The Garden Room is a proposal for a contemplative retreat for Hauser and Wirth Somerset’s artist-in-residence. The design was shortlisted in Hauser and Wirth‘s The Shed Competition.

Periodically, Hauser and Wirth invite artists to spend an extended period of time at the Maltings Studios to draw inspiration from the surrounding landscape and local culture. The Garden Room occupies the site of an old outbuilding adjacent to the Maltings which had been redundant since the brewing business ceased.

The Garden Room serves as a place for reflective thinking and an escape from daily life. The proposal is formed of a lightweight timber frame and clad in a distinct dark stained pinewood, Features include translucent screens, bench seating, stone paving and flower beds which wrap around the new structure to create a ‘garden island’.

Internally, the design frames key vistas whilst maintaining a sense of privacy. A continuous strip of low-level glazing provides views of the surrounding planting, while screening mundane features like the nearby petrol station. A large picture window extends views south towards the river, and a window box seat overlooks a raised flower bed.