The Architects Palette | Natural Material – Wood

Wood is the stand-out building material, sustainable, adaptable and full of unique character.   

William Green Architects enjoys designing buildings with wood as the scope, scale and application of timber is unmatched by any other material. Timber can be used as a utilitarian basic material in wall and floor studs through to fine book-matched pieces for fine joinery.  There is a great deal of understanding that goes into specifying timber within building projects.

Choosing timber in building design is an easy selection, often misunderstood and overdone. The best designs use timber very selectively and with such skill that it appears effortlessly correct within its context. To understand timber, its character, its language and apply this within a design, is the culmination of many learnings, that will successfully endure the test of time, physically and visually.

This wonderful material can be used throughout the building on almost all elements. The natural inherent characteristic of a timber species influences its suitability. The architect enjoys understanding the nuances of different woods and using it accordingly. A rewarding skill, that manifests itself in the built form, for all to enjoy.

An example being the rustic beauty of a coarsely textured hand split chestnut shakes roof. A traditional crafted roof, that sits comfortably in both modern and traditional architecture. The material's scale, colour and pattern are so pleasing that it can be an artful design solution that enables modern architecture to be acceptable to a more traditional fraternity. To an architect, there is something timelessly pleasing in the placing of something so very traditional amongst modern lines.

WGA wax lyrical about timber in all its guises and continues to explore and develop our repertoire as we evolve our design skills for the built environment.

All of us at William Green Architects enjoy bringing this deep connected thought to our projects and having like-minded clients, who appreciate architecture and share these goals.