An eminent British architect, Michael Newberry is credited with designing the UK’s first glass and steel house in the Surrey village of Capel. Known as ‘Panshanger’, the house was designed by Newberry at the age of 27 for his own use, a theme that continued throughout his career.

In 2006, Newberry designed a second glass and steel house, this time in the village of Bishopstrow in Wiltshire. The setting was crucial to the design; “From the outset I wanted to create an open, eco-friendly house that would blend seamlessly into the garden and provide a perfect backdrop for displaying contemporary sculpture." Newberry entrusted the design for the garden to a long-standing colleague, the renowned garden designer John Brookes, having worked together on numerous projects.

In an interview with Wiltshire Magazine in 2008, Newberry said "The garden was designed simultaneously with the house and planning application, which allowed us to get a head start on the garden while the building was going up. The genesis of the house was crystallising in broad terms and the essence of this is that for every space there is a garden relating to that space. Every room you go into has its own garden. There are seven in all. It's not like looking out of a house and seeing the garden as you would normally. This house has 360 degrees of garden. If you stand in the hub of the house and rotate full circle, you can see seven gardens, which is unusual".