Duggan Morris uses simple brickwork and golden steel for canalside housing
The zigzagging rooflines, handmade-brick walls and golden balconies of these Greater London housing blocks by Duggan Morris Architects are all references to the canalside setting (+ slideshow).
![Brentford Lock West by Duggan Morris](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/03/Brentford-Lock-West-Duggan-Morris-Apartments-_dezeen_468_4.jpg)
Duggan Morris was one of three firms chosen to design the first-phase buildings of the Brentford Lock West masterplan – a project to create 520 homes on a former industrial estate next to the Grand Union Canal on the outskirts of west London.
![Brentford Lock West by Duggan Morris](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/03/Brentford-Lock-West-Duggan-Morris-Apartments-_dezeen_468_9.jpg)
The brief called for 45 low-cost residential units and a strong visual relationship with the waterfront setting. The challenge was to mediate between the surroundings, which vary from the village-like buildings of a nearby conservation area to a series of industrial warehouses to the north. There are also several narrowboats moored nearby.
The site – known as Block G – was divided up into two halves to create a pair of five-storey buildings. Both feature gabled rooflines that create a zigzagging profile.
![Brentford Lock West by Duggan Morris](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/03/Brentford-Lock-West-Duggan-Morris-Apartments-_dezeen_468_11.jpg)
"The buildings are conceived as cranked blocks following a meandering neighbourhood street held together by a large base plinth," explained architect Joe Morris.
![Brentford Lock West by Duggan Morris](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/03/Brentford-Lock-West-Duggan-Morris-Apartments-_dezeen_468_2.jpg)
"The roof structure evokes the forms of the nearby waterside sheds with their series of inverted pitched roofs," he said. "Each block is divided into three bays; this articulation breaks the overall massing of the two blocks resulting in a stronger spatial experience."
![Brentford Lock West by Duggan Morris](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/03/Brentford-Lock-West-Duggan-Morris-Apartments-_dezeen_468_6.jpg)
Both buildings have a concrete framework, but the predominant facade material is brick. A handmade variety by West Sussex manufacturer Freshfield Lane was selected, offering hues of red, brown and blue.
![Brentford Lock West by Duggan Morris](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/03/Brentford-Lock-West-Duggan-Morris-Apartments-_dezeen_468_10.jpg)
Upright brick courses run between the tall narrow windows, creating subtle horizontal stripes that resonate with the uprights of the powder-coated steel balconies.
![Brentford Lock West by Duggan Morris](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/03/Brentford-Lock-West-Duggan-Morris-Apartments-_dezeen_468_7.jpg)
"The lightness and fragility of the industrial sheds suggested the potential for a rich and varied language, with varying scales and appearance," said Morris.
![Brentford Lock West by Duggan Morris](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/03/Brentford-Lock-West-Duggan-Morris-Apartments-_dezeen_468_8.jpg)
Four or five apartments occupy the floors of each block, and every home has at least one balcony. The majority of these face out over the water.
![Brentford Lock West by Duggan Morris](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/03/Brentford-Lock-West-Duggan-Morris-Apartments-_dezeen_468_0.jpg)
Block G was the first of the Brentford Lock West projects to complete. A block by London studio Riches Hawley Mikhail also finished recently, and the final scheme by Karakusevic Carson Architects is still underway. Combined, the three designs represent 150 new homes.
![Brentford Lock West by Duggan Morris](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/03/Brentford-Lock-West-Duggan-Morris-Apartments-_dezeen_468_1.jpg)
According to project architect Miranda MacLaren, all three firms worked on their plot separately but there was a collaborative approach to deliver a cohesive whole.
"There was no particular lead on the design, they all naturally compliment one another," she told Dezeen.
![Brentford Lock West by Duggan Morris](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/03/Brentford-Lock-West-Duggan-Morris-Apartments-_dezeen_468_5.jpg)
The next phase of the masterplan – which was drawn up by Swedish urban designers Tovatt, Klas Tham and Urbed – is now moving forward and will include 141 homes designed by west London studio Mae.
![Brentford Lock West by Duggan Morris](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/03/Brentford-Lock-West-Duggan-Morris-Apartments_dezeen_7.gif)
![Brentford Lock West by Duggan Morris](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/03/Brentford-Lock-West-Duggan-Morris-Apartments_dezeen_1.gif)
![Brentford Lock West by Duggan Morris](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/03/Brentford-Lock-West-Duggan-Morris-Apartments_dezeen_2.gif)
![Brentford Lock West by Duggan Morris](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/03/Brentford-Lock-West-Duggan-Morris-Apartments_dezeen_3.gif)
![Brentford Lock West by Duggan Morris](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/03/Brentford-Lock-West-Duggan-Morris-Apartments_dezeen_4.gif)
![Brentford Lock West by Duggan Morris](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/03/Brentford-Lock-West-Duggan-Morris-Apartments_dezeen_5.gif)