The Shadow House was the studio’s first new-build house. We built the project with our own hands, integrating planning, design, finance and construction into one fluid process. The project won an RIBA award, the Small House Award at the 2011 British Homes Awards, the residential category of the Daily Telegraph Homebuilding and Renovation award, a New London Architecture commendation and a Manser Medal nomination. Our time and energy were our greatest resources, so we re-drew the design constantly to elimiate costs, and carried out much of the building work ourselves. The project’s name (a reference to Junichiro Tanizaki’s paean to mindfulness, ‘In Praise of Shadows’) comes from its skin, which is expressed in a black slim-format glazed brick. The interior is tuned to create moments of distinct character: with limited space available, we sought intense contrast between light and shade and worked with different material textures and changes in floor & ceiling levels to modulate the atmosphere.