Home tour | A contemporary farmhouse in rural Suffolk

The homes I feature on this blog all tend to be fairly minimalist in style, but I try to cover a range of different property types, sizes and locations. Last month I shared a small period apartment in the centre of Stockholm; today it’s the turn of a sleek new-build house on a working farm in the English county of Suffolk.

The house was originally designed by Norm Architects in 2017 but never completed. After acquiring the half-done space during the pandemic, the current owners turned to the Copenhagen-based practice to reignite the stalled project, and the results are stunning.

Dubbed the ‘Pavilion House’ and now finished as it was intended, the building is a simple steel-framed construction with an overhanging roof and swathes of glass gazing out over the surrounding countryside. Vertical cladding in local larch corresponds with existing agricultural structures on the site, and the fascia boards and window frames are kept as subtle as possible. This ensures the wooden character of the architecture becomes the dominant expression, creating a house that sits in harmony with its setting rather than trying to compete with it.

Inside, the house is all about transparency, and nature forms an integral part of the interior. The layout consists of one long, open space that’s divided into different functional zones, with sweeping views over the landscape from every corner. The walls throughout are crisp white and furniture is kept to a minimum, but timber window frames, semi-sheer curtains and white-soaped Douglas flooring from Dinesen add layers of softness and tactility.

At one end is a large living area, whose palette of muted beige, brown and green echoes the colours of the landscape outside. A woven rug and a low-slung sofa with gently rounded corners create a relaxed and cosy feel, and there are plenty of natural textures thanks to rustic stoneware vases, a linen throw and a pair of oak and paper-cord ‘CH25’ lounge chairs from Carl Hansen & Søn. A dark grey sofa and striped monochrome artwork on one side of the space offset the earthy tones and provide a clever reference to the black-clad barn opposite.

A central brick core with a stove and a concrete hearth divides the living area from the kitchen and dining space, which occupies the middle portion of the house. Here, discreet white units and thin grey worktops almost merge into the structure of the building, ensuring the fields and trees outside take centre stage. I particularly like the way the oven and hob are set back into a recessed niche – it’s almost like a contemporary take on the old inglenook fireplaces that would have sat at the heart of the farmhouses that preceded this one.

At the other end of the building, beyond the bedrooms and study, a snug with doors provides an intimate retreat from the more sociable spaces. It’s furnished with two ‘Spanish’ chairs, designed by Børge Mogensen for Fredericia in 1958, and their saddle-leather seats and buckles seem very fitting given the rural setting.

In contrast to the rest of the house, the bathrooms have a dark and moody palette, with polished concrete extending seamlessly over walls, floors and bathtub surrounds to create the sense of cocooning sanctuaries. The smooth grey finish is offset by grooved wooden vanity units, and carefully positioned windows provide glimpses of nature without compromising on privacy.

If you like the look of this beautiful home, then you can see more projects by Norm Architects here, here and here.

Photography by Joans Bjerre-Poulsen, courtesy of Norm Architects