Description

SP 80 SE GREAT MISSENDEN GREEN LANE
(South East side), Prestwood
208/1/10003
Clayton House

II

Private house and attached carport, including raised terrace with pool to rear. 1965-6 by Peter Aldington, assisted by John Craig, for Howard and Liz Quilter. Extended 1992-3 by Paul Collinge, Aldington's former partner, for Mr and Mrs Wilkinson. Kitchen, children's bedrooms, bathrooms and stairs designed as stock brick enclosures linked by concrete beams; the other spaces of timber, stained black externally, and glass. Living room and flat roofs entirely of timber construction. L-shaped plan, with central two-storey entrance range of kitchen and dining room, with living room and master bedroom suite over; children's wing with separate access and play room, pivoted on corner au pair's room, now study and with carport at end completing enclosed entrance forecourt. Collinge's addition, comprising swimming pool and utility area, extends the `L' to an `S'. Exterior reminiscent of the work of Frank Lloyd Wright, with its contrasts of shapes and materials, and particularly for its strong timber and concrete details. Square brick bathroom and round staircase tower rise through two storeys, the round tower mirrored by small circular brick `den' off children's playroom. Large sliding plate glass windows, particularly to living room and master bedroom which give on to large balcony that maximises the only long view from the house. Ground floor has additionally small windows set directly into brickwork, those on garden front under concrete lintels. First-floor with clerestorey glazing between rafters on entrance front. Large pivoted entrance door with Aldington's characteristic lamp set into wall alongside. To rear, sliding doors give on to raised terrace with pool, whose stepping stones are strongly reminiscent of courtyard garden to Aldington's own Turn End, Haddenham, Aylesbury Vale, already listed. INTERIOR richly crafted, with much exposed brick and timber to walls and ceiling. Fitted cupboards to ground floor of the same timber. Spiral open tred staircase. First floor living room with fitted bench seating, dressing room with fitted cupboards and dressing table. Swimming pool extension similarly of brick and glass with exposed timber roof and toplighting. It forms a sensitive addition, Aldington describing Collinge as the only architect who ever designed like me'. Clayton House is unusual in Aldington's early houses in being unconstrained by its site; there was no village context or neighbours to which he had to relate. The result is a purer piece of modernism, with a flat roof, where emphasis is given to the natural finishes and expression of the brick, timber and concrete used with greater sophistication and sense of luxury than in his earlier works. It is also the first example of Aldington's later preoccupation with tight pods, for bathrooms and staircases, contrasted with more open-plan elements, that were to characterise his designs of the later 1960s and early 1970s, including the listed house at Goodleigh, North Devon. Despite this strong emphasis on a clearly expressed structure, `what is disarming about Prestwood is that none of the strictly self-imposed disciplines of its language are immediately obvious. This is because there is evidence of enjoyment in the design process and of considerable architectural verve' (Architectural Review, August 1971, p.76). Here Aldington had a more wealthy client than was usual, though direct labour ensured a relatively modest cost, and the finishes are more careful than in other works, the quality more obvious. It is also the first house in which Alderton was assisted by John Craig, with whom he formed a partnership in 1970. Sources; House and Garden, September 1970. Bauzeitung, March 1971, pp.266-7. Architectural Review, August 1971, pp.76-80.

Listing NGR: SP8798500371

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q26666981

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  Historic Environment Law: Planning, Listed Buildings, Monuments, Conservation Areas and Objects by Harwood, Richard (2012) Paperback
• 
  Specifications for Building Conservation: Volume 1: External Structure: Practical Examples v. 2
• 
  London 1: The City of London: City of London v. 1 (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Suffolk: West: The Buildings of England (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Historic Environment Law: Planning, Listed Buildings, Monuments, Conservation Areas and Objects, Supplement 2014
• 
  A Buying and Owning a Listed Building: A Brief Guide