Visitor experience very close to that enjoyed any time over the past century
Purcell for Snowdonia National Park Authority
Contract value: Confidential
GIA: 784m²
Hedd Wyn was killed in 1917 at Passchendaele a few weeks before he won the Chair of the National Eisteddfod, the ultimate prize for poetry written in Welsh. His story draws thousands of admiring visitors to his remote farmstead, now a museum.
Today’s visitor experience seems very close to that which would have been enjoyed at any time over the past century, despite the significant architectural interventions that have transformed the site into an efficient and sustainable cultural attraction. The reception is in a gently remodelled stone barn. A hay shed to the rear is now a beautiful small café space. The first exhibition space is a new barn set into the slope. A winding path leads upwards to the old farmhouse, now with invisible environmental controls. A second, discreet new barn means that the farm continues to shape and to conserve the natural environment.
Conservation Award
Project Architect of the Year sponsored by Taylor Maxwell: Elgan Jones
RSAW Building of the Year sponsored by Artifice Press
See other winners in the RIBA Regional Awards – Wales