André Bisson MCIAT won the Alan King Award 2009 for his project Le Rocher in Guernsey.

Le Rocher has been designed to provide an elegant solution to extend the existing property within a constrained site. The concept was a simple, yet effective one; to mirror the existing gable structure on exactly the same footprint and dimension, leaving a 2000mm gap between the new and existing structures which could then be linked together via a fully glazed atrium.

“This is a proud achievement for my practice,” says André Bisson MCIAT, Director. “Although we are a small practice, we are a very busy one. Myself, associates and family are all extremely proud especially bearing in mind that we live on such a small island, it was totally beyond our expectations to be informed that we were the winners of this Award.”

Asked which part of the project he is most proud of, André replies: “It is difficult to single out my favourite— there are many aspects of this project that I am very proud of. If I had to pick one, I would say that my favourite spot in the house is at the base of the new feature main staircase. From here you can view all aspects of the inner spaces. Both atriums are visible together with the variety of special effect LED lighting.”

Being a self practitioner, I asked André if he had any trademarks that he incorporated into the scheme. “Yes, a very small detail, but to us an important one! In every project we have been involved with over the past four years we have had heavy involvement with designing the lighting layouts, to the extent that we have sourced our own supplier of LED door bells! This may sound insignificant, however these are very difficult to come across in the UK. We as a practice always have and always will supply the door bells for our clients. This is a very minor trademark feature which, together with the extensive use of LED lighting, we hope will be a reflection of our work in the future.”

One area that did receive intense research was the lighting and electrical installation, as the property is now a very large home at just under 6,500sqft. The electrical running costs were taken into consideration and the entire house was rewired with low energy downlighter fittings to replace the existing halogen units. Within the new works, including the alterations to the existing dwelling, LED fittings became the dominant devices, each unit being only one watt which enabled A7 Design to install special effect lights in mass quantities throughout the build. With a 50 year guarantee the bulbs will never need changing and the units themselves are encased in stainless steel to endure the test of time against all weather conditions.

With any project, there is always a challenge and for André there were quite a few. “The challenges for me ranged from designing the bespoke audio wall and lighting without any penetration to the ceilings above. I suppose the most important one we faced as a team was to complete the project on a budget and on time for the summer of 2009.”

I then asked André what his greatest influence was when working on the project. “I am not sure that I had any real influences. I do have a personal issue with symmetry and do try to incorporate this element within all aspects of my work.” André began his architectural career in 1991 as an apprentice Architectural Technician and twelve years later, after becoming a director of his previous practice, André went for a career change and set up on his own in May 2003.

Speaking of his success, André said: “I hope that us being a very small practice on a very small island will inspire future members to enter the Award in the future. We are sure that there are many projects and Architectural Technologists and Architectural Technicians in the industry who deserve recognition for their hard work and contribution to architecture of our times. The Award does feel more personal to me and we are very proud to say that we are a member of the Institute and that they have awarded us with this as recognition for our work. We thoroughly enjoyed the well organised Award ceremony and I would like to say a big thank you to the Institute for selecting us as winners.”

Current projects are a wide variety of domestic projects ranging from small extensions and conversions to new builds. André received a certificate and cheque for £1500. A plaque for permanent attachment to the project will be presented later this year.