World Architecture Festival Finalist 2026

13 July 2026

We’re delighted to announce that Menai House has been shortlisted for the World Architecture Festival Future Projects – House category award!

 

Designed for an invited competition, the project is set within the Anglesey Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) in Wales. 

 

Menai House is a 13,500 sqft new-build residence overlooking the incredible views of the Menai Strait and Snowdonia mountain range of North Wales beyond, responding to the client’s ambitions for a contemporary, elegant and understated home that sits quietly within the AONB.

 

To minimise the impact on the rural landscape, our design is conceived as a habitable stratum – a contemporary layer woven into the timeline of the existing rock. By embedding the building into the landscape, we anchor the architecture into the earth while projecting the living spaces toward the unencumbered views and distant hills.

 

The project extends its sensitivity to the land through a biodiversity-positive approach to the landscaping in collaboration with Marcus Barnett Studio. Native planting restored meadows and new hedgerow networks supporting habitat connectivity which aligns with the existing ecology allowing the landscape to thrive.

 

The result is a dialogue between the raw, ancient texture of the land, and the needs of sleek modern shelter, framing the vastness of the views through a lens of absolute tranquility.

 

To view our entry and other WAF finalists, click here.