![#](https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FConcept-Diagrams.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=233&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=210&s=5a84b48bb074d0950baa5df5a15b98bb 210w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FConcept-Diagrams.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=466&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=420&s=c5c4ecefe556e12b8b9f4293e33a46c9 420w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FConcept-Diagrams.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=852&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=768&s=4b00c06cc7361e4f5bd16f712d2fe92f 768w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FConcept-Diagrams.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1135&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1024&s=763ce99de2195323cb18257291fcafca 1024w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FConcept-Diagrams.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1552&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1400&s=14b0c9d6e4b22f60c00c7a0665946577 1400w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FConcept-Diagrams.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1774&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1600&s=3c61c696cf02967045e37911c2d3d263 1600w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FConcept-Diagrams.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=2129&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1920&s=e74e9bb181f8ce24e5cbf3e8d9023485 1920w)
This is illustrated in our most recently completed work – the award winning house at 6 Wood Lane. Here the concept sketches were developed initially from analytical investigations into:
- Elevating living areas above sleeping areas to benefit from views and greater daylight
- Accommodating off road parking space but reclaiming lost floor area above the cars
- Optimising sun penetration into this house as well as the neighbours’ houses
- Considering appropriate construction methods; both in situ and prefabricated
These led to sketches suggesting an orthogonal base to accommodate rectangular beds and the cantilevering elliptical form above for the open plan upper living element. This singular iconic form echoes the individuality of the existing villas that line the southern edge of Wood Lane. Further sketches considered the cost and fabrication benefits of a traditional orthogonal ground retaining masonry base and the lightweight timber prefabricated barrel vaulted monocoque shell for the extraordinary elliptical living area element above.
These concepts were well established before the outline plans and elevations were developed and became the touchstone for the design development and detail enrichment thereafter. Indeed the elliptical plan shape has informed many of the elements within the house including the dining and coffee table and an elliptical peep aperture in the boundary fence to the public footpath from the Underground station. A concept can thus vary in its scale throughout any given project giving it, we hope, a sense of cohesiveness, rigour and richness of detail.
![#](https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-5.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=130&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=210&s=7cc382e873166e03c4b1efa4bbaae688 210w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-5.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=260&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=420&s=1e23a9cc7824cef82e2e72e1eb3a7598 420w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-5.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=476&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=768&s=218610b721842e5859925abd47e1003a 768w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-5.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=635&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1024&s=b5d81725afd479bb1aa16d0c713b1206 1024w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-5.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=868&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1400&s=17920da682bf4270eb31129d8e3f5ffe 1400w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-5.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=992&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1600&s=73561051364f94ef777d12ee3a2be227 1600w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-5.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1190&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1920&s=191b931e75a3183c9873f5ee97dbdd8c 1920w)
![#](https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-1.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=297&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=210&s=f1249c16eaefa8f96510d36226e04d5a 210w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-1.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=594&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=420&s=83c69baef61b4471bd6d46ebcf7f73ca 420w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-1.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1086&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=768&s=c5b81d7775f072842b360461ee89ba96 768w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-1.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1448&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1024&s=79a1839d6ba5a1348855ff949940008a 1024w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-1.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1980&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1400&s=aa49fad1a33c4e2b4fbd2d204784a2ab 1400w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-1.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=2263&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1600&s=a376baca67bc8af0383a521aaea0941d 1600w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-1.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=2715&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1920&s=83b4100a387b09ebccb01f9cf65fe1ef 1920w)
![#](https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-2.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=297&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=210&s=207afea30fd439daa8ea7045f7c31cd4 210w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-2.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=594&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=420&s=e062cb447b3bfe7a5cfc64294dc364b9 420w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-2.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1086&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=768&s=0e587189a618fd3d4e5f4bea6b82e893 768w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-2.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1448&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1024&s=c25c86855c9fabab66bb6ea737f1adbd 1024w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-2.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1980&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1400&s=4eb0c6475be35027173aea815abf58f1 1400w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-2.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=2263&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1600&s=d67a5be28856f4d2c15bc9eea57b9329 1600w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-2.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=2715&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1920&s=0b183f5049b0d1cd860e49d8d30f4212 1920w)
![#](https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-3.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=297&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=210&s=cd5dfc569d3580795695fac717fe959d 210w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-3.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=594&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=420&s=4f7259a4476ffd00e337a36294876a1e 420w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-3.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1086&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=768&s=97a02ca7c7ff65357bbdde4415e64a6e 768w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-3.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1448&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1024&s=c1113639a18a0530ed3c4963c1e0d64c 1024w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-3.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1980&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1400&s=1d8bca378d0ff6a3f4fc10680821caf8 1400w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-3.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=2263&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1600&s=0624a87d265ac43535bac5ba93a0e766 1600w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F01%2FWood-Lane-3.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=2715&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1920&s=b32aa52d19c3b32ba9d2af6474cc8749 1920w)
This article forms part of our series on The Architecture Drawing Prize: an open drawing competition curated by Make, WAF and Sir John Soane’s Museum to highlight the importance of drawing in architecture. The article originally appeared in The Architectural Review.