12th Century Castle Renovation Wins 2013 RIBA Prize

Architectural firm Witherford Watson Mann has won the 2013 RIBA Stirling Prize, an annual award recognizing the ideal in British architecture, for their refurbishment of the 12th Century Astley Castle in Warwickshire, England.

In singling out the project for “demonstrating creativity, preservation and conservation,” the Royal Institute of British Architects has selected to shine a spotlight on the architectural redemption of an original 12th Century edifice and its subsequent iterations—additions and renovations spanning centuries, and culminating in a ruinous 1978 fire.

Rescued by Britain’s Landmark Trust, and slated to be a guesthouse, Astley Castle’s medieval walls stay standing, gashes and all, with the new meticulously detailed construction—comprised of brick, concrete and wood—situated completely within the ancient footprint, visually enriched by the Castle’s imperfect remains. As the architects explain, “The house is animated by slashes of sunlight on stone walls and views more than the ancient landscape. At the dining table, you look out from twelfth and twenty-first century building to fifteenth and 6teenth century walls – the dialogue across the centuries frames conversations between close friends.”

This 21st Century permutation of Astley Castle is, says RIBA, “An critical piece of architecture, beautifully detailed and crafted.”

Pictures: RIBA