the health of the trees would be undisturbed,” Tikari explained.
“This restriction combined with the program and movement around the site helped to create the parti of the project, which in turn informed the structural strategy for touching the ground lightly.”
Internally, the studio integrated custom joinery, including an oak kitchenette, cast-concrete sink and mobile storage unit to encourage future flexibility.
“The everyday aspects of the pavilion – the kitchen, bathroom and storage units – are placed within sculptural forms, enriching their prosaic nature with a more soulful quality,” Tikari said.
“Readily available, off-the-shelf materials, such as corrugated cladding, blockwork and stained timber helped keep the project on budget, whilst the bespoke detailing of these materials enrich their tactile nature and express our joy in making.”
London-based Tikari Works was established in 2015 by Nicola and Ty Tikari.
The studio has previously completed a block of apartments in Peckham covered in rust-red tiles and a partially subterranean timber-screened home in south London previously occupied by a garage.
The photography is by Dan Glasser.
