Sutherland Hussey

Sutherland Hussey Architects was established in 1997 and is based in Edinburgh. The office has a diverse range of work ranging from large urban planning proposals and public and private commissions to small one-off commissions for private clients. Their portfolio of projects has come about through thirteen years of building up a reputation for high quality design and includes a range of work, from Master-planning to the design of Embassies, Hotels, Museums, Factories, Commercial developments and residential work.

Completed projects include private residences (The Barnhouse, Highgate was awarded the AJ First Building Award, 2002), an Art Gallery in Inverness and a cheese factory in Cornwall (awarded an RIBA award and the Civic Trust Special Award, 2003). Their Tiree arts project has one multiple awards. Recent work includes the Chengdu City Museum in Sichuan, China and the Archaeological Museum in Neihulang, Inner Mongolia, China.

"Our design proposal locates the Museum as a 'Crannog' – literally an artificial island sitting in the water. Scotland has a rich history of such constructions dating back some 5,000 years. They were traditionally constructed as timber-built roundhouses supported on piles or stilts driven into the loch-bed and connected back to the mainland via timber bridges. The same ideas apply to our proposal on a grand scale. A clear, simple form, monumental in scale yet compact in plan and connected back to the mainland by a large ramped bridge. There are other references that can be made – comparisons to Scottish castles, lighthouses, Dundee's industrial past, shipbuilding structures – strong and simple forms resilient in their exposed location."

The Sutherland Hussey V&A design team includes 3DReid Architects (Scotland), AECOM (Scotland), Moreham & Brotchie (Scotland), Gross Max (Scotland) and KSLD (Scotland).