It is through the homes that architects and designers create for themselves that their ideas most clearly crystallise.

Sir John Soane built his house at 13 Lincoln's Inn Fields as a laboratory for his architectural ideas, referring to its rooms as ‘studies for my mind’. He also used his house as a way of articulating his ideas about architecture, which were informed by his fascination with the classical world. While Soane’s house is perhaps the earliest example in England of a house designed by a professional architect for their own use, it is by no means an isolated phenomenon.

Through five London-area case studies which start in the 19th century and end in the 21st, this exhibition examines how architects and designers since Soane’s time have created homes for themselves. Although often associated with individual architects, all of the houses included here were highly collaborative ventures. They illustrate the collective nature of architectural creation and the home as a shared space. These houses operate as dwellings but also as showcases for architectural ideas, often including vital elements such as studio spaces, as Soane’s house does. Each house corresponds clearly to styles and concepts present in their architectural moment, ranging from Victorian design reform to 21st-century sustainability.

The homes that we'll be celebrating are:

  • The Cosmic House, by Charles Jencks, Maggie Keswick Jencks and Terry Farrell Partnership
  • 2 Willow Road, by Erno Goldfinger
  • Red House, by Philip Webb and William Morris
  • Hopkins House, by Michael and Patty Hopkins
  • 9/10 Stock Orchard Street, by Sarah Wigglesworth and Jeremy Till

Photos: Gareth Gardner.

Explore the houses

Browse through our galleries below to take a closer look at these remarkable London homes.

Red House (1860, William Morris and Philip Webb)

A view of Red House from the garden, showing a well with a conicle roof in the foreground. A medieval-inspired mural of a bucolic courtly scene, on a wall at Red House. A circular stained glass window at Red House.

2 Willow Road (1939, Ernö Goldfinger)

The front elevation of 2 Willow Road. The rear elevation of 2 Willow Road, as seen from the garden, showing all four stories of the house. A view of the front elevation of the Willow Road terrace, focused on number 1.

Hopkins House (1976, Michael and Patty Hopkins)

The rear elevation of Hopkins House, as seen from deep in the lush green garden. To the left, a towering Victorian townhouse looms over it. One corner of the front elevation of Hopkins House, showing the two floors of full-height windows. The front entrance of Hopkins House, reached from pavement level by a sleek, simple bridge.

The Cosmic House (1983, Charles Jencks, Maggie Keswick Jencks, and Terry Farrell Partnership)

The rear elevation of Cosmic House, showing the large ground floor windows looking out over the garden. The twin chimney stacks of Cosmic House. A wider view of the rear of Cosmic House from deep in the garden.

9/10 Stock Orchard Street (2000, Sarah Wigglesworth and Jeremy Till)

The courtyard garden of 9/10 Stock Orchard Street, showing an open staircase running up to a first floor level. The 'tower' of 9/10 Stock Orchard Street. The main living space of 9/10 Stock Orchard Street, home to architect Sarah Wigglesworth.