Corsica Street II
London N5
Architect: Paxton Locher
Register for similar homesAn immaculately presented 3-bedroom apartment just off Highbury Fields, designed by the eminent architects Paxton Locher.
Accommodation
amounts to approximately 1,400 sq ft. On the ground floor is an
entrance hall (with hanging space for coats), leading to a reception room and open-plan kitchen /
dining room. This double-height space has huge windows and is ideal
for entertaining. Also on the ground floor is a bedroom with en-suite
shower room, a cloakroom, and a large utility / larder off the reception
room.
From the kitchen, a glass and steel spiral staircase leads up to a
mezzanine study area of structural glass, fronted with climbing plants.
Also on the first floor are two double bedrooms, each with en-suite
bathrooms and large windows that overlook the main living space.
The
apartment has been refurbished to a very high standard. It
forms part of a building that was converted into offices and flats by
Paxton Locher in the 1990s. The building is quietly located on Corsica
Street, and is accessed via an electrically operated shutter gate. This
particular apartment is situated at the rear, with views of the
handsome Georgian houses on Highbury Place.
Paxton Locher have
gained a reputation for turning difficult sites into spectacularly
inventive homes for both themselves and their clients (for more
information about the architects, see the History
section below). These are characterised by their large, light living spaces,
overlooked from first-floor level through glazed panels. Climbing
plants are used on internal walls to bring the outdoors in, and steel and glass are the primary materials.
Highbury
& Islington Underground station (Victoria Line) is nearby, and
buses run regularly to Angel Underground station (Northern Line). Upper
Street, with its popular bars, restaurants and shops, is within easy
walking distance. More local shops are available at Highbury Barn, and
there is a deli on Corsica Street itself. The apartment is just around the corner from the open spaces of Highbury Fields.
Click here for a MAP.
Tenure: Leasehold
Lease: 999 years from June 1990
Service Charge: £1,107.60 per annum
Buildings Insurance: £328.35 per annum
Please note that all areas, measurements and distances given in these particulars are approximate and rounded. The text, photographs and floor plans are for general guidance only. The Modern House has not tested any services, appliances or specific fittings — prospective purchasers are advised to inspect the property themselves. All fixtures, fittings and furniture not specifically itemised within these particulars are deemed removable by the vendor.
History
The late Richard Paxton studied architecture at Kingston University,
and went on to work in the offices of Ahrends, Burton & Koralek,
where he was involved in the design of the Cummins Diesel Factory in
Scotland and the Sainsbury’s supermarket in Canterbury. In 1985 he
established his own practice with his future wife, Heidi Locher, who
had formerly worked for Terence Conran.
Paxton
Locher have been responsible for the design of the Soho Theatre and the
Jerwood Space in Southwark, but perhaps their most significant
contribution to architecture has been the imaginative domestic projects
they have undertaken both for themselves and for distinguished clients
(including Douglas Adams and Griff Rhys Jones). Notable among these is a house on Clerkenwell Green (currently for sale with The Modern House) and others in Primrose Hill and Hampstead.
In
an article in Grand Designs, Kevin McCloud wrote of Paxton’s work
“…above all else, what impresses me is how Richard understood the idea
of enclosure. For him walls didn’t exist to support the roof but to
provide shelter and comfort. He knew how to articulate the shapes in a
building to make you feel relaxed, nurtured and protected. He
understood that great Corbusian truth, that the business of
architecture is to create relationships: with a building, with people
and with the world at large.”
