Kensington Palace

This architectural object is inspired by Kensington Palace, on the western edge of Kensington Gardens — one of London's best-loved royal residences and a building shaped, at the very start of his career, by Nicholas Hawksmoor. When William III and Mary II bought the modest Jacobean Nottingham House in 1689, they turned to Sir Christopher Wren to make it fit for a king and queen; Wren's clerk of works on the project was the young Hawksmoor, told to build quickly and cheaply — which is why the palace is brick rather than stone, and why the monarchs were able to move in by Christmas Eve 1689.

Kensington Palace is Grade I listed. Birthplace of Queen Victoria in 1819, later the London home of Diana, Princess of Wales, and today the official residence of the Prince and Princess of Wales, it has been in royal use, in one form or another, for more than three centuries. Its State Apartments and gardens are open to the public as one of the Historic Royal Palaces.

Read the full Kensington Palace architecture guide

 

A palace made from a house

 

Where Greenwich and Hawksmoor's churches are monumental and theatrical, Kensington is domestic in scale and warm in material — red brick with stone dressings, comfortable rather than commanding. It was never a grand state palace on the scale of Versailles or Hampton Court; it was a royal home, built quickly, extended piecemeal by successive monarchs, and adorned over time by some of the finest craftsmen of the age. It is the great surviving example of the Baroque art of adaptation.

This architectural object captures the brick palace front, the elevation that gives Kensington its unmistakable character:

• the warm red brickwork with its stone dressings
• the calm, regular rhythm of windows across the façade
• the domestic, human scale that sets Kensington apart from London's grander stone palaces
• the quiet dignity of a building that has been lived in by royalty for over 300 years

 

Why Kensington Palace works as an architectural object

 

The building translates with exceptional power into object form because its architecture is governed by:

• proportion, material, and texture rather than dramatic ornament — exactly what survives reduction to plaster
• the character of the brick, which gives the piece its identity at any scale
• a restrained, dignified façade that reads clearly as a complete composition

Rather than functioning as a literal miniature, this object captures the architectural character of Kensington Palace.

 

Craft, materials, and finish

 

Each Kensington Palace object is hand-cast in fine plaster with etched metal detailing and finished by hand in our West Sussex studio. A raking light from one side will bring out the texture of the brick and the depth of the window openings.

The result is an object that sits naturally within:

• architectural and design studios
• curated interiors
• bookshelves and workspaces

It appeals to architects, lovers of the English Baroque, admirers of London's royal landmarks, and followers of royal history alike.

 

A royal home, from William and Mary to today

 

Kensington occupies a particular place in British affection — less grand than Buckingham Palace, less ceremonial than Windsor, but more human in scale and more continuously lived in. It is bound up with the personal histories of the monarchy: Victoria's childhood, Diana's residence, and the royal family of the present day. Architecturally, it is proof of what Wren and Hawksmoor could do not when building from scratch, but when taking an ordinary house and, without grandeur or vast expense, making it royal.

 

Product details

 

• Subject: Kensington Palace, Kensington Gardens, London W8 4PX
• Architects: Sir Christopher Wren (1689–1695) with Nicholas Hawksmoor (clerk of works); State Apartment interiors later by William Kent
• Original house: Nottingham House, c. 1605
• Architectural style: English Baroque (red brick)
• Designation: Grade I listed
• Of note: birthplace of Queen Victoria (1819); a working royal residence
• Designed and made by: Chisel & Mouse

 

Learn more about Kensington Palace

 

For the full story of the building — the house it grew from, the brick palace Wren and Hawksmoor built in a hurry, the Orangery, and the royal lives lived within — see our in-depth architecture guide:

Kensington Palace Architecture: Wren, Hawksmoor, and a Palace Made from a House