A contemporary farmhouse described as having influences ranging from Vanbrugh to Tarkovsky and a three-storey family home tucked on to a site once occupied by a double garage are the first two projects shortlisted for the RIBA House of the Year 2019 award.

Adam Richards Architects’ Nithurst Farm in West Sussex is a 397sq m family home that brings a slice of Italian influence to a South Downs valley – and was said to have a “complex geometry” by the RIBA, which has already given it two South East Regional Awards and one National Award this year.

“You are never sure whether you are within, or looking at, a glorious rebuild, ruined folly, or a concrete villa that over time acquired an overcoat of rural respectability,” judges said. “It is this intriguing, but enjoyable dichotomy that successfully challenged our perceptions of both modern and vernacular architecture.”

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