One of their first tasks at the site was to lift the 170-year-old graduated Scotch slate roof. They relaid it over new pine sarking boards and stripped interior layers to reveal a massive granite lintel above a concealed fireplace. This is now at the heart of a bright and simple white kitchen. But they took their time to decide the function of the other buildings. The early months were spent planting 450 trees and establishing their garden – a small area that ‘just kept growing in size’, says Naomi.
The couple married at Ardoch in 2015 in an informal affair, with dinner hosted on the remaining concrete floor of the collapsed farm store, sheltered by a tarpaulin. It was held up by the steel frame of what is now the glasshouse, home to fruit trees and vegetables.
Attached to the glasshouse is a two-storey steading, now Naomi’s studio. Sculptures from Quiet Garden, her London Design Biennale installation in 2021, hang from the ceiling. At once solid and diaphanous, these recall the hanging wire pieces by the American artist Ruth Asawa, though
rendered in laser-cut local beech. Naomi’s ‘messy making’ happens in a nearby rebuilt shed, equipped with a lathe, laser cutter and steam-bending pipe. The steading is her sanctuary for drawing, which she has focused on for the past year, using inks concocted from plants foraged from her surroundings. ‘It’s a way to connect myself to the garden and to explore the seasons,’ she says, as she pens marks on paper that recall a murmuration of starlings.
Mountain views beyond the steading.
Martin Morrell
The longer the pair have spent at Ardoch, the more pared back their ideas have become. Ben’s initial notion when transforming another steading on site into a house for visiting friends was to add a glass box to maximise the view. ‘Thankfully, Naomi put a stop to that,’ he says. ‘I wanted the buildings to look like they did when we arrived, without any new openings,’ explains Naomi. ‘I kept saying it needed to be quiet and soft.’ Now, the steading’s original stone vernacular gives way to a minimalist temple lined with clay plaster from Clayworks and oak joinery.
Asked how she coped with the move, Naomi says, ‘I wasn’t daunted by the isolation. I’ve found a beautiful loneliness here.’ But should the urge for company strike, they have just the place to entertain: the blackhouse, built from Douglas fir by Ben in the ruins of what would have been the original farmhouse and equipped with a pizza oven. And Quarry Studios also houses a busy public café and a community space for yoga, where Naomi has occasionally taught.