L
ocated in the heart of the Dartmoor
National Park and set within 60
acres of woodland and meadow,
an 18th Century granite farmhouse
and associated barns grouped
loosely together to form West Yard
Farm. In a dilapidated state, the owners wanted
to turn the farmhouse and barns into a large,
modern family home with annex space for
f lexible use.
For the overall design of the house, the owners
chose van Ellen + Sheryn architects, who
approached Carpenter Oak for the oak frame
aspect, with builder Richard Goulden from
Goulden & Sons finishing the property to the
highest specifications.
The milking parlour to the west of the group was
to provide the annex accommodation required.
The brick and stone building was bisected, and
a glass and green-oak framed structure replaced
the southern half of the building.
Architect Eilir Sheryn worked with Carpenter
Oak Ltd frame designer Paul Slemmings to
conceive a light and spacious barn-like
structure, with glazing on all sides and dramatic
f lying trusses. Finely cut square profiles were
used in combination with steel connectors and
tie rods, supplied by Hercules. The truss design
was an unusual but striking configurationtaking its cues from a traditional scissor
braced truss.
The central collar is formed with an inverted
‘V’ of green oak, and then tied back to the main
truss members with stainless steel rods. These
tie rods reduce the perceived mass of the frame
at high level. The open roof space combined with
the extensive glazing allows light to f lood in.
To best compliment the massive stone and brick
walls of the barn, a key aspect of the design was
to maintain a strong physical aesthetic for the
frame. The timber columns were doubled up
with a small shadow gap between, to createan attractive rhythm.
The frame could undoubtedly have been
achieved with single posts and with perhaps
one or two fewer bays over the length of the
space. In this respect, beauty over efficiency was
perhaps deemed more important, as the strength
and rhythm of the frame as it extends away from
the stone barn was so important to its success.http://www.carpenteroak.com
@carpenter_oak
Image Credit: http://www.georgefielding.co.uk