Peter Womersley was a British architect

Architect

An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...

, best known for his work in the modernist

Modern architecture

Modern architecture is generally characterized by simplification of form and creation of ornament from the structure and theme of the building. It is a term applied to an overarching movement, with its exact definition and scope varying widely...

 style. He lived in the Scottish Borders

Scottish Borders

The Scottish Borders is one of 32 local government council areas of Scotland. It is bordered by Dumfries and Galloway in the west, South Lanarkshire and West Lothian in the north west, City of Edinburgh, East Lothian, Midlothian to the north; and the non-metropolitan counties of Northumberland...

, where a number of his buildings are located, although he worked on projects throughout the UK. Influenced principally by the work of Frank Lloyd Wright

Frank Lloyd Wright

Frank Lloyd Wright was an American architect, interior designer, writer and educator, who designed more than 1,000 structures and completed 500 works. Wright believed in designing structures which were in harmony with humanity and its environment, a philosophy he called organic architecture...

, and by the American Case Study Houses

Case Study Houses

The Case Study Houses were experiments in American residential architecture sponsored by Arts & Architecture magazine, which commissioned major architects of the day, including Richard Neutra, Raphael Soriano, Craig Ellwood, Charles and Ray Eames, Pierre Koenig and Eero Saarinen, to design and...

, Womersley's buildings employ such typical modernist elements as in-situ concrete

Concrete

Concrete is a composite construction material, composed of cement and other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, aggregate , water and chemical admixtures.The word concrete comes from the Latin word...

 and strong geometric forms, although he introduced a wider palette of materials than was typically used by Le Corbusier

Le Corbusier

Charles-Édouard Jeanneret, better known as Le Corbusier , was a Swiss-born French architect, designer, urbanist, writer and painter, famous for being one of the pioneers of what now is called modern architecture. He was born in Switzerland and became a French citizen in 1930...

 and his followers.

Biography

Womersley was originally intending to study law at Cambridge University, but was called up for service in the Second World War. He saw little action, however, and from 1946–1951 he studied architecture at the Architectural Association in London. He spent time in Kuwait

Kuwait

The State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...

, where he assisted in the design of a palace for a sheikh

Sheikh

Not to be confused with sikhSheikh — also spelled Sheik or Shaikh, or transliterated as Shaykh — is an honorific in the Arabic language that literally means "elder" and carries the meaning "leader and/or governor"...

.
In 1952 he was admitted to the Royal Institute of British Architects

Royal Institute of British Architects

The Royal Institute of British Architects is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally.-History:...

, and shortly after won a bronze medal. This was for Farnley Hey, a house for Womersley's brother in Huddersfield

Huddersfield

Huddersfield is a large market town within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England, situated halfway between Leeds and Manchester. It lies north of London, and south of Bradford, the nearest city....

, which had been the architect's first commission.

His first commission was a house for his brother, John Womersley, at Farnley Tyas

Farnley Tyas

Farnley Tyas is a small village in West Yorkshire, England situated 3 miles south east of Huddersfield. It is located on a hilltop situated between Almondbury, Castle Hill, Thurstonland and Honley...

 near Huddersfield

Huddersfield

Huddersfield is a large market town within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England, situated halfway between Leeds and Manchester. It lies north of London, and south of Bradford, the nearest city....

. This house, known as Farnley Hey, won the Royal Institute of British Architects

Royal Institute of British Architects

The Royal Institute of British Architects is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally.-History:...

 bronze medal in 1958, and has been described as "one of the best demonstrations of the influence of Frank Lloyd Wright in Britain." The house is located in woodland, at the edge of a steep valley, and features pale lilac-coloured brickwork, extensive glazing, and timber boarding. Although designed in 1952, construction only began in 1954 after planning rules were changed. Womersley designed an extension in 1956.
Womersley then moved to the Scottish Borders

Scottish Borders

The Scottish Borders is one of 32 local government council areas of Scotland. It is bordered by Dumfries and Galloway in the west, South Lanarkshire and West Lothian in the north west, City of Edinburgh, East Lothian, Midlothian to the north; and the non-metropolitan counties of Northumberland...

, where he built The Rig, his home and studio in Gattonside

Gattonside

Gattonside is a small village in the Scottish Borders. It is located north of Melrose, on the north side of the River Tweed. In 1143, the lands of Gattonside were granted to the monks of Melrose Abbey by King David I...

 near Melrose, in 1957. The same year, he worked on a house for the textile artist Bernat Klein

Bernat Klein

Bernat Klein is a Serbian textile designer and painter. Based in Scotland, Klein supplied textiles to haute couture designers in the 1960s and 1970s, and later sold his own clothing collections.-Biography:...

 near Selkirk. This house, High Sunderland, was also located in dense woodland, within the parks of the 19th-century Sunderland Hall, and was decorated internally with fabrics of Klein's own designs. The modular design has been described as a forerunner to Benjamin's Mount (1967), a house by Ernő Goldfinger

Erno Goldfinger

Ernő Goldfinger was a Hungarian-born Jewish architect and designer of furniture, and a key member of the architectural Modern Movement after he had moved to the United Kingdom.-Biography:Goldfinger was born in Budapest...

. Womersley continued to concentrate on private houses, but obtained relatively few commissions. However, his practice began to take off in 1961 when he won the competition to design the Roxburgh County Offices (now the headquarters of Scottish Borders Council), and also gained a commission for a sports centre at the University of Hull

University of Hull

The University of Hull, known informally as Hull University, is an English university, founded in 1927, located in Hull, a city in the East Riding of Yorkshire...

. His practice remained small, with no more than five employees, but Womersley produced a number of notable buildings until the late 1970s.

The Nuffield Transplantation Surgery Unit (1963) at Edinburgh's Western General Hospital

Western General Hospital

The Western General Hospital , at Crewe Road, Edinburgh, Scotland is part of NHS Lothian, a Heath Board which provides a comprehensive range of adult and paediatric care to the people of Edinburgh, the Lothians and beyond.It is one of the main teaching hospitals affiliated to the University of...

 was "the first experimental building specifically designed for the transplantation of human organs." Other healthcare projects included an admissions unit for Haddington District Asylum (1963), now the Garlton Unit of Herdmanflat Hospital, and a GP's

General practitioner

A general practitioner is a medical practitioner who treats acute and chronic illnesses and provides preventive care and health education for all ages and both sexes. They have particular skills in treating people with multiple health issues and comorbidities...

 practice in Kelso. Collaborating with engineers Ove Arup

Ove Arup

Sir Ove Nyquist Arup, CBE, MICE, MIStructE known as Ove Arup, was a leading Anglo-Danish engineer and generally considered to be one of the foremost architectural structural engineers of his time...

, he designed a stadium for Gala Fairydean F.C.

Gala Fairydean F.C.

Gala Fairydean F.C. is a football club currently playing in Division 1 of the East of Scotland Football League.- History :Founded in 1907 as the result of a split in the Gala Fairydean Rovers club into Gala Fairydean and Gala Rovers, they play their home matches at the Netherdale ground in Galashiels...

 (1963), incorporating cantilever

Cantilever

A cantilever is a beam anchored at only one end. The beam carries the load to the support where it is resisted by moment and shear stress. Cantilever construction allows for overhanging structures without external bracing. Cantilevers can also be constructed with trusses or slabs.This is in...

ed structures of board-marked concrete to create the effect of a floating canopy. In 1969 he designed a studio for Bernat Klein, adjacent to High Sunderland. Strongly reminiscent of Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater

Fallingwater

Fallingwater or Kaufmann Residence is a house designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright in 1935 in rural southwestern Pennsylvania, 50 miles southeast of Pittsburgh...

, the studio remains Womersley's best-kmown building, and was nominated as one of Scotland's 100 "Treasured Places" in 2008. The same year he was commissioned to design an extension to Edinburgh College of Art

Edinburgh College of Art

Edinburgh College of Art is an art school in Edinburgh, Scotland, providing tertiary education in art and design disciplines for over two thousand students....

, but his highly articulated proposals were rejected. Later designs include the "sculptural" boiler house at the former Melrose District Asylum, and Monklands Leisure Centre in Coatbridge

Coatbridge

Coatbridge is a town in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, about east of Glasgow city centre, set in the central Lowlands. The town, with neighbouring Airdrie, is part of the Greater Glasgow urban area. The first settlement of the area stretches back to the Stone Age era...

 (both 1977).

High Sunderland and the Bernat Klein Studio are now protected as Category A listed buildings, the highest level of protection for a building in Scotland of "special architectural or historic interest". In addition, Gala Fairydean Stadium was listed at Category B in 2006, and The Rig and the Garlton Unit in Haddington were listed at Category B in 2007. In England, Farnley Hey is listed at Grade II by English Heritage

English Heritage

English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...

.

Significant works

Name	Location	Date	Notes	Coord.	Ref.
Farnley Hey	near Farnley Tyas Farnley Tyas Farnley Tyas is a small village in West Yorkshire, England situated 3 miles south east of Huddersfield. It is located on a hilltop situated between Almondbury, Castle Hill, Thurstonland and Honley... , Huddersfield Huddersfield Huddersfield is a large market town within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England, situated halfway between Leeds and Manchester. It lies north of London, and south of Bradford, the nearest city.... , West Yorkshire West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....	1952–1955	Private house for the architect's brother, extended by the architect 1956. Grade II listed.	53°36′43"N 1°46′16"W
High Sunderland	near Selkirk, Scottish Borders	1956	Private house for textile designer Bernat Klein. Category A listed.	55°34′28"N 2°50′12"W
The Rig	Gattonside Gattonside Gattonside is a small village in the Scottish Borders. It is located north of Melrose, on the north side of the River Tweed. In 1143, the lands of Gattonside were granted to the monks of Melrose Abbey by King David I... , Scottish Borders	1956	Womersley's own house and studio, converted into two houses by the architect in 1978. Category B listed.	55°36′28"N 2°43′32"W
Valley Spring	Bath, Somerset	1960s	House	51°21′24"N 2°21′41"W
House	Port Murray, Maidens Maidens Maidens is a village in South Ayrshire, Scotland.This picturesque fishing village lies on the Firth of Clyde coast, around north of Turnberry, and west of Maybole. It formerly had its own railway station on the Maidens and Dunure Light Railway.... , South Ayrshire South Ayrshire South Ayrshire is one of 32 council areas of Scotland, covering the southern part of Ayrshire. It borders onto East Ayrshire, North Ayrshire and Dumfries and Galloway....	1960–1963		55°19′57"N 4°49′42"W
Church Square	Galashiels Galashiels Galashiels is a burgh in the Scottish Borders, on the Gala Water river. The name is often shortened to "Gala" .Galashiels is a major commercial centre for the Scottish Borders... , Scottish Borders	1961		55°36′46"N 2°48′21"W
Murray and Sanderson offices	Galashiels, Scottish Borders	1961	Now occupied by Cameron Associates, architects	55°37′16"N 2°48′57"W
Fairydean Stadium	Galashiels, Scottish Borders	1963	Still in use, Category B listed.	55°36′23"N 2°47′03"W
North Lodge, Haddington District Asylum	Haddington, East Lothian Haddington, East Lothian The Royal Burgh of Haddington is a town in East Lothian, Scotland. It is the main administrative, cultural and geographical centre for East Lothian, which was known officially as Haddingtonshire before 1921. It lies about east of Edinburgh. The name Haddington is Anglo-Saxon, dating from the 6th...	1963	Now the Garlton Unit, psychiatric admission unit at Herdmanflat Hospital Herdmanflat Hospital Herdmanflat Hospital is a psychiatric hospital in Haddington, Scotland. It is operated by NHS Lothian. It is situated in Aberlady Road in Haddington.... . Category B listed.	55°57′37"N 2°47′17"W
Nuffield Transplantation Surgery Unit	Western General Hospital Western General Hospital The Western General Hospital , at Crewe Road, Edinburgh, Scotland is part of NHS Lothian, a Heath Board which provides a comprehensive range of adult and paediatric care to the people of Edinburgh, the Lothians and beyond.It is one of the main teaching hospitals affiliated to the University of... , Edinburgh Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...	1963	Still in use, extended in 2007 by Aitken Turnbull.	55°57′40"N 3°13′58"W
University of Hull University of Hull The University of Hull, known informally as Hull University, is an English university, founded in 1927, located in Hull, a city in the East Riding of Yorkshire...  Sports Centre	Kingston upon Hull Kingston upon Hull Kingston upon Hull , usually referred to as Hull, is a city and unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It stands on the River Hull at its junction with the Humber estuary, 25 miles inland from the North Sea. Hull has a resident population of... , East Riding of Yorkshire	1963–1965	Still in use, included on local buildings list by Hull City Council.	53°46′26"N 0°22′08"W
Edenside Group Practice Surgery & Caretaker's House	Kelso, Scottish Borders	1965	Still in use, though altered.	55°36′14"N 2°25′49"W
Roxburgh County Buildings	Newtown St Boswells, Scottish Borders	1966	Roxburgh County Buildings Phase I, following competition of 1961. Now the headquarters of Scottish Borders Council, with recent extensions	55°34′40"N 2°40′26"W
Bernat Klein Studio, High Sunderland	near Selkirk, Scottish Borders	1969	Studio adjacent to High Sunderland house, for textile designer Bernat Klein Bernat Klein Bernat Klein is a Serbian textile designer and painter. Based in Scotland, Klein supplied textiles to haute couture designers in the 1960s and 1970s, and later sold his own clothing collections.-Biography:... . Modified c.2006. Category A listed.	55°34′24"N 2°50′13"W
Midland Bank	New Street, Huddersfield Huddersfield Huddersfield is a large market town within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England, situated halfway between Leeds and Manchester. It lies north of London, and south of Bradford, the nearest city....	1971	Now HSBC	55°34′24"N 2°50′13"W
Boiler House, Melrose District Asylum	near Melrose, Scottish Borders	1977	Disused	55°35′28"N 2°43′44"W
Monklands Leisure Centre	Coatbridge Coatbridge Coatbridge is a town in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, about east of Glasgow city centre, set in the central Lowlands. The town, with neighbouring Airdrie, is part of the Greater Glasgow urban area. The first settlement of the area stretches back to the Stone Age era... , North Lanarkshire North Lanarkshire North Lanarkshire is one of 32 council areas in Scotland. It borders onto the northeast of the City of Glasgow and contains much of Glasgow's suburbs and commuter towns and villages. It also borders Stirling, Falkirk, East Dunbartonshire, West Lothian and South Lanarkshire...	1977	Still in use	55°51′35"N 4°02′08"W

External links

• Renovation of the Bernat Klein Studio, by Studio DuB Architects