ABOUT
Architecture, but personal.
I’m Dan, the designer behind Dan Ash Design.
I’m an architectural designer with a particular interest in residential architecture and the relationship between the spaces we live in and the way we experience everyday life. I started Dan Ash Design because I wanted to create a more personal approach to residential design — one built around listening carefully, understanding what people actually need, and creating architecture that feels considered rather than simply impressive. I’m interested in the details that can make a real difference to a home: the quality of light, the relationship with the garden, how spaces flow together, where you can retreat, and how a building can evolve with the people who live in it.
I’ve always been fascinated by the way buildings shape everyday life. Architecture can be experienced in big gestures, but I’m increasingly interested in the smaller moments — the morning light entering a bedroom, a view across a garden, a kitchen becoming the centre of a home, or a quiet room providing somewhere to switch off. These are the things that make a building feel like a place rather than simply a building. That is what I want my work to explore.
I wanted to build a practice where the relationship between designer and client is direct. For me, good residential design starts with a conversation rather than a predetermined solution. I want clients to feel involved in the process and confident that the design responds to their particular circumstances, rather than being a version of something that has been done before. As an independent designer, I can keep that relationship personal from the first conversation through to the finished project.
WHAT I’M INTERESTED IN
Currently exploring
I’m particularly interested in developing a residential design practice focused on mental health, wellbeing and neurodiversity. Alongside my projects, I’m using the Journal to explore the research behind these ideas and to question how architecture can better support the people who inhabit it. The practice is still evolving, and that is intentional. I want the work to develop through projects, research, conversations and experience.
Beyond the drawings
I think good design requires curiosity. I’m constantly looking at buildings, landscapes, materials and the way people occupy spaces — whether that is through sketching, photography, reading, visiting places or simply paying attention to how a space feels. The practice is an extension of that curiosity.
I’d be happy to hear about it.