The Brick House is a private house in the Westbourne Grove

Westbourne Grove

Westbourne Grove is a retail road running across Notting Hill, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, a section of west London, England. It runs from Kensington Park Road in the west to Queensway in the east, crossing over Portobello Road...

 area of west London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 that was nominated for the 2006 Stirling Prize

Stirling Prize

The Royal Institute of British Architects Stirling Prize is a British prize for excellence in architecture. It is named after the architect James Stirling, organised and awarded annually by the Royal Institute of British Architects...

 for architecture. It was designed by the firm of architects Caruso St John

Caruso St John

Caruso St John is an architectural firm established in 1990 by Adam Caruso and Peter St John.They have gained an international reputation for excellence in designing contemporary projects in the public realm. The practice came to public attention with the New Art Gallery in Walsall, a commission...

 and constructed by Harris Calnan Construction with service engineering by Mendick Waring and structural engineering by Price & Myers.

The project inserted a new house, accessed through an archway into the end of a Victorian city-centre street. It was completed in May 2005.

Site and brief

The site was back-land development in the shape of a horses head. The design had to accommodate not only restrictions in height (single story), but it was surrounded by overlooking buildings on three sides. The solution involved partly excavating the lower floor and the use of skylights.