Peter Morris, founder of London-based Peter Morris Architects, is renowned for his innovative approach that integrates elements from sculpture, music, and personal narratives into architecture. His firm emphasizes sustainable design and the use of advanced materials, demonstrated by notable projects such as The Possible Impossible Pavilion and Minty House. The Possible Impossible Pavilion, featured at Clerkenwell Design Week 2024, highlights his inventive use of Stone-Coat, a lightweight polystyrene-based material that challenges conventional building techniques. Minty House in West Hampstead is distinguished by its use of natural light enhancements through the strategic placement of curved glass bay windows and skylights, which facilitate a seamless indoor-outdoor connection. Morris’s commitment to ecological sustainability is evident in his incorporation of solar glazing and photovoltaic roof slates, pushing the boundaries of traditional architectural practices while focusing on environmental concerns.
What inspires you?
Oh gosh, EVERYTHING! I love colour, I love storytelling, I love music, art, architecture and design of every kind. And I love working with interesting people. Working with a client is such a personal and wonderful thing to do – finding out who they are, what makes them tick, what their dreams are and how I might be able to help fulfil them, that’s what inspires me the most. But yes, in general, I get hugely excited about colourful, delightful things that make the world a better place. There’s a lot of grimness across the globe at the moment, so it feels more important than ever to seek out joy and inspiration wherever you can. And if – by conveying that joy in a piece of architecture or sculpture – you’re able to share that feeling with other people, then that I hope is a worthwhile thing to be doing.
What inspired you to become an architect?
I grew up in the Midlands – my mum worked in a factory, my dad worked as a shepherd – and we had no money. I went to 12 secondary schools and only got two GCSEs due to my dyslexia. At 16, I was told by my careers adviser that I should do Building Studies, because he thought I’d make a good hod carrier. I followed some of his advice – taking a BTEC in Building Studies – but the hod carrier bit I ignored! During my Building Studies course something miraculous happened. I started dreaming, and I started drawing. And I realised that the thing I most wanted to be in the world was an architect. I come from a family that’s been working class for generations, with no history whatsoever of university attendance or professional qualifications, so everyone thought I was a bit mad to be attempting such a thing, but I was determined to make it happen. So I kept on drawing and drawing, and – based on my drawings alone – managed to win a place to study Architecture at Plymouth University. It was a massive challenge but I managed to get a First Class degree. Then the next miracle happened – I was offered a place at the Royal College of Art, one of the most esteemed arts colleges in the world. After studying there for my MA in Architecture, I spent fourteen years working for other people (at Land Design, Fluid Design, Penoyre & Prasad, and Curl La Tourelle) and then, in 2012, I set up my own business, Peter Morris Architects.
How would you describe your design philosophy?
In architecture, my goal is to make joyful homes for interesting people. In public art, I aim to create moments of unexpected delight for passers-by, with structures that sit at the point where design sculpture and architecture come together.
What is your favourite project?
I feel very fond of many of my projects, but my absolute favourite has got to be The Cloud House – a pair of semi-detached three-storey houses, one of which is going to become home to me and my family. The project is currently under construction in Gospel Oak, North London, and is being filmed for the TV show Grand Designs. The house is to be pale pink and covered in arches – some people say it looks like a mosque, others say it looks like a blancmange! It is thoroughly curvy, with scalloped balustrades and very tall arched windows in pale green frames. It takes its cue from the neo-gothic arches of the Grade 1 listed St Martin’s Church opposite, and then modernises and simplifies those arches to make them the building’s dominant decorative feature. It also takes its spirit of eccentricity from St Martin’s, which Pevsner called ‘the craziest of London’s Victorian churches’ – and the castle-like school next door, which is Grade 2 listed. The Cloud House is all about colour, fun, and exuberance. It is every architect’s dream to build their own home. And to be able to build something as special as this, in an amazing location in North London, so close to Hampstead Heath, is something I never imagined we’d be able to do. I’ve always been a dreamer, and like to believe that anything’s possible – so even though this building is unconventional, we’ve worked closely for years with Camden’s planning department, and have shared plans with our neighbours who’ve been unbelievably kind and supportive, and we’re thrilled that it’s now being built. We hope The Cloud House will become a real landmark for the area.
What is your favourite architectural detail?
Every project has its own little details that I love, but I think my favourite architectural detail recently has been on a project of mine called The Minty House, in West Hampstead in North London. Minty House sits in a street of Victorian houses which all look pretty much the same. The homogeneity of the houses nearby made me want to push the design to be as joyful and surprising as possible. I wanted to use simple shapes – triangles, circles, and squares – and create a kitchen extension that calls to mind a child’s building blocks, to tap into those joyful childhood memories of play, and put a smile on the face of anyone experiencing the building. On the roof, for instance, there are four round roof lights in a row, but the fifth is a square. At the rear, there are two triangular roofs sitting above two distinct shapes – a wedge and a cylinder – with two different windows – one square, and one with curved glass. My favourite detail of the design is the simple bay window, with curved glazing by Fluid Glass. The glass would of course have cost less if it hadn’t been curved, but this detail – reinforcing the cylindrical shape of this part of the building – makes all the difference.
Do you have a favourite material?
The Minty House project was the first time I used the polystyrene-based Stone-Coat material by Build-Lite. I wanted to use a material on the outside that could create primary shapes with purity and simplicity, and which would also create the fluting that adds interest to the cylindrical element at the back of the house. Stone-Coat by Build-Lite is an ultra-light polystyrene-based imitation stone material, which can be hotwire-cut into any shape. The lightness of it, and its ability to be carved on site to fit, plus its affordability, and insulating properties, make it an interesting new material for architects to explore I think because it allows you to create interesting shapes which can be hard to achieve with traditional building methods due to cost and engineering. I used the same material in my Possible Impossible Pavilion project and will be using it again to create the external arches on The Cloud House.
What is your process for starting a new project?
I often get involved in a project before a client has even bought the building they’d like me to work on. I’m always happy to go and check a place out for free before a client buys it because if you’ve checked out those crucial details – like orientation and light and the likelihood of planning permission – in advance, it can reduce difficulties further down the line. Once the building is owned by the client, we discuss the vision, I set out my fees and a potential schedule, and then we get cracking on the design. One big difference between me and many other architects is that we fix my fee at the start of the project, and – unless the brief changes as we go – that will be the fee that the client is charged. Lots of other architects charge a percentage on the total final build cost, which means that if an unexpected cost crops up along the way, or the client decides to splash out on an expensive kitchen, the architect gets paid more. I prefer the transparency of a fixed fee agreed upon at the start, and I find my clients appreciate this too.
How do you balance function and creativity in your designs?
I’m a big believer in functionality – and obviously, that’s a key factor in almost everything that I design, along with the aesthetics. But every now and again, it’s fun just to include elements that are simply there to look fabulous. Did we need to cover the exterior surface of The Cloud House with decorative arch shapes, or its roof with pale green metal curves that have no practical function? No, of course, we didn’t. But did those decisions make the building more individual and interesting? In my opinion, yes!
How does the environment influence your work?
Environmental concerns are the starting point for every architect working today, and for me, it’s no different. Using ASHPs, photovoltaic roof slates, extra insulation, sustainable materials, solar glazing etc are all moves which have become increasingly important in my designs in the last ten years or so.
How do you collaborate with clients to achieve their vision?
It’s always all about communication. Talking talking talking. Hearing people sharing their dreams, and then trying to find a way to create something for them that fulfills that vision, but also offers something extra that they may not have thought about themselves. Residential architecture in the end is about creating spaces where people feel at their safest and most relaxed. It’s a privilege to make someone a home, so I always try to work closely with clients to design something that will change their lives for the better. The only way you can do that is to understand what makes them happy, and then try to translate that into physical space using light and colour and carefully chosen materials – and to make sure that that’s what’s delivered, whether the clients’ budget is large or small or anything in between.
What inspired The Possible Impossible Pavilion?
Partly because it seemed so impossible for me ever to become an architect – and yet somehow I managed to make it happen – I’ve always been fascinated by the line between impossibility and possibility. I strive to make dreams come true, both in my own life and for my clients. For my clients, that means creating spaces which change lives for the better. For me, that’s been about building my own house, The Cloud House, which has always been a dream of mine. In The Possible Impossible Pavilion, I wanted to make a delightful public space which would be almost impossible to create using traditional building materials, due to cost and engineering. Its shape references the pink arches of The Cloud House, which – for me – symbolises making the impossible possible.
How did materiality shape the design of The Possible Impossible Pavilion?
Materiality is absolutely key to the ideas at the heart of The Possible Impossible Pavilion. As I’ve mentioned before, trying to make dreams come true, and creating possibility from apparent impossibility, has always been a guiding principle in my life – and I have found Stone-Coat by Build-Lite to be the perfect material with which to express that idea, as it allows exciting architectural shapes to be made at a fraction of the cost of real stone. Without the flexibility of this light and cheap material, the pavilion could not have been made.
What advice would you give to young architects?
Never give up on your dreams.
