Photos: Ed Reeve

About Adjaye Associates

Adjaye Associates was established in June 2000 by Founder and Principal, Sir David Adjaye OBE. Receiving ever-increasing worldwide attention, the firm has offices in Accra, London, and New York and completed work in Europe, North America, the Middle East, Asia, and Africa. The practice’s largest commission to date, the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, opened in 2016 on the National Mall in Washington D.C.

Select completed works include Ruby City in San Antonio, Texas, a contemporary art gallery for the Linda Pace Foundation; (2019); Ghana Freedom, the first Ghana Pavilion at the 58th International Venice Art Biennale (2019); Sugar Hill museum and housing development in Harlem, New York (2015); the Aishti Foundation arts and shopping complex in Beirut, Lebanon (2015); Alara Concept Store in Lagos, Nigeria (2014); Marian Goodman Gallery, London (2014); the Ethelbert Cooper Gallery of African and African American Art at the Hutchins Centre, Harvard University (2014); two neighborhood libraries in Washington DC (2012); the Moscow School of Management SKOLKOVO (2010); the Stephen Lawrence Centre in London (2007); the Museum of Contemporary Art in Denver (2007); Rivington Place Gallery in London (2007); The Nobel Peace Centre in Oslo (2005); and the Idea Stores in Tower Hamlets, London (2004 and 2005) – two pioneering community libraries in London’s Tower Hamlets.

Selected current projects include 130 William, a high rise residential tower in Manhattan, New York; the National Cathedral of Ghana in Accra, Ghana; the UK’s first National Holocaust Memorial and Education Centre in London, UK; a new home for The Studio Museum in Harlem, New York; offices for the International Financial Corporation in Dakar, Senegal; and a new facility for the Princeton University Art Museum.

This is a look at the exterior of the house from the vantage of the street showcasing the unique triangular edge of the property.

This is a front view of the house with a warm sand stone tone to its exterior walls paired with glass windows and red brick outer walls.

This is a look at the glass doors of the house that retract topped with wooden slats at the top.

Upon entry of the house, you are welcomed by this spacious foyer with tall white walls and concrete gray tall ceiling.

This is the landing of the house with hardwood flooring and a potted plant on the far side by the tall window.

This is a look at the wooden staircase of the house that pair well with the flooring complemented by the industrial style gray concrete walls and ceiling.

This is a close look at the home office with a large wooden desk by the wooden railing of the staircase topped with a set of skylights that can be opened and closed.

This area is another home office with a small room through an archway by the tall-ceilinged workshop area.

This is a close look at a sink area by the entrance with a large stone sink built into the white wall topped with an artwork.

This is the dining area with a large wooden round dining table surrounded by dark brown chairs and illuminated by the glass walls.

This is the living room with a large dark L-shaped sectional sofa facing a set of built-in bookshelves across from the dining area on the far side.

This is a close look at the decorative stone structures of the landscaping that surrounds the house along with tall brick walls.

This is a look at the house exterior showcasing the sandstone tone adorned with large windows, tall trees and wooden slats.

Mole House is a three-story live-work space in the heart of Hackney, designed as a single-family dwelling for contemporary artist Sue Webster. The project came together as an exercise in excavation and retention, with Webster’s vision for the new home being strongly tied to the history and fabric of the original building.

The detached Victorian house was left vacant and derelict after a 40-year long tenancy, held by a resident locally referred to as the Hackney Mole Man. Known for having spent years burrowing a network of tunnels beneath the property, his decades of organic digging yielded a subterranean system of multi-directional passageways. With the quarrying having seriously compromised structural integrity, the house was eventually seized and excavated.

Its burrows were plugged with aerated concrete to re-establish structural safety and over 33 tonnes of debris was removed from the site. Webster was compelled by the potential of the standalone property, captivated by its accumulated layers of history – both architectural and social.

The resulting conversion celebrates the legacy of this unique site, preserving authenticity with new additions that clearly delineate from existing elements. The design is born from an archaeological exercise, a gradual reveal of time through the process of excavation – an unearthing of up to 2,000 tonnes of filler concrete revealing several years of fossilized domestic history.

The re-instated building occupies a triangular plot and has been expanded at the basement level, offering newly configured open-plan living spaces, each surrounded by a sunken landscaped garden along its perimeter. There are multiple entrances to the house, a reflection of the unearthed tunnels beneath, two of these entrances are directly accessible from the driveway, and Mortimer Road, one guides you to the lower ground floor studio and the other to the main house living space.

There is also an entrance to the house via a set of steps that lead to the front garden and eventually to the studio and the rear garden. With this careful and methodical excavation, you can experience the uncovered pieces of history, moments of a previous time, that are exposed as you walk around the garden.

Externally, the original masonry fabric is preserved, with 15,000 reclaimed London bricks used to supplant areas of excess damage. The exterior render is retained, expressing the building’s derelict bunker-like appearance. New concrete bay windows bordered by patinated bronze frames protrude beneath a concrete band, slicing horizontally through height of the house.

Internally, a cross-shaped concrete structure in the centre of the plan divides each floor into four zones, supporting new floor slabs and bracing external walls. Original internal walls and floors have been removed completely, having either collapsed or eroded beyond repair.

An existing party wall that once divided the property into two houses has also been demolished, creating a more expansive, flexible, and unified space. Interior volumes are characterised by a minimal material palette of exposed concrete and timber, with a cantilevered staircase descending into a lofty, light-filled basement studio.

The upper floor, which has been heavily reinforced following fire damage and corrosion, is punctured by a large, openable skylight. Natural light permeates throughout the residence, filtering in through full-height windows and doors that line each storey. The building has been excavated to below street level, solidifying existing foundations and providing extended contemporary living space.

A singular slate sheet replaces the building’s original gable-end pitched roof, providing material contrast with the external brick, whilst tonally conversing with the window and door frames, as well as the fencing introduced within the site’s landscaped garden. Mole House demonstrates a combined vision between client and architect that exalts urban, tactile and personal histories. Its design approach is defined by considered restoration, material authenticity, and elevated functionality