“I find it strange that spaces that weren’t designed for living often make the best homes,” says documentary maker Jack Harries. He’s referring to the live/work space that he and his partner, photographer Alice Aedy, bought from The Modern House in 2019. The warehouse in which it sits was originally built for shoemaking a century ago – but today it’s where the couple runs Earthrise, the creative studio that aims to communicate the impacts of the climate crisis in a humane and accessible way.

Alice and Jack first fell in love with their apartment for the same reasons we did. Its address in Hackney, east London, between the open green spaces of London Fields and Victoria Park, is one of the borough’s most enviable. The 1920s building itself was even more enticing, likewise the light-filled double-height interior and industrial material palette of concrete, brick and steel. It had all the character the couple could ask for from an old warehouse, but it was yet to reflect their own personalities.

Once they got the keys, Alice and Jack decided to renovate, enlisting the assistance of architecture practice Studio McW (who we know from the refurbishment of this Edwardian house). The brief was to celebrate the original fabric of the former footwear factory, while creating spaces for both work and play under one roof. “We spent years trying to find a building to fulfil all of our needs,” Jack says. And they have done just that. The finished project, which took one and a half years to complete, is every bit as flexible as they had hoped, working just as well for hosting dinner parties as it does team meetings.

“It’s been a privilege to do a renovation and build a space that’s exactly have we want it to be,” says Alice. “I have never felt a sense of home like it. It’s really special.” Watch the film now for a full tour of their living space, which is filled with the work of photographers they admire, and to learn about the unparralled joy of an organised hard-drive drawer. And be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel so you never miss an episode.