Last summer, London-based architect Jack Woolley completed the renovation and expansion of a run-down carpenter's workshop, salvaging as much existing construction as possible to convert it into a beautiful live/work space flooded with natural light. It also has one of the best entrances I've ever seen, a "hidden" door in the brick wall that runs along the street. I caught up with Woolley this week to ask him how he made it and to talk about his other work, including his twelve crazy patents.
Core77: How was the former workshop accessed from the street?
Jack Woolley: The original workshop could not be accessed directly from the street. Instead you had to walk across the front garden of the neighboring house and through a gate which led to the back of the workshop where there was a door.
The new door onto the street was necessary to make the building effective as a live/work space. The door from the street gives access to both the work area and the live area, but by keeping the original entrance, an alternative is provided which allows the work area to be entered independently - important for the comings and goings of staff.
Core77: Why the "hidden" entrance in the stone wall out front?
JW: The brick street door is an attempt to mark the entrance in a way that is memorable yet simultaneously respectful of the original wall.
