Martello Tower Y in Bawdsey, United Kingdom

December 13, 2010 Category: Cultural, Public Buildings

Martello Tower Y that located in Bawdsey, United Kingdom, was designed by Piercy Conner Architects. The conversion is conceived as a progression from dramatically shadowed spaces in the vaulted interior up to the unfettered views and lightness of the rooftop. The 3D curving roof, prefabricated off-site using computer generating cutting patterns, is tethered lightly to the existing fabric using only five steel struts and 3-dimensionally curving frameless glazing ensuring a clean and discrete separation between the old and the new and 360° views of the coastal landscape.

The conversion is representative of a larger issue – the huge catalogue of British historical buildings lying vacant. Rather than see this tower fall into dereliction Piercy Conner Architects and Billings Jackson Design saved the tower by reincarnating it as a family home through a series of highly contemporary yet sensitive architectural interventions.

Martello Tower Y design by Piercy Conner Architects