By: Nigel F. Maynard

Project: Sutton House / Location: Sutton, Québec, Canada / Architect: Pelletier de Fontenay, Montreal / Landscape Design: Friche Atelier / Photos: James Brittain

Set within the landscape of Quebec’s Eastern Townships, Sutton House was originally built in 1908 and then modestly expanded in the 1950s. It remained almost unchanged since that time.

Sutton House has heavy stone walls, hulking geometry and oversized chimneys that give the building the look and feel of a small manor rather than a traditional country home. Inside, small windows and the unusual layout made the space feel awkward and narrow, while the mismatched exterior stone walls were held together by an inappropriate grey cement mortar, which took away from the natural appeal of the stone.

The home’s owners asked Montreal-based architectural studio Pelletier de Fontenay to conserve as much of the original building and structure as possible, while entirely reorganizing the inside, improving thermal efficiency and expanding the ground floor to generate strong new connections with the surrounding landscape.

[ Read More: A 1970s Chalet in Montreal Gets a Modern Renovation ]

“Central to the design is the idea of merging three distinct construction periods into a cohesive whole,” the architects say. “Rather than creating a contrasting language with its new additions, or trying to mimic the existing building, the project offers a more ambiguous dialogue between old and new, drawing upon the original house’s architectural language to establish a distinctive yet coherent architectural form. The project reinterprets the strong expression of the existing by adding new forms that are both in continuity with the old and unmistakably contemporary.”

For the ground floor addition, the architects echoed the character of the existing structure, giving the new volume primitive, thick walls and deep roof overhangs. Three distinct blocks containing storage and a fireplace frame wide views of the surrounding landscape and support the large overhanging roof, which extends the living spaces outwards onto a series of terraces, pathways and gardens. The low horizontal profile of the addition allows the existing pitched roofs to remain intact and clearly legible.

On the upper floor, a fully glazed roof dormer opens up above the original addition, signaling the presence of the contemporary extension and the radical transformation inside. Behind the house, the new chimney extends vertically well above the roof, reinforcing the interconnection with the two other existing tall chimneys, each one characterizing a different architectural period.

[ Read More: A Utah Residence Uniquely Shaped by its Site ]

Materiality is a key aspect of the design. Pelletier de Fontenay developed custom white cementitious coatings to cover old and new facades, as well as all the walls inside the home. This produces a cohesive visual language throughout the house.

“These assorted white mineral finishes unify the different areas of the house, while still allowing the material texture behind to come through,” say the architects, who  developed the lime and cement coatings in close collaboration with local artisans to provide a subtle, tactile finish that will continue to patina over time. “They also give the house a very different expression depending on the season: in the summer, the bright white facades stand out against the lush greenery that surrounds the house, while in winter, the house fades into the snowy monochromatic landscape in an almost evanescent way,” the firm says.

Improving the thermal performance of the building envelope, preserving the house’s existing character, was a major part of the renovation. In order to preserve the monolithic aspect of the walls and protect the stone from possible decay, the entire house and addition were insulated from the inside with a new hemp layer, a bio-sourced material known for its breathability, good R-value and humidity control. “Inside, the interior walls were lined with an intelligent vapor barrier and parged with a natural lime finish, allowing the walls to breathe naturally, while still achieving good air and vapor control and high R-value,” the architect says.

[ Read More: A Modest L.A. Bungalow That Went from Boring to Boss ]

The team added new high-performance wood windows to improve the thermal performance of the home, and completely refurbished the original fireplaces to meet new building standards. Wherever possible, they favored locally-sourced natural materials and repurposed original components to keep as much of the house’s original character.

“In the main living room, some of the original timber beams were preserved and repurposed,” the architects say. “In the extension and main entrance, local St-Marc limestone was used for the flooring. Outside the house, fieldstones unearthed during excavation, and flagstones sourced from a local quarry, were incorporated into the landscape design. Throughout the house, the selected materials were kept raw, modest, and in line with the character of the original architecture.”

Pelletier de Fontenay also used passive strategies to reduce energy consumption and maintain a comfortable interior climate throughout the year. A gentle berm around the house minimized the amount of required excavation, lowered the quantity of exposed exterior basement walls and helped blend the house with the landscape. The stepped configuration of the ground floor also helped lower the building’s overall footprint and created a natural airflow between the spaces towards the upper level. “In the summer, this helps to naturally ventilate the common spaces, while in winter, the warm air is captured and redistributed through the house via the high-efficiency heat recovery mechanical system.”

It turns out, some of the home’s features also help with its passive strategies. The façades were designed to help regulate the climate according to the season, while deep stone walls and the roof overhangs help protect the new windows and walls from harsh weather but also help to reduce thermal gains during hot summer months. In the winter, the largely glazed south-facing façades and radiant stone floors help capture and store passive solar gains, reducing the need for mechanical heating.