ADAM RICHARDS architect

Designed by Richards as a contemporary home for himself, his wife and their three children, Nithurst Farm in the South Downs National Park, Sussex, was shortlisted for RIBA House of the Year in 2019

‘ We didn’t want a kitchen that looks like a kitchen – we wanted it to feel like a natural part of the larger space’

The 1979 Tarkovsky film Stalker, which is about a journey into a forbidden zone where dreams come true, influenced the design of the house. The characters pass through an antechamber and our main kitchen, dining and living space is modelled on this.

We didn’t want a kitchen that looks like a kitchen – we wanted it to feel like a natural part of the larger space. I hate overhead cupboards, so we have an island for storage instead. As well as pull-out drawers, there’s space for two dishwashers. It’s a forum for family life.

There’s a good tea-making triangle between the island, the kettle and the fridge, which is in the larder. We have high-level cupboards in there that are out of sight, alongside a wall of open shelves. My wife never closes doors, so there was no point putting one in there.

The top of the island is an old slate billiards table and the other surfaces are zinc. The great thing about zinc is that it immediately marks and gains a patina. That really chimes with the house because, even though it’s modern, we’re trying to achieve the character of somewhere ancient without faking it.

The pink wool curtains were inspired by a detail in the medieval painting Saint Jerome in his Study by Hendrik van Steenwijk II. I knew that this big space would need softening and the pink fabric looks lovely against the grey walls.

We picked up the dining table at auction. It’s great that it’s round, partly because there are five of us, and partly because it echoes the circle of the arched window (adamrichards.co.uk).