It Was Modern Before Mid-Century. Check out a Sleek English House That Predates WWII.

Listing of the Day

Location: Penselwood, Somerset, England

Price: £2.95 million (US$3.68 million)

An early example of modernist residential architecture in England is this 1935 landmark in Somerset, built with clean horizontal lines and walls of windows. 

It was constructed in a secluded wooded plot for leading English composer Sir Arthur Bliss as a summer work retreat and has hosted some of the most creative individuals of the 20th century.

 Bliss wrote several of his notable musical works at the house; his woodland music studio, along with the house and its impressive gardens have been carefully preserved by its current owners, who are architects. 

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The modernist property, which lies in Penselwood village, is a now rural family home with curved elements, a cantilevered roof terrace and bands of steel framed windows.  

“The topography of the site has been cleverly translated through the architecture, capturing brilliant views, and setting a natural equilibrium between the house and its surrounding,” said selling agent Lucy Drane of the 25-acre property. “The gardens and woodland form an integral part of the overall experience of the home.”

During the time Arthur and his family lived there, the home was “a magnet for thinkers and artists,” according to the obituary of Arthur’s wife, Trudie. Artists Edward Wadsworth and Paul Nash were visitors and Nash also painted at the house. Dame Ninette de Valois and Robert Helpmann, both ballet dancers and choreographers, and the composers Gerald Finzi and Howard Ferguson, were other key visitors. 

One of Bliss’s most highly regarded works, “Checkmate,” was one of the first compositions produced in the Harland-designed music room, according to the listing agent. Bliss was knighted in 1950 and in 1953 was made Master of the Queen’s Music and composed some music for Elizabeth’s coronation.

In the Somerset house, there’s a dramatic, sunken reception room with high ceilings and steel-framed windows that overlooks the garden. Elsewhere, curved glass walls bow out into the garden. The home’s white-rendered exterior has black tiled exterior accents, pops of color and a woodland backdrop.

One of the bedrooms has glass doors opening onto the roof terrace overlooking treetops. In the main bedroom, an internal wall of glass panels divides it from the dressing room borrowing light from external windows. Other highlights include solid oak staircases, handmade built-in furniture and numerous outside terraces adjoining living spaces.

Architect Peter Harland designed the home, which has an official Grade II* listing that denotes it as a building of special architectural and/or historical interest. The music room, also by Harland, has its own historic designation in its own right. “It was originally conceived as a rural retreat, as somewhere Bliss could spend his summers composing in the music room set in the ancient woodland,” Drane added. In its 68-year history it has had just three owners.

Stats

The home has 2,640 square feet of living space and is on 25 acres of grounds. It has four bedrooms, two bathrooms, a partial bathroom and a range of additional outbuildings.

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Amenities

The property has plenty of space for guests. It has an attached one-bedroom studio bedroom with glazed walls and the aforementioned woodland music studio which has large windows. It also has a four-bedroom guest cottage with gardens which lie west of the main house. 

Its gardens were developed over many years with large swathes of lawns and woodland with a carpet of flowers in spring. Its main driveway has camellias, rhododendron and azaleas.

Neighborhood Notes 

The property lies in Penselwood, a small village on the western edge of Cranborne Chase, a protected area of chalk grassland. It lies four miles from Bruton town, which is a famed arty and foodie hot spot and a 20-minute drive from the town of Frome, known for its local artisans and food producers. The White Lion Inn bar, restaurant and rooms in Bourton village is a 20-minute walk.

Agent: Lucy Drane, The Modern House

View the original listing. 

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