Architects of Skye
Neil and Ruaraidh discuss the finer points of a new design
Skye has become a showcase for stunning architecture in amazing locations. Dotted around the island are modern takes on traditional crofthouses, clean and crisp minimalist “sheds”, and wood clad longhouses. Made with a mix of traditional and modern materials, they ooze quality, warmth and precision.
Dualchas are responsible for a lot of this innovation. Pictured are Dualchas directors Neil (light shirt) and Rauraidh, working into the night on their latest plans for their new design while enjoying the comforts of one of their own buildings.
Dualchas Architects specialise in contemporary residential architecture in the Highlands and Islands. The practice was founded in 1996 by brothers Alasdair and Neil Stephen on the Isle of Skye, where they grew up. They have been been joined by fellow director Ruaraidh Flyn, who unbeknownst to them holidayed on Skye as a child and played on the same beach where their grandmothers lived a few miles apart.
The name Dualchas means ‘heritage’ in Gaelic, and reflects the practice’s ethos of creating buildings that respond to the landscape, culture and history of the place. Dualchas has won several awards for its projects, such as the Cliff House, the Black House, and the House at Borreraig.
They also practice what they preach. This is Neil’s own house. He moved his family in during 2022 once construction was complete. It has beautifully warm clay plastered walls, terrazzo features and flooring made from locally quarried stone by Joel Franlyn who lives down the road, and cross-laminated timber roof, all clad in larch. The outlook over the Cuillin mountains is the icing on the cake.
Balancing the outside light and the inside light with off-camera flash.
Photographically this was a tricky assignment. Any time you are photographing inside a building, it’s vital to balance the light on the inside and the outside. Not getting this right makes for either a very tedious amount of editing, or otherwise just a poor set of pictures.
As I arrived at Neil’s place in Achancloich I was watching the sky nervously. A had to get a number of compositions done in a short period of time when the sun had set and it hadn’t got too dark to lose the detail in the outside view, which is spectacular. Having not had a chance to recce the house beforehand, I was going in cold.
The cold didn’t last much once I’d gone into the house though. The textures and materials ooze warmth and comfort, even though the lines are really crisp and straight everywhere. It must be very tricky to get this mix of feeling and precision aligned so well (which is why they win all these awards I imagine). Once I was inside, it was obvious that the lounge area with the feature window was the spot to focus on. The whole house is designed to draw you to that very spot.
Wowza - look at that view! Purposefully silhouetted for drama.
I primarily used my Leica Q3 for this shoot. It’s small, very fast to use, and not in any way “in your face”. I also had an off-camera flash set up. This is a really important addition to balance and shape light in a scene. I trigger this flash using a radio transmitter which plugs onto the camera’s hotshoe, and sends a signal to a matched receiver which is plugged into the flash. The flash was set up in a mini softbox to soften the light nicely. Knowing I wasn’t going to have much time I had everything ready to go before I arrived.
After running through a number of “scenes” inside, I went outside to capture some of the context of the building in its surroundings. By this time it was very much into “blue hour”, with the light almost gone. I really liked the contrast of the warm orange tones from inside the house and the blueness outside. Seeing the simplicity of the house and its clean lines sitting partially obscured among the rocks and grasses really demonstrates the whole ethos of the Dualchas team.
Inviting? Definitely.