The site of both Richard Parr’s family home and the Cotswolds studio of his eponymous architecture practice, Easter Park embodies his ‘modern traditionalist’ approach to design. Here, Richard reflects on the farm’s transformation, his enduring affection for art and storied objects, and the triumphs and disappointments of his horticultural pursuits. By Rosalind Sack
ARCHITECT RICHARD PARR. IMAGE: JASPER FRY
One of Britain’s leading architects, known for his ‘modern traditionalist’ approach, Richard Parr’s esteemed work blends rigour, warmth and a deep sensitivity to place. As founder of Richard Parr Associates design studio, he has shaped a diverse portfolio spanning private homes, hotels and restaurants, including the award-winning Farmyard at The Newt in Somerset. His latest venture, BRINK art gallery in West London, is a cultural expression of his architectural practice.
The environment in which Richard and his team work is as important as the environments they design for their clients. Indeed the company’s Cotswolds studio is housed in repurposed and refurbished barns; part of an Arts and Crafts farm built in the 1860s. Easter Park is also Richard’s family home; a place he spent nearly two decades transforming from dreary, poorly executed restorations and dilapidated barns into a triumph of contemporary design and rural charm.
Here, Richard reflects on the stories of his home and the philosophies and ideas that shape his work.
With whom do you share your home at Easter Park in the Cotswolds?
This is a family home, and I guess I am what is referred to as an ‘empty nester’. It’s still our family hub and my three children and their partners love to stay, entertain, or just escape here. In permanent residence is my adorable and affectionate Jack Russell, Gio. He goes everywhere with me. Easter Park really is a hub of activity, with the design studios in converted out-buildings; various likeminded friends renting the houses on the farm, and not forgetting my collection of Marans, Legbars and Bluebell hens, bringing a range of coloured eggs from blue to dark brown daily.
You bought your home 20 years ago. How would you describe it then and how would you describe it now?
Back then it was the victim of various owners, who had asset stripped and sanitised it. Dreary, cheaply done restorations, poorly carried out building work and suburbanised gardens. Gone were the vestiges of farming, the grounds and ownership had been carved up and sold off. The farmland fortunately had been left untouched. It was a pretty sad place but with a latent magic and huge potential.
You’ve talked about your country home being inspired by urban homes. Can you tell us more about this?
When I started out in Practice designing homes there was a chasm between the design standards in the city and the country. Urban homes tended to embrace changing ideas, lifestyles and values whilst country houses were a compromise on everything but space and character. I set out to change that. I think my early career in Spain shaped my approach, where there was an adventurous spirit applied to layering contemporary design over historical buildings, and a relaxed attitude to entertaining and life flowing to the outdoors. Climate may help but – take The Newt for example, the success of our work here rests on those two principles above. The client sees the country in the same way I do; it is a place to be enjoyed not endured and this applies to the buildings. Yes, we celebrate the golden and ironstone buildings, timber frame and beams and quirky details but add to those some contemporary thinking, baths that fill in two minutes, beautiful but traditional materials applied with a contemporary edge, and state of the art heating with no drafts!
What small design detail in your own home brings you the most daily pleasure?
My shower. It’s a tiny space with no doors, defined by and built into an arched corridor. Book-matched sheets of otherworldly marble line the walls. It’s dark, contemplative and embracing.
How important is the connection between indoors and outdoors for people’s emotional wellbeing – and how do you approach it in your own home?
Homes are for retreating into and feeling warm and safe, so I have spaces that are introspective. There are times when shutting oneself away and being unaware of the dark, the rain or the heat is comforting. However, I also strongly believe in connecting to the elements and the wider landscape, creating spaces that nurture this relationship. Landscape is one of the drivers in my work, and I like to frame and focus views. I put two tiny windows in my studio, which offer otherwise unseen views – one to a distant village on a hillside, the other to a large sycamore in a meadow under which the sheep shelter. I also introduced moments of sheet glass between the thick stone walls which feels energising, and I have positioned them for maximum effect and contrast with the historic fabric.
You have a wonderful kitchen garden. What have been your biggest successes (and failures) when it comes to growing and producing?
I have become more resilient to failures in the kitchen garden, every year is different and brings its unexpected triumphs and disappointments. One of my best decisions was to plant a sheltered wall with espaliered apricots, but a late frost can destroy the young fruits. Brassicas are almost always fodder to cabbage white butterflies and I have all but given up. Hot summers bring new opportunities – Okra, Peppers, ridge gourds and melons flourished last year.
What might some be surprised to learn you have in your home?
I have something of an addiction to cookery books. When I started at University, I suddenly realised that I wanted to eat well and there my culinary journey started. The result is hundreds of cookery books which tell a story of my life like a diary, and I even have a full collection of Cordon Bleu weekly magazines from the 70’s, from my grandmother. I recently read Blood Sweat and Asparagus Tears by Andrew Turvil and was astounded as I turned the pages, just how the evolution of British food has influenced me. It’s not surprising then that I have ended up designing so many hospitality projects, from new concept hotels in Italy to The Newt in Somerset and now to Africa.
If the items in your home could speak, which would have the most captivating stories to tell?
Without a doubt my Arts and Crafts dining table. This came from a school and I bought it 20 years ago. At 3.5 metres long it has witnessed a lot! This valley was the host of extraordinary parties and raves. Rumour has it that a vast stone trough in my yard was filled with milk and in which a certain royalty bathed and probably not alone!
What was your childhood home like?
In a word: homely. It was never about grandeur or ostentation. I guess it was also very traditional and English. A sturdy oil fired aga, cold bedrooms but lots of home cooking and home grown produce.
Is there a book, artwork or place that continually inspires how you think about living spaces?
I first visited Milan as a student, travelling on an interrail pass with a rucksack on my back. I was truly blown away. This was the ’80s and the design world there was at its height with Memphis, Armani and the great designers like Magistretti and Castiglione all producing new designs. I subscribed to Domus monthly. I trekked to see Aldo Rossi’s work and the idea of memory in Architecture had a profound impact on me. Since then, I have returned constantly to Milan and never fail to be inspired – from the coloured terrazzo in the street, to a hidden lobby or the new art locations. I still think, as a city, it has the best concentration of design energy.
You have recently opened your new gallery, BRINK at The People’s Hall as a cultural expression of your architectural practice. Are there art pieces in your home or workspace that you feel are essential – not just decorative – because of how they make you feel?
Of course. I don’t collect contemporary art for decorative reasons, no one should. They are a bit like friends, they come along serendipitously, becoming part of and telling the story of my life: travels, encounters, interests, and moments. I finally accept that I am a collector, a title I don’t aspire to! In my study and studio, I house lithographs and works in ink, charcoal, graphite. They define an area of interest of the drawn line and range from Corbusier lithographs to my son’s degree work at Camberwell School of Art.
THE RICHARD PARR ASSOCIATES STUDIO AT EASTER PARK FARM, WHERE RICHARD ALSO HAS HIS FAMILY HOME. IMAGE: GILBERT McCARRAGHER
RICHARD PARR ASSOCIATES’ ‘MODERN TRADITIONALIST’ APPROACH SHOWCASED AT THEIR STUDIO AT EASTER PARK FARM. IMAGE: GILBERT McCARRAGHER
METICULOUS CRAFTSMANSHIP, NATURAL MATERIALS AND NATURAL LIGHT ABOUND AT RICHARD PARR ASSOCIATES’ COTSWOLDS STUDIO AT EASTER PARK FARM. IMAGE: GILBERT McCARRAGHER
RICHARD PARR ASSOCIATES REINVENTED THIS TRADITIONAL HISTORIC FARMSTEAD, CREATING HOTEL SUITES AND LUXURY LEISURE FACILITIES – AT THE FARMYARD AT THE NEWT. IMAGE: RICH STAPLETON
CRAFTSMANSHIP AND SKILLED RESTORATION AT THE FARMYARD AT THE NEWT. IMAGE: RICH STAPLETON
NATURE WAS PLACED AT THE HEART OF THE VISITOR EXPERIENCE AT THE FARMYARD AT THE NEWT. IMAGE: RICH STAPLETON
THIS OXFORDSHIRE FAMILY HOME, DESIGNED BY RICHARD PARR ASSOCIATES, CONNECTS NATURE AND CONTEMPORARY LIVING. IMAGE: BROTHERTON LOCK
RICHARD AND HIS TEAM REWORKED THE IDEA OF A COUNTRYSIDE RESIDENCE AND MADE THE MOST OF THE RURAL SETTING OF THIS FAMILY HOME IN OXFORDSHIRE
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