The lower slopes and hills of the Ring of Gullion are characterised by rocky outcrops covered with dense yellow flowering thorny gorse. The proposal for this farmhouse began with an intention to preserve as much fertile land as possible. This strategy sees the house set within the rocky topography and heavy gorse typical of the South Armagh hillsides, which in turn will help to embed the building and screen it from surrounding aspects in this ‘Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty’
The house begins with a reconsolidated dry stone wall, which sites the house in relation to the ancient field lines and long disappeared 18th century homesteads. The living and sleeping spaces step up across and settle into natural terraces within the hillside, helping mediate between the internal spaces and their immediate landscape. The orientation of these rooms is derived from the path of the sun and the capture of prominent views, which lends this cluster of buildings and external spaces an informal vernacular character.
To the south, the main living area and entrance opens toward the distant Dundalk Bay and Louth lowlands, while an evening room faces North–west toward Sliabh Gullion and the setting sun. Bedroom windows face the rising sun and have an immediate aspect of the coniferous slopes of ‘The Gap of The North’. Two small gardens are treated as external terraces that extend out from living spaces, allowing the existing terrain to meet embedded rooms at window sill level.
The Client had a particular wish for curves to be incorporated into the plan. This was interpreted by using rounding the corners of the masonry and stone walls where appropriate, helping to soften the forms, signify entrances and draw in light. A gently turning glazed ‘porch’ and staircase rises with the existing contours, adding craft and refinement to the entrance.
The lower slopes and hills of the Ring of Gullion are characterised by rocky outcrops covered with dense yellow flowering thorny gorse. The proposal for this farmhouse began with an intention to preserve as much fertile land as possible. This strategy sees the house set within the rocky topography and heavy gorse typical of the South Armagh hillsides, which in turn will help to embed the building and screen it from surrounding aspects in this ‘Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty’
The house begins with a reconsolidated dry stone wall, which sites the house in relation to the ancient field lines and long disappeared 18th century homesteads. The living and sleeping spaces step up across and settle into natural terraces within the hillside, helping mediate between the internal spaces and their immediate landscape. The orientation of these rooms is derived from the path of the sun and the capture of prominent views, which lends this cluster of buildings and external spaces an informal vernacular character.
To the south, the main living area and entrance opens toward the distant Dundalk Bay and Louth lowlands, while an evening room faces North–west toward Sliabh Gullion and the setting sun. Bedroom windows face the rising sun and have an immediate aspect of the coniferous slopes of ‘The Gap of The North’. Two small gardens are treated as external terraces that extend out from living spaces, allowing the existing terrain to meet embedded rooms at window sill level.
The Client had a particular wish for curves to be incorporated into the plan. This was interpreted by using rounding the corners of the masonry and stone walls where appropriate, helping to soften the forms, signify entrances and draw in light. A gently turning glazed ‘porch’ and staircase rises with the existing contours, adding craft and refinement to the entrance.
