Rendering of a modern building with a rusty metal roof in a foggy, autumnal forest setting. Four people are walking in the distance among trees with red and orange leaves.

Modern dining room with wooden tables and chairs, hanging black and gold pendant lights, large windows, white brick walls, and a wooden ceiling with skylights and hanging greenery.

BARN CAFE, PRIVATE 2025

Set within the grounds of a working family farm, this project reimagines a dilapidated agricultural shed as a new café intended to revitalise the site and encourage greater public engagement with the farm. The brief called for a sensitive intervention that would preserve the building’s rural character while introducing a robust and welcoming destination for visitors.

The design strategy retains and reinforces the existing structural frame, allowing the original building to remain legible within the new proposal. A continuous Corten steel cladding wraps the shed, providing a durable, low-maintenance external envelope that weathers naturally over time and resonates with the agricultural context. The material choice gives the building a strong and contemporary identity while maintaining a clear dialogue with its rural setting.

Internally, the café is conceived as a warm and tactile space that contrasts with the robust exterior. A vaulted ceiling with exposed timber joists reveals the structure of the original shed and enhances the sense of volume within the space. Whitewashed brick walls reflect light and soften the interior, while timber ceiling boards and wide oak plank flooring introduce warmth and texture. Together, these materials establish a balanced rustic atmosphere, reinforcing the connection between the building’s agricultural past and its new public use.

A row of old, weathered garages with open doors under a clear blue sky, some with damaged walls and leaning gates, with parked cars and a landscape visible in the background.