Sort Trae

Sort Trae is an ultra-modern, low-energy home and studio that has been designed to sit comfortably into the landscape and take advantage of panoramic views over the rolling South Yorkshire countryside. The project was designed by Sheffield based HEM Architects for their client renowned weaver and textile designer Susi Clark

The house sits into the hillside and is rooted into the site by means of a stone spine wall, which is expressed both internally and externally. The wall, which runs through both storeys, is handcrafted from sandstone offcuts, supplied by Johnsons Wellfield, and gives the heart of the house texture and colour.

The Dry Stone walling supplied by stone Johnsons Wellfield is recycled from natural stone paving production and then re-purposed into the ultimate low-carbon building material.

The spine wall is not only critical aesthetically, but also functions environmentally. It warms in the winter sun and distributes that heat through the house, contributing to the low energy performance of the building, which satisfies Passivhaus criteria.

The wall also contains the MVHR ducts which distribute fresh air throughout. The building contrasts charred timber to the upper storey with the gold sandstone at the lower level and it is the contrast of these two materials which produce a building that, whilst being rooted to the landscape at its base, is light and floating at its upper level, reaching out to the landscape.

This home is the product of a talented and dedicated team of people who have worked hard to make a dream a reality.

The owner, an architect herself, had designed the concept before approaching HEM Architects to deliver the dwelling to Passivhaus Standard.

The elegant and crisp design for the two-bed home takes advantage of the steeply sloping site, with the ground floor of the home dug into the hillside and almost hidden from view. You approach the dwelling at its first-floor level; a modest cube wrapped in charred black timber cladding and open-jointed stone. From here you journey down into the semi-subterranean level where the main open-plan living space is located. Rather than this being a dark and uninviting space, the ground floor of the home is bright, drawing daylight deep within using full-height glazing on the southern elevation and large roof lights installed above. The elevated site offers uninterrupted views out across the valley, which can be enjoyed from the principal rooms and bedrooms of the house.

The ground floor of the home is constructed with a concrete retaining wall on three sides and a polished concrete floor, which acts as a thermal mass to help regulate fluctuations in temperature internally. The concrete creates a beautiful, sleek contemporary finish throughout the property, contrasted with a hand-crafted, local sandstone spine that forms the centrepiece of the house and is echoed in the exterior finish.

Sort Trae excels as an ultra-low-energy home without compromising on the aspiration for an architecturally led home. The project successfully balances these two demanding elements from the brief, demonstrating that you do not need to compromise design quality when delivering a sustainable home.

This project has won numerous awards for its striking design.