Theo and Oskar's House wins planning permission

Tigg + Coll, winners of the Colander run competition to build a home for Theo and Oskar, will work with Ballymore to build their designs for the boys' new home....

Tigg + Coll, will work with Ballymore to deliver a light, spacious and barrier-free home for the Taussig family and their two young sons, Theo and Oskar who both suffer from Duchenne muscular dystrophy*

Tigg + Coll won the competition in December 2016, beating 28 submissions from emerging architects in the UK, America and the Netherlands. The competition was managed by Colander Associates who continue to support and follow the project as it moves into the design phase.

Peter McCall, Ballymore Construction Director, and Sara Caplan, Ballymore Senior sales negotiator, took the special project to Ballymore after hearing about Theo and Oskar.

Peter said:

“As a father I wanted to help in any way I could and I knew my company would feel the same,”

David Tigg, Director of Tigg + Coll, said:

What has been a very exciting and innovative design process to date has really been enhanced by the input of Ballymore and their project management and procurement team. It has allowed us to explore a combination of prefabricated and bespoke design solutions that will deliver some amazing spaces for Theo, Oskar and the family as a whole to use and enjoy.

“The challenge has been to deliver a new extension to the existing home that in one sense carefully considers the vernacular height, scale and massing of this cottage site, whilst also delivering a purposeful contemporary home for the challenging future needs of this family.

“The approach has been to create a contemporary interpretation of the vernacular form at the front of the building, introducing a new accessible entrance hall with recessed entrance porch, reflecting the pitched roof and verandah of the original building, the material palette combining blackened timber cladding and large glazed elements.

“At the rear of the building the key driver was to create light-filled, spacious bedrooms for the boys with expansive views of the garden. We wanted to make the most of how the garden can interact directly with the new building and bring the outside spaces in. The timber diagrid cantilevered roof form is a playful insertion, yet a practical structural solution, that is read clearly from the existing form of the house. The roof acts as a continuous timber canopy over the internal spaces and external terrace, bringing dappled light deep into the main living spaces.”

Nick Taussig, father to Theo and Oskar said:

“Tigg + Coll’s final design really captures what we were after, intelligence, creativity and practicality coming together perfectly to create the very best home for Theo and Oskar, to meet all of their needs, present and future. To have Ballymore on board also, to make this design a reality, is life-changing and life-affirming in the truest sense: this home, designed and built for Theo and Oskar, will make a deep and lasting impact on the quality of their lives. It will enable them, not disable them further.”

Nick’s company Salon Pictures http://salonpictures.co.uk/ continues to film this project as it moves from competition to development phase, this will form part of a documentary that will play at film festivals, be broadcast on domestic television, and sold for foreign broadcast.

More information

Is available at https://www.colander.co.uk/OskarandTheosHouse

And design details from www.tiggcollarchitects.com

* DMD is an inherited (genetic) condition which affects the muscles, causing muscle weakness. It is a fatal condition which starts in early childhood and may be noticed when a child has difficulty standing up, climbing or running. The muscle weakness is not noticeable at birth, even though the child is born with the gene which causes it. The weakness develops gradually. It usually shows up in early childhood. Symptoms are mild at first but increase as the child becomes older. About 1 in 3,500 boys in the UK are born with DMD. The name Duchenne comes from the doctor who first studied this condition.

For further details on the competition see https://www.colander.co.uk/com...