Parkside

2024
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Built on the land of the Wurundjeri clan of the Woi Wurrung people of the Kulin Nation
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Advances in medicine and a rise in life-expectancy has resulted in people remaining in their homes for longer than ever before. Factor in the statistical spike in sole occupancy after the age of 65, and the contributing causes to the growing housing crisis are evident.

Studies in the US have shown that the financial benefits of creating a second dwelling on your land are only part of the incentive, as many older households have formed strong attachments to their suburbs and communities and simply do not want to leave. In Australia, research by the AHURI (Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute) shows the same is true here. Retirees and empty nesters are looking to alternative solutions in housing in a bid to lead simpler lives, focus on what matters, reduce costs and free up physical and mental space. To make a positive environmental impact by taking up less room.

THE WHERE
Parkside is located on Alfred Crescent in North Fitzroy, Melbourne, one of the most significant and important heritage protected streets in the northern suburbs. A number of homes here, Parkside included, present dual street access, typically with the front entrance on the shaded southern street and a garage facing (blocking) the sunny northern park. Seizing the opportunity, the block has been subdivided and reconfigured, retaining the original house and adding a new building at the rear to provide two separate family homes. Although directly responding to the housing shortage and the urgency to increase density within the inner-city suburbs, Parkside is the antithesis of a quick-fix solution. Embracing the notion of smaller, but better, Parkside is a resilient, efficient, longterm and flexible home that increases connectivity and liveability while respecting the heritage and character of the area.

IN A NUTSHELL
Parkside is an environmentally adaptable and deeply sustainable home intended for aging-in-place. This compact two-storey house realises the owners longstanding retirement plan; to downsize into their own backyard. Parkside embraces harder-working design elements and plays with natural light and vertical space, providing single-level living, plus a guest bedroom, bathroom and art studio on the first floor, accessed via a sculptural bright yellow spiral stair.

The central courtyard invites sunlight, fresh air and greenery directly into the open-plan layout, while the park opposite serves as their garden - an abundance of grass, trees and flowers they have the fortune to use and look at, but don’t have to maintain.

PAST AND PRESENT
The owners of Parkside, Bryan and Marija, purchased a single-fronted Victorian terrace in Fitzroy almost twenty years ago. Drawn to the vibrant location, the 50 metre deep block and the dual street access, they saw the potential for future subdivision. The plan would release the original family home at the front of the site and make better sense of the northern orientation at the rear, opening views of the park that were previously blocked by a garage. With the housing crisis continuing to deepen, their decision to downsize into their own backyard meant doubling the density of the block, although not at the expense of their neighbours, or the heritage of the area. Parkside is an exemplar of maximising potential and liveability rather than maximising fast profit. The high-value inner-city block could have been developed cheaply for greater investment return, instead the owners asked for a highly-considered home that would “inspire and bring joy” and ensure they could remain in the suburb they love.

“I celebrate Fitzroy and I embrace dense population, I think more population gives us better transportation, better facilities. Like ParkLife which is fantastic. I think it’s great sharing a roof, garden, laundry, bike store, and having community. I like the environment and Fitzroy has got that, it’s always been important to me. It is a retirement - I’m well into my 80s, but that doesn’t mean stopping - it’s just stopping being 9-5.” Bryan Mackenzie.

THE SENSE OF COMMUNITY
The benefits of remaining engaged within a vibrant community are immense. In Japan, for example, loss of social interaction and lack of community ties has resulted in a ‘Lonely Death Crisis’, with more than 68,000 (mostly elderly) citizens, dying alone and left undiscovered. Efforts are being made to reduce these statistics, and one answer might be to increase generational connection.

According to a report in the Scientific American, collated from research conducted by the University of Arizona, youthful energy can have a significant positive effect on the older population. Through general association and engagement young people can effectively pass on some of their vigour, improving a more senior individual’s cognitive abilities and vascular health, happiness and mood and even increasing their life span.

Remaining actively engaged is one key to increasing quality of life and the owners of Parklife are acutely aware of this. They chose to stay put in their vibrant neighbourhood, install a spiral staircase to climb up and down, and most importantly, embrace the sights and sounds of living opposite a park and a playground, reverberating with life and youthful energy.

THE WHO
Parkside is the home of Bryan Mackenzie, founder of Enzie spiral staircases, and his Artist wife Marija. Enzie stairs have featured in numerous Austin Maynard Architects projects over the years (Kiah, BrickFace, Kill Bill, Dorman) so when Bryan sought an Architect to design his own home, we were honoured he came to us.

“I knew Austin Maynard Architects through their use of our stairs over the years and I liked what they were doing - I still like what they’re doing. Marija and I had complete trust in the team. I’ve always been a frustrated Architect but I felt confident leaving things completely up to them and they were really fantastic. It’s so well designed; we really appreciate the care and level of detail. The light, the air the convenience and the comfort of living, makes life much more pleasant and enjoyable; our brief was absolutely fulfilled.”

THE BRIEF
Presented with a northern facing block directly opposite open parkland, the brief was acutely focused on making the most of the views and the light. Bryan and Marija asked for a sustainable, functional and contemporary home with two bedrooms, plus a studio space for Marija’s art work. There would be a large kitchen and dining area, open and flexible, to easily accomodate 20 plus people for their regular group dinners; a bathroom on both levels, a concealed laundry and pantry, an open-air ‘dry off space’ outside the shower, a herb garden and, of course, an Enzie spiral staircase.

Downsizing from a larger family home they also wanted lots of drawers and recessed storage to “conceal as much as possible” with only their art and books on display.

A crucial part of the brief was fundamental functional design, as the owners surmised that the feature of good architecture is that “it can be customised to people’s requirements”. With Parkside the focus was space, light, flexibility and storage solutions rather than maximising square meterage.

“As a perception of success and wealth, you can build a house three times the size you need,” says Bryan. “Or else build efficient, well designed and high quality. Size and cost per metre are irrelevant in terms of the value of good design. It just depends what you place most value on.”

SPIRALLING
From very early on in conservations it was apparent that the design of Parkside would feature an Enzie staircase. The only question was whether it would be a spiral or a helical. Marija chose a yellow spiral stair, for its form, bold colour and light, translucent quality.

Though Parkside has been designed to facilitate single-level living as an option, the stair, Bryan says, “keeps us fit and inspires us.” An award-winning authority with fifty years experience in his field, he explains that a spiral stair may look scary but it is proven to be safer than a traditional, conventional straight staircase. “Even people with disabilities have confirmed that,” he explains, “because you have a handrail in front of you all the way. A spiral is easier to climb due to the ergonomics, it turns your whole body with it, rather than against it.”

SEE THE LIGHT
All good design begins with great site analysis. With Parkside, context, land size, orientation, potential views and neighbouring buildings have been diligently considered to ensure maximum potential with minimal negative impact. Although the block has been subdivided, the original workers cottage and the new build both have access to light and private open space. With the challenges and restrictions presented by working within a relatively narrow block, the design sought to pinch light wherever possible and with every nuanced opportunity.

Parkside’s internal courtyard has been designed to line-up flush to match the neighbour’s light well. This alignment between the two courtyards allows greenery and light to be freely shared between the two properties. The central courtyard, with a Japanese Maple tree, serves in lieu of a traditional backyard. This internal open space affords an aspect of sky and garden providing cross ventilation and visual connectivity through a green space. This allows air and light to flood directly into the kitchen and main bedroom.

The design of Parkside emphasises flexibility, light control and ventilation, achieved though a combination of operable panels, a central courtyard and strategically placed skylights and louvres. This confluence of strategies allow the owners complete control of their environment, their light, privacy and their connectivity.

A large skylight above a two-storey void in the dining area harnesses even more light; fitted with rotating louvres to control and deflect direct sun, necessary during warmer months to prevent overheating. The materiality of the spiral stair beneath - constructed almost entirely from perforated steel - serves to filter the light through from all directions, rather than inhibit or obscure. The landing walkway at the top of the stair is also forged in the same perforated yellow steel, linking the art studio with the guest bedroom and bathroom at the rear.

While the guest bedroom is more private, the studio has full height windows (overlooking the park) and a series of sliding wall panels allowing the whole internal side of the room to open up to the void. This layer of flexibility allows for multidirectional aspects of natural light as well as spatial connectivity to the living area below.

The front facade of the house is divided into a series of full-height modules - fixed timber panels, fixed glass panels and operable panels; each identical in size and arranged in an alternating pattern. Behind the operable panels there are windows that can be opened to allow ventilation throughout the house. The operable timber panels are adjustable, operated on an automatic remote system, as are the full height external window blinds, affording full control over sunlight and privacy.

“The first thing I do every morning is open up the shutters and blinds. I can’t do anything until I’ve done that. I love the openness to the park, it’s absolutely magic. It’s like being in the country.” - Bryan.

SUSTAINABILITY
Sustainability is an integral core principle in all our work, a value-code that was shared and equally prioritised by the owners of Parkside. Fossil-fuel-free/100% electric, the house is oriented to make the most of the northern and eastern sun, warming the polished concrete floor, acting as a thermal mass, (assisted by hydronic heating coil in the floor) to radiate warmth in the cooler months. Double glazing within steel frames is installed and north facing windows all have external shading to block direct sun reaching the glass in the summer. Rotating louvres protect Parkside’s only west facing window and a horizontal louvre system protects the skylight over the void.

Ceiling fans are installed in all the bedrooms, studio and living area for air-flow without resorting to air-conditioning. Cross ventilation to passively cool the house has been integrated, with all ground floor windows opening onto the courtyard and windows on the first floor venting the house vertically through the void. All services are located in the rear and on the lower roof at the back of the house. A wall mounted clothes line is set up in the courtyard for air drying clothes.

Parkside is fitted with LED light fittings and has an energy efficient refrigerator, oven and induction cooktop. Low VOC paint was used everywhere, and low VOC coatings were used on the timber flooring of the first floor. Flooring is sustainably sourced and certified.

A Solar Boosted Hot water system is located on the roof at the rear.

All gardens are permeable surfaces that absorb water within the site. In the central courtyard a 3,000 litre water tank is buried, harvesting water from the roof to use for flushing toilets and watering gardens. All fittings within the bathrooms, laundry and kitchen are flow restricted to save on usage. A WSUD (water sensitive urban design) process was carried out resulting in a rain water system that filters and restricts the amount of storm water being discharged onto the street.

The highest value insulation available for the structural thickness is employed within the walls and roof, and a ventilated facade system reduces opportunity for condensation build-up and thermally separates warm external finishes from insulated internal walls.

OWNERS STATEMENT
“It’s a joy to live here. It’s so easy and every day I wake up I feel grateful that we have this beautiful home. I feel that every day. There are so many elements that are beautiful - the light, the clean lines, the visual impact, it’s actually an artwork. The house for me is like an artwork. People walk in and they say: ‘Wow!’ People expect it to be a typical terrace house but it’s not at all. It’s a real surprise, it’s exciting. There’s all these little revelations. It’s so well designed. It’s magnificent.” - Bryan.

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Photos by Tess Kelly.

Built by Dimpat

ParkLife

NEWS - PARKLIFE 2 IS COMING SOON. REGISTER YOUR INTEREST HERE.

“AUSTRALIA’S MOST SUSTAINABLE APARTMENT BUILDING” - The Local Project

20% Affordable Housing.
100% Fossil Fuel Free.
9.1 STAR Nathers.
Carbon Neutral.

WINNER - WORLD ARCHITECTURE FESTIVAL 2024 - Housing
INTERNATIONAL UNION OF ARCHITECTS, UIA 2030, Award Winner
AUSTRALIAN DESIGN AWARDS 2024 - Environmental Sustainability.
AUSTRALIAN DESIGN AWARDS 2024 - Multi-residential Architecture.
BEST OF THE BEST - INDE Awards.
BEST IN CLASS - The Good Design Awards.
BEST ARCHITECTURE PROJECTS OF 2023 - Domus.
ARCHILOVERS - Best Project 2023
ARCHITECTURAL RECORD - Top Ten Projects of 2023
GOLD - The Good Design Awards.
GOLD - Better Future Awards, Environmental Sustainability.
SILVER - Better Future Awards, Multi-residential Architecture.
SILVER - Wild Design Awards 2024, Multi Residential - Constructed
SILVER - Wild Design Awards 2024, Better Future - Environmental Sustainability
WINNER - DEZEEN Awards, Housing Project of the Year 2023
WINNER - DEZEEN Awards, Sustainable Building of the Year 2023
WINNER - The Frederick Romberg Award for Multiple Housing, RAIA National Awards.
WINNER - The Oppenheim Award for Sustainable Architecture, RAIA National Awards.
WINNER - The Allan and Beth Coldicutt Award for Sustainable Architecture.
WINNER - Victorian Institute of Architects’ Urban Design Award.
WINNER - Victorian Institute of Architects’ Dimity Reed Melbourne Prize.
WINNER - Victorian Institute of Architects’ Multiple Housing Award.
WINNER - The ‘Places - Sustainability’ Award at the Design Anthology Awards.
WINNER - Best Multi-Residential Building, INDE Awards.
WINNER - ULI Asia Pacific Awards for Excellence.
WINNER - ULI Global Award for Excellence.
WINNER - Excellence in Sustainability, The Urban Developer Awards.
WINNER - ULI Award for Decarbonisation, Urban Developer Awards.
WINNER - Excellence in Design Innovation, UrbanDeveloper Awards.
WINNER - MBV ‘Best Sustainable Project’.
WINNER - FRAME’s May monthly awards.
WINNER - Co-Living Complex of the Year, FRAME awards 2023.
WINNER - Sustainable Places: Industry Leader Award. Premier’s Sustainability Awards.
HIGHLY COMMENDED - Victorian Premier’s Design Awards 2023
NATIONAL COMMENDATION - Urban Design, 2023 RAIA National Architecture Awards.

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“One of Melbourne's most revolutionary apartments. The intrigue behind the Austin Maynard Architects-designed and developed building goes beyond its beautiful design. ParkLife is one of Australia’s most sustainable apartment buildings, complete with shared vegetable gardens and an open-air rooftop that helps bring the community together.” - The Design Files

#parklifeama @austinmaynardarchitects
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With a whopping energy rating of 9.1 stars, ParkLife is Austin Maynard Architects’ evolution of, and follow up to, its multi award winning sustainable community Terrace House. Again as both architect and developer, Austin Maynard Architects has taken all the hard earned lessons from Terrace House and improves upon them in the all-electric, fossil fuel free, super-sustainable ParkLife apartments.

THE WHAT
Located in Brunswick and set within the Nightingale Village - Australia’s first carbon neutral residential precinct - ParkLife is a high-performing, beautifully designed, community-focused apartment building containing 37 homes and two commercial tenancies.

Regarded as the social hub of the village, ParkLife has a distinctive mountainous roofline and a unique rooftop amphitheatre, as well as a variety of social/communal areas, diverse in scale, location and character. Homes within comprise of 14 one-bedroom, 19 two-bedroom, 2 three-bedroom and 2 Teilhaus apartments, each designed to extol space-efficiency, functionality and flexibility. Five of the apartments are designated social housing, through Housing Choices Australia.

Excelling within the industry code for sustainability, ParkLife has an average NatHERS rating of 9.1 stars, making it the most sustainable building at The Village.

IT TAKES A VILLAGE
The precinct is a project of international significance. Six buildings, each designed by a local award-winning architecture firm, with social, environmental, ethical and sustainability principles at the core. Facing out to Bulleke-Bek Park, Austin Maynard Architect’s ParkLife makes up half of the northside of The Village, with Claire Cousins Architect’s Evergreen to the west. Designing our buildings concurrently allowed for a wonderful opportunity to collaborate as neighbours to create a number of special outcomes, including reciprocating light wells. By adjoining our light wells we were able to the double the space, which allowed for double the garden at ground level and double the amount of natural light streaming in through the core.

Throughout the precinct, communication with all the architects of the village, was a constant. With shared enthusiasm and intent this co-ordinated approach led to a consistent grouping of individual buildings, all conversing but each with different personalities and a divergent set of homes within.

THE PERFECT EVOLUTION
After the success of our first multi-residential development, the internationally recognised, award winning Terrace House, the question was, what next?

The answer was ParkLife. Taking on the mantle of both developer and architect once again, ParkLife is the perfect evolution and natural progression. Informed by lessons learned from Terrace House we were able to refine, perfect and improve upon, to differentiate between what was aspirational and what was truly effective. Notable amongst the refined lessons was the reuse of Energy Recovery Ventilation, with each home continually provided fresh air through heat exchangers that resulted in minimal temperature loss. This again allowed us to produce a building with no active heating or cooling. Also, thermal bridging was radically reduced by enveloping the majority of concrete in insulated panel. Hand in hand with this we also carefully purged elements used at Terrace House that were worth exploring but didn’t meet our own high targets, such as the balustrading and the membrane balconies. Where Terrace House achieved a “outstanding” and ‘world leading’ 8.1 star classification, ParkLife has attained an inspired 9.1 star energy rating. The highest rated building in The Village.

NO PROBLEMS, ONLY OPPORTUNITY
At Austin Maynard Architects we endeavour to put a positive spin on the inevitable issues that arise in design and development. Turning difficulties into opportunities and negatives into joyful returns.

Our site was challenging, with pre-existing interface to the east (a residential block with inset apartments) and proposed planning for an apartment building of a similar scale at the rear. Fortunately, just prior to construction, the council acquired the rear site and approved a public park instead. The opportunity allowed us to create private garden areas for the homes at ground floor level, merging into the park. As architects we have always sought to make a beautiful connection between public and private. Instead of building walls, we connect. Now afforded a lush outlook we were able to share the opportunity with The Village. By separating our ParkLife community entry and secure bike parking we made a pathway, creating a central walkway right through the centre of our building, to connect The Village ‘hub’ at Duckett Street with the new park. Without this direct access, residents of The Village would have to walk around the precinct and navigate a very busy bike and pedestrian footpath, or else traverse an uninviting laneway on the other side.

As well as responding to site, it was important to look at the precinct as a whole. We worked within the guideline envelope provided, including height limits. Through negotiation, council required our building to drop down in the south east corner, where it neighboured the pre-existing apartment block. This led to the opportunity to create an incredible two-story apartment with an expansive private terrace, and also a very special communal area. The amphitheatre is a unique residential space for the community of ParkLife. A landscape element that cascades down with views into Duckett Street and right across the city.

MATERIALITY
The exterior of ParkLife is highly insulated white steel cladding, with cables, grills and rods to allow vegetation to proliferate. To reduce carbon and increase insulation performance we avoided using external pre-cast concrete panel cladding, typically used in apartment buildings. The white Askin panel cladding is a colorbond panel, which has a high-performance, fire-proof insulated core. The white colorbond finish exterior has a high reflectance, radically reducing heat gain in summer and further reducing heat island effect in the area. The cladding’s strong vertical lines softens the building to a residential scale, in opposition to a pre-cast concrete panel used in most apartment buildings.

“IT STANDS FOR THE SUN”
ParkLife deliberately encapsulates and celebrates some of the most striking elements of Austin Maynard Architects’ residential back catalogue. In referencing our work to be a recognisable Austin Maynard Architects project, we borrowed various visual aspects such as the mountainous roof line from RaeRae House, the white steel balustrade from Greenacres and the colour yellow, as celebrated in My-House, Alfred House and Mills House. While on the central precinct side (Duckett Street) the external materiality is a crisp white steel, where ParkLife looks out across the park the exterior is highlighted by a bright sunny yellow.

The colour extends a visual consistency throughout the building, including all common area thoroughfares, bike store and large planter boxes, as wells as the articulate balconies on the Northern side. As a way of avoiding unnecessary expense (and in turn increasing the cost of each home), services within the common areas remain exposed. To avoid a messy environment full of different pipes and conduits we decided to paint everything in the same yellow, so the eye sees the space not the smaller details.

The glazed staircase is also bright yellow and, rather than a standard dimly-lit concrete tunnel, is flooded with natural light, with views and greenery, while showcasing the life within the building.

To quote Vince Van Gogh: “How lovely yellow is. It stands for the sun.”

PERSONAL SPACE
The interior palette of materials were kept deliberately simple; timber floors, white walls, white cabinetry, concrete ceiling and a terrazzo tile in the bathroom. The intent was to allow the community to personalise their homes rather than apply too many finishes and textures. Attractive, functional spaces were created with great views and lots of light, which can be embellished in any way the residents want to make the apartment their home.

MOMENTS OF JOY
Energy efficiency dictates how much glass you use in relation to solid wall. The area of glazing and orientation directly effects the energy rating. To create the most thermally efficient homes possibly we looked at the size and spacing of glass. The heads of the sliding doors out to the balcony were lowered to 2.1m and a shelf was installed to the interior to take advantage of that section of wall. The residents have really embraced them, with books and pots and plants cascading down.

In the one-bedroom apartments the joinery has been lowered to 2.1m and hangs off the ceiling as a long, wide open shelf. It can be used as extra storage or display space and curtains can be hung from the underside to give extra privacy.

These little moments that are logical, pragmatic and simple have become Austin Maynard Architects’ favourite parts of the building. Beautifully functional additions, rather than decorative. In the Austin Maynard way, functionality does not mean boring; moments of surprise and delight, simple and efficient, cost effective, strategic and playful. Moments of joy.

ALAN
There are three trees on the northern side of ParkLife, including one very large and established gum tree called Alan (named after the local man who planted them). Though the trees now have a grassy outlook, they were originally sewn into dirt along a disused rear laneway at the rear of a group of sheds and warehouses. The trees grew in a difficult environment with little attention. When the village sites were allocated we discovered Alan bordered our block. Saving Alan became of upmost importance. Bucking urban development norms of utilising every inch of the envelope to ensure maximum financial returns, we instead pushed our building 2 metres back off our boundary. Doing so, we protected Alan’s roots, allowed for further growth and provided space for the canopy to sit comfortably against the building and into the balconies. This was not only a victory for Alan and the Bulleke-Bek Park users, but also the ParkLife community, who love having their homes within Alan’s canopy. Many of ParkLife’s younger residents tell their friends that they live in a treehouse, rather than an apartment.

UP ON THE ROOF
In contrast to the big urban moments there is a domestic scale playfulness on the skyline. Instead of a large open, windswept terrace, ParkLife provides a series of spaces varying in size, function and character. Designed in collaboration with the Landscape Architects Openwork, spaces include a productive garden with fruit trees and a real grass lawn for picnics. There is a covered deck, big enough for large gatherings, with an electric barbecue, sheltered from the harsh sun and strong winds. There are practical facilities, a toilet, laundry and drying area. And then there’s the amphitheatre, perfect for social moments and special events, or watching the sunrise with your morning coffee.

SUSTAINABILITY
All decisions made in the design process were based on increasing the sustainability of the building. ParkLife is built very differently to the other buildings within The village and within the local area. The other apartment buildings have a high concrete content, which is cost effect and resilient but high in carbon footprint as well as problematic in terms of thermal bridging.

We used an insulated panel cladding instead of pre-cast concrete panels, with colorbond each side and an insulated core: Essentially the same approach as an esky. The whole building is sheathed in this Askin panel increasing the thermal performance of the external walls resulting in a very high energy rating. Attention was paid to ensuring all junctions were very well sealed - particularly around doors and windows - so that the interior temperature could be maintained and the cool or warm air was not lost through a leaky building. With a well sealed building moisture build-up can be an issue. To combat excessive moisture and to maintain a constant internal temperature in conjunction with building sealing an ERV (energy recovery ventilation) system is installed within each apartment. The unit sits above the bathroom ceiling with a duct to each room that takes the stale internal air exchanges it with the fresh air from outside at the same time transferring the heat and moisture to maintain a constant temperature inside the apartment.

Misters are installed within the light wells that mist out harvested water during the hotter days so that windows from the bedrooms can be opened up to draw in the cool air through cross ventilation.

There is no mechanical heating or cooling within ParkLife. All conditioning is carried out through passive methods and the ERV to maintain a comfortable internal temperature.

ParkLife addresses 10 key Ecologically Sustainable Design (ESD) categories in design and operations. The following is a summary of how each has been considered and what has been achieved, the results of which culminate in a building that will have reduced environmental impacts in the long term and will offer residents comfortable living conditions and reduced running costs.

1. Indoor Environment Quality

Natural ventilation encouraged and energy recovery ventilators to each apartment to provide fresh air.

Materials were selected on the basis that they are low in VOC & contain low formaldehyde

Focus on thermal comfort with inclusion of ceiling fans and high degrees of insulation.

Daylight modelling carried out to ensure all living areas and bedrooms receive good levels of natural light.

2. Energy Efficiency

Average NatHERS Rating of 9.0 Stars

Insulation and high performance glazing included throughout all apartments

Thermal mass utilised wherever possible in north facing apartments

High degree of air tightness …

…….… Target ≤4.0 m3/hr/m2 @50Pa

………. Achieved 2.3 m3/hr/m2 @50Pa

Energy Recovery Ventilators (ERV’s) included to all apartments

Cool Misting sprays installed within lightwells to draw cooled area through apartments in Summer

External clothes drying lines and condensing clothes dryers included in communal laundry

Apartment master switch installed to turn off unnecessary electrical appliances when the apartment is not in use.

LED light fittings throughout the building

2a. 100% Fossil Fuel Free

All Electric Building - No Gas

Induction Cooktops and Electric BBQ installed

Electric Heat Pump for hot water

28.8kW Solar PV System

Embedded Network with 100% Green Electricity

3.Water Efficiency

High Water Efficiency fixtures & appliances throughout

20,000L Rainwater collection for harvesting and reuse

Water sensitive landscaping

4. Stormwater Management

Drainage design resulting in a reduction of stormwater leaving the site during a storm event

An improved quality of stormwater leaving the site achieved through a combination of soft landscaping and rainwater tank.

5. Building Materials

Recyclable Materials Prioritised.

Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) approved Timber

Steel from responsible steel maker (WSACAP membership)

PVC: Best Practice Certified

Durable and sustainable materials selected throughout.

6. Transport

No Private Carparking

Shared Basement containing Public Car Share Pod

Easy Access to public transport (trains, trams, buses)

95 Bicycle parking spaces for 37 Homes.

7. Waste Management

Waste Management Plan implemented in working life of the building

Dedicated Waste Room with:

………. Recycling Facilities

………. Shelf for batteries & electronic waste

………. Wormfarm

No Waste chutes

8. Urban Ecology

Landscape designed for improved ecological value to the site and surrounding area

Vegetable garden provide for residents

Soft landscaping for reduced heat island effect on rooftop

Reduced light pollution through considered lighting layout

9. Innovation

No jaw-dropping-ground-breaking innovation initiatives (that might not work) but simple thoughtful design

10. Management

Construction period:…

………. Adoption of an Environmental management plan

………. Contractor undertook Environmental Education

………. 12 Months building tuning process following completion

Operation period:…

………. Residents have been provided with the tools for sustainable living.

The initiatives that have been utilised during construction, and built into this project for its future operations, are beyond the industry standard. We are incredibly proud to be have made a positive contribution to the environment and the community.

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Traditional land owners
Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung

Austin Maynard Architects, project team
Andrew Maynard, Mark Austin, Mark Stranan

Site Area
706 m2

Total floor area
4210 m2 GBA

Apartment Mix
37 Apartments:
2 x 3 Bedroom Apartments
19 x 2 Bedroom Apartments
14 x 1 Bedroom Apartments
2 x Teilhaus Apartments
2 x Commercial Tenancies
5 x of these are allocated to Community Housing Apartments (Housing Choices Australia)

Completion date
May 2022

Developer
Austin Maynard Architects

Builder
Hacer Group

Project Managers
Fontic

Engineers
Structural & Civil - Irwin Consult
Mechanical Engineer - Irwin Consult
Electrical Engineer - Irwin Consult
Hydraulic Engineer - Irwin Consult
Fire Services Engineer - Irwin Consult
Fire Safety Engineer - Irwin Consult
Acoustic Engineer - Arup

ESD
Irwin Consult

Traffic Consultant
GTA Consultants

Planning consultant
Hansen

Access Consultant
Access Studio

Landscape Architects
Openwork

Waste Consultant
Leigh Design

Photography
Tom Ross

Lang 靚

2024
ArchiMarathon video here.

THE WHAT

Lang 靚 is a new double storey house in South Yarra, Melbourne, that reflects the owners’ vision for “a wellness-enhancing home that is architectural and inspirational.”

The result of exploring “a different sort of mindset,” the design purposely avoids hallways and corridors and instead maximises potential for open space, natural light and greenery, on a relatively small inner-city sized block.

Arranged around three distinct garden zones with large openings, the connections between internal and external spaces are interwoven; providing the inhabitants (a family of four) with an ‘airy calmness’, to pursue the things they love - reading, cooking, socialising and kicking a ball in the backyard.

With the focus on creativity, efficiency and unique storage solutions, Lang celebrates clutter-free living and ‘forever home’ adaptability. Beyond the equitone cladding and fluted glass frontage the internal space is voluminous and bright, with kitchen, dining and living room expanding the full length, while the width incorporates an internal courtyard garden. A soaring and sculptural curved timber ‘tree-trunk’ contains bathrooms above and below, while the entry features a pull-down Murphy bed, concealed storage and privacy curtains, to pivot as a guest bedroom.

Upstairs there is a dedicated laundry and outdoor drying zone, two bedrooms and a bathroom, and a main bedroom, with walk in robe and ensuite. A multipurpose rumpus room occupies the area in between, serving as a playroom for the owner’s two young children, with future potential as a study, teenage hangout or parents’ retreat.

THE BRIEF

The owners provided a thorough and well-researched brief; specific in their goals, aware of the site limitations and encouraging creative solutions and architectural flair. They were “determined” to live in a home without hallways and corridors,” to avoid feeling boxed or compartmentalised and to circumvent poor ventilation and heat retention in summer. They asked for their home to be highly pragmatic and efficient - in energy, cost and use of space, but also to show uniqueness and creativity. To make “something different.”

They wanted multi-functionality, an abundance of natural light and a connection to greenery in every room, as well as a reading nook, concealed study, hidden pantry, lots of storage and a garage (to fit one car and four bicycles). Their suggestions included curved elements, playing with light and shadow, contrasting textures (such as wood and concrete) and creating a void between the two storeys.

The owners summarised their brief in three words: ‘Wellbeing. Efficiency. Inspirational.’

TOUGH ON THE OUTSIDE

Lang’s external structure is deliberately austere and resilient, befitting its location on a residential street just off the busy main thoroughfare of Punt Road. Clad in durable, anti graffiti, heat resistant equitone, the form is rectilinear grey boxes with sharp edges. The equitone sheet is arranged in a chevron pattern, visually striking and tactile, the owners say “people frequently stop to take photos and touch the walls.”

In Chinese and Cantonese, Lang 靚 means ‘pretty’.

DELIBERATIVE DESIGN

Massed on the western side of the site, the house steps down to the east to protect the neighbour’s light and garden. Analysing and assessing exisiting conditions generated much of the form - the intelligent reaction was to concentrate the height and mass against the adjoining neighbouring bulk on boundary. A slight gradient on the site, sloping from back to front, also leant itself to an internal level change that defines the edge of the living area and becomes a perfect seat (45cm high) in the kitchen and garden.

A large fluted glass panel was incorporated into the sheet cement facade, to provide privacy and passive surveillance, whilst allowing for an abundance of natural light. At the rear of the house, the second level (main bedroom) deliberately extends half a metre further out, to provide passive solar shade for the lounge area beneath.

SOFT CENTRE

In contrast to the tough exterior, the interior is softened by natural timber and tonal materials, lush foliage and gentle curves. A soaring and sculptural timber ‘tree-trunk’ contains the bathrooms above and below, linking the two spaces and creating cohesion.

The ground floor area is open plan but subtly nuanced, gently pinched by the bathroom and an internal garden, which is enhanced and magnified with the use of mirror. The garden downstairs is reflected upstairs in the beautiful green ‘Amazon Depths’ (Dulux) colour of the inbuilt cabinetry in the main bedroom.

MAXIMISING SPACE

The owners were originally concerned that their small inner city block wouldn’t be large enough to create the home they envisaged. To maximise the space horizontally and vertically, large windows and openings were used on three sides while a void was created along the fourth wall. A white perforated steel section of stair continues the transparency of the void, allowing for a further increase in air circulation and volume.

With large openings at each end, the garage is an extension of the ground floor space, with budget allocated to the ground material. Rather than a standard slab, concrete sleepers create a flow to extend the courtyard and entertaining area through to the street. A considered extension of space.

DETAIL AND CONSIDERATION

Architectural involvement in any project is typically evidenced in the detail, and certainly at Lang every detail was thoroughly considered. From the circular light fittings veneered in the same timber as the staircase and cabinetry; to the chevron grey tiles in the ensuite which reference the texture, pattern and colour of exterior facade; to the bedroom light fittings custom powered-coated in soft peach, picking up the colour of the bathroom vanity.

There are curved details that add coherence and uniformity, overtly used in the curvature of the timber clad bathroom, the bow of the concrete step, the curtain rail privacy screens and the island bench, and more discreetly in the shape of the shower hand rail and custom cut mirror.

Many of the considerations had logic, such as siting the laundry upstairs, closer to the bedrooms and bathrooms. Where a setback was required on the western boundary we created a small balcony directly off the laundry, ideal for an outdoor clothes line and a place, out of sight, to efficiently stack all the services.

Though deliberately open plan there are two areas within the ground floor layout that can be curtained off to allow for privacy when required - a reading/study corner and guest accomodation with double bed and dedicated storage. Responding to the brief for clutter-free flexibility, a number of elements are secret, concealed or detailed to appear as flush wall panels. In the entry wall there is a secret door to the garage, and also a concealed cupboard for storing coats, shoes and bags. Within the kitchen /living cabinetry, beside the usual integrated white goods, there is a dedicated wine store, an appliances bench and a sizeable study with shelving and inbuilt desk.

Another highly considered detail is the steel support column, brought inside to avoid disrupting the fluted glass window at the front of the house. Appearing more ladder than column by design, it serves an open shelf, for keys and trailing plants.

Upstairs, where the need for bedrooms meant ‘cells’ could not be avoided, the doors are full height, floor to ceiling, to create the sense and feeling of having no corridors.

THE LONG GAME

“Everything is very specific to our preference. We really knew exactly what we did and did not want. To another person’s eyes this might not be the ideal, but for us the functionality and the aesthetic is exactly what we wanted.” - The owners

Architects are often employed to design homes for their clients to live in ‘forever’. To design homes that fulfil the owner’s goals while incorporating foresight and adaptability, to future-proof or to safeguard longterm sale return. At Lang the owners played the long game from inception. Although they had two young children, they avoided any specific, age-centric short-term design concessions. Instead they looked at the big picture and incorporated multi-functionality as a core basic, to ultimately achieve their own personalised, unique home. For (their) ever.

AMA ‘PICK’N’ MIX’

In 2024 Austin Maynard Architects marks 21 years in practice, with an expanding, diverse portfolio that reflects the decades. The intent is to design unique homes specific to each individual client but in the process we have also, inadvertently created the AMA pick’n’mix.

The owners of Lang took, they say, “great care in finding the right architect”, and it was AMA’s “level of detail, originality and playful quirkiness” that most appealed. They revealed they had looked at every photo on our website and picked out their favourite bits. “Like a catalogue,” they say. At Lang, this includes the elevated seat /step (Mills), the concealed study (Garden House) and the internal garden (Newry). “A lot of things we saw on the website, we liked it, then we proposed it on the brief.”

SUSTAINABILITY

An integral part of the client’s brief, and a core principle of AMA, sustainability was a major factor in the design and build of Lang 靚. Fossil-fuel-free/100% electric, a 7kW Photovoltaic solar system is installed on the roof, with a HUAWEI battery and electric car charging provision. The house is oriented to make the most of the northern and eastern sun, warming the polished concrete slab, which acts as a thermal mass, (assisted by hydronic heating coil in the floor) to radiate warmth in the cooler months. Double glazing within thermally broken window frames is installed and north facing windows all have eaves or rotating louvres, to block direct sun reaching the glass in the summer. An external roller blind protects Lang’s only west facing window and rotating louvres and a first floor overhang protect the east facing glass.

Ceiling fans are installed to all the bedrooms and as well as the living space for air-flow without resorting to air-conditioning. Cross ventilation to passively cool the house has been encouraged, with all ground floor windows opening onto garden and windows on the first floor venting the house vertically through the void. All services are located in one spot on an external terrace adjoining the laundry at first floor which also has wall mounted line for air drying clothes.

The home is fitted with LED light fittings and has an energy efficient fridge, oven and induction cooktop. Chemical-free No VOC white paint was used everywhere, and low VOC coatings were used on the timber. Flooring and veneers (used in fixed panelling and cabinetry) are sustainably sourced and certified.

All gardens are permeable surfaces that absorb water within the site. In the front garden a 3,000 litre water tank is buried, harvesting water from the roof to use for flushing toilets and watering gardens. All fittings within the bathrooms, laundry and kitchen are flow restricted to save on usage. A WSUD (water sensitive urban design) process was carried out resulting in a rain water system that filters and restricts the amount of storm water being discharged onto the street.

A green roof adjoining the bathroom and southern first floor bedroom provides an additional level of insulation to the ground floor and visual link to garden space on the first floor.

OWNER’S STATEMENT

“We spent effort in finding the right architect. We shortlisted and interviewed and looked at portfolios, and we could really see ourselves living in an AMA designed house. We looked at the level of detail in the interiors and we saw a little bit of playfulness and quirkiness around the interior design.

Our vision was to create a house that addresses wellbeing, efficiency and inspiration and we can definitely say that our vision has been translated into every detail. The house provides us with a sense of calmness being surrounded by natural materials, lots of natural light and views to greenery throughout the house. We were originally concerned that our small inner city block will not be large enough to create a home that we envisaged but now we can say that the design has exceeded our expectations. Originality was really the key. Everything is very specific to our preference and that comes down to the architect’s originality; not just catching a trend or doing what’s fashionable but understanding the client’s unique use of the space and unique aesthetic taste. To another person’s eyes this might not be the ideal layout, but for us the functionality and the aesthetic is exactly what we want. The kids enjoy the many different creative spaces in various ways and adults have spaces to entertain, work and rest. We’re very happy with our home, absolutely.”

Austin Maynard Architects

Total floor area: 254 m2

Builder
Dimpat

Photographer
Tess Kelly

Slate, Brighton

BUILDING OF THE YEAR 2024 - Nominated, Archdaily.
GOLD - The Good Design Awards 2023
WINNER - 2022 HIA best apartment complex
WINNER - Sustainability Award, Bayside City Council’s Built Environment Awards 2023
High Commendation - Medium Density, Bayside City Council’s Built Environment Awards 2023
Shortlisted - Residential Multiple Housing, Victorian Institute of Architects Awards 2023.
Finalist - The Urban Developer Industry Excellence Awards: Development of the Year (Small Scale Residential)

A MODEL FOR MELBOURNE’S “MISSING MIDDLE”.
Slate House stands as a sensitive and highly sustainable response to the challenge of creating density within Melbourne’s suburbs. Slate House demonstrates how two land parcels, each with a single dwelling, can be subtly densified to accommodate 14 carefully designed, sustainable, home-sized apartments. This innovative approach not only addresses the need for increased housing density but proves that development can be crafted sensitively to fit within its context.

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"The team behind Slate House has adapted a refreshing approach to developing apartment buildings that we hope to see more of in the future. It manages to create a sense of freedom without wasting any space - incredible work."

The Good Design Awards jury.
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Slate House is a culmination of our best ideas from the past twenty years, teamed with the learnings from our multi-residential projects Terrace House and ParkLife. At Slate House we designed a beautiful and sustainable high end apartment building, using form, material and domestic scale to converse with the context, heritage and rich built history of the area. Proving that eco can also be luxurious, Slate House is Brighton’s first fossil-fuel-free multi-residential apartment building.

IN BRIEF
Slate House is a new three level, high-performing, high-end apartment building of 14 spacious homes, in the bayside suburb of Brighton. Austin Maynard Architects first completed multi-residential project as Design Architects, working with considered Developers Lucent, Slate House delivers thoughtful and refined homes, with focus on aesthetics, context and sustainability. Achieving an outstanding NatHERS rating of 8.2 stars, Slate House is Brighton’s first fossil-fuel-free multi-residential apartment building.

THE WHERE
Brighton is an affluent and distinctive Melbourne suburb, famous for its brightly-coloured bathing boxes. Houses here are mostly large, either contemporary modern builds, Victorian villas or Edwardian homesteads. New apartment buildings are typically monolithic, near identical off-white concrete structures (linear or boxy), with mild variations in landscaping.

In designing Slate House ‘The Where’ was paramount. Recognising and appreciating the suburb’s long-standing and prevailing character led to a building that sits quietly within its context; sensitive to the size and scale of houses in the area, and to its direct neighbour Kardinia House, a heritage protected home of historic significance.

Slate House is sited on a T shape block, allowing for two frontages, each exhibiting a different identity. The main entrance on Bleazby Ave is pedestrian, befitting of the quiet and leafy cul-de-sac. The Male Street frontage, a busier and wider vehicle thoroughfare, incorporates the entry to basement parking, but has the appearance of a much more private residence, relative in scale to the larger homes along the street.

THE WHY
We understand the need for development, to make more homes available for our rapidly growing population but surely we can do that without erasing the characteristic built fabric of an area. Multi residential buildings can be more than white boxes stacked high that either ignore or worse dominate, their siting. Apartment buildings will always be bigger, but do they have to speak a different language?

Twenty years ago a City of Bayside Heritage Review stated Male Street’s ‘aesthetic significance and historic interest,’ noting a high level of integrity and cohesion in terms of scale and set backs. Ten years later the statement was revised to include ‘the integrity of the precinct has been somewhat diminished by a few recent developments.’ The documents also highlighted the significance of the former Primitive Methodist Church (now converted into apartments) which dominate the northern end of the street, constructed of polychromatic brick with a steeply pitched slate roof.

The church, along with other churches and school buildings in the area (with similar pitched roofs) together with the Brighton beach boxes, were all important influences in the design of Slate House. We looked to Architecture that spoke of scale, texture and character to inform the design. We aimed for the building to appear domestic, small and loveable. The intention was a synthesis of the prevailing heritage character and domestic context, to show there was an alternative to the overbearing and clinical modernist box.

THE MATERIALITY
The design of Slate House is the careful articulation of built form to fit gently within the street character. To reference and respond to the context, an audit of buildings in the area was taken. Slate, terracotta, brick and white masonry were most prevalent. By utilising these three distinct materials in the construction of Slate House, we were able to break down a large building into smaller volumes. Forms reminiscent of the bathing boxes (little pitched roof houses), were wrapped in these contrasting materials and stepped back to reduce scale. Rather than appearing as one form that has landed, it poses questions of singular buildings.

Slate House is one apartment building arranged into three seperate blocks, connected by common entry walkways. The concept of dividing the larger form into three seperate elements ensure greater efficiency and resulted in light filled corridors with only three front doors on each level.

Each block is articulated with slate cladding providing legibility and is continued internally to make the corridors feel like outdoor space.

The materiality is simple, honest and beautiful. Natural raw materials, slate straight from the quarry, robust tiles, bricks and timber, free of coatings and toxic chemicals, that require minimal maintenance and will endure many life times.

INTERIORS
It’s frequently assumed that sustainability comes with a certain roughshod aesthetic - exposed services, rough and raw finishes, but, as our project Garden House testifies, it can be wonderfully luxurious. Slate House is a high-end residential apartment building with interiors that are suitably sophisticated and refined.

Rather than the expected white on beige on grey palette we opted for beautiful handcrafted architecture, hand-cut tiles, rich colours, textural finishes and natural sustainably-sourced materials. Dark navy bespoke joinery, fluted Tasmanian oak cladding, fluted glass and brass handles. Dramatic cabinetry and high ceilings and more subtle moments, such as the shelf beside the front door, perfect for a parcel or a plant.

Every corridor has just three apartment doors, so no waiting forever for the lift. These common area, are glass filled at both ends with a continuation of the hand fixed slate tiles on the walls. It offers a sense of community without being overly dense, there is space and individuality.

DOWNSIZERS
Although the appeal of Slate House is broad and wide ranging, local ‘Downsizers’ are particularly drawn to the project because it has a texture that relates to their own homes.

The sustainability credentials and incredibly low ongoing running costs resonate with the intelligent downsizer who understands climate crisis. Long time residents have witnessed their lovely suburb under siege, wrecking character and identity to make way for cookie cutter town houses and apartments with minimal environmental conscience or integrity. Slate House responds directly to the teal movement happening in conservative areas like Brighton. Proof that the a desire for efficient, high performing, fossil fuel free living is not merely a northern suburb leftie thing.

SUSTAINABILITY
In the context of apartment buildings within the Brighton area, Slate House pushes the sustainability envelope. One of the few, if not the only, fossil fuel free multi-residential building in Bayside, Slate House utilises the general principals of ESD.

Attaining an overall NatHERS rating of 8.2, with a 7.7 star average per apartment (exceeding the 6 stars requirement, at time of construction) Slate House has a Melbourne Water STORM: rating 110% (again exceeding 100% requirement, at time of construction), and harvests or absorbing all the water that falls on the site.

The design of Slate House draws on the forms and context of the local neighbourhood. In this way the building is sensitive to the future use of adjoining sites - the building does not detrimentally effect the current amenity of the neighbouring buildings or any future building proposed. This sets a precedent for other apartment buildings within the area.

The majority of the apartment’s heating and cooling is passive, through design, materials, and window size/placement. Living spaces are oriented to the north where possible, and utilise as many full height windows as possible, allowing the winter sun to passively heat internal spaces, thus reducing the reliance on the heating system.

Operable window locations facilitate cross-flow ventilation as well as exhausting off air throughout the hotter months. All windows are double glazed and have a low-E coating.

Fixed awnings and screens are located on key windows to protect against the Summer sun with vertical screens to the western face where the sun is lower in the sky and harsher.

Ceiling fans are installed in the living area and bedrooms to provide efficient cooling during summer.

High quality insulation, made using recycled glass, was also used throughout all internal walls, floors and ceilings: R2.7 in the walls and R6 in the roof.

High quality materials such as brick, concrete, aluminium framed windows, metal roofing and slate tiles were selected to construct a home that will last and reduce ongoing maintenance. Materials that have no applied coating and do not require re-painting at regular intervals. All joinery and flooring is E0 and low ZVOC paints and coatings are used internally. Carpets are 100% wool.

Bricks salvaged from the existing house on the site were cleaned and re-used within the construction.

Rainwater from all roof areas is harvested and directed to a 20k litre water tank (located under the slab of the basement), for toilet flushing and garden irrigation throughout the building.

A 14kW photovoltaic solar power system has been connected to supplement electricity use, with the capacity for future connection to storage batteries. The design utilises low-energy LED lighting throughout and low energy usage appliances.

A centralised heat pump, heating and cooling system is installed for efficiency as well as a centralised heat pump hot water systems. There are no gas appliances within the building.

Bike parking facilities are provided within the basement and a visitors bike rail is provided at the development entry.

LUCENT
The developers, Lucent, approached us to see if we would be interested in designing a new apartment building in Brighton. They had identified a new type of purchaser who demanded more than the two bedrooms, two bathroom. These buyers wanted sustainability, low ongoing running costs and fossil fuel free homes. Lucent were already accomplished with several completed Nightingale projects in the north and wanted to take those core ideas and way of thinking about housing and develop in a more conservative location south side. It was a big gamble.

We thought they were gutsy bringing us in. Our project Terrace House, for which we were both architect and developer, was still in construction. Slate House allowed us to concentrated solely on the design of the project. We considered how the council would receive the plans and how the neighbours would react. We were able to de risk substantially because of the appropriate way we dealt with context and heritage.

CLIENT/ DEVELOPERS STATEMENT
“The natural assumption in the (Brighton) area is that a development has to be luxury, it has to be high end; there’s less focus on aesthetics. We wanted to offer a beautiful place to live that was site specific with outstanding sustainability credentials.

All the design concepts we saw in the early stages came back the same, except Austin Maynard Architects who came back with a pitched roof. Placed in the context of the street, and specifically the heritage home next door, it resonated with us. The monolithic look is popular in Brighton but we knew that market was very well looked after. What didn’t exist was an apartment complex that felt like an architecturally designed home.

The design, layout, attention to detail and the playfulness has been been really well received. Residents are getting an award-winning Austin Maynard Architects building that references their body of work. Everything is well thought out. Whether it’s a small house, large house, or multi residential, Austin Maynard approach each one uniquely.

The journey has been unbelievable, it’s been an awesome experience. I drive past this building quite often and I think it’s beautiful. I know the community well, and I measure it on this - when I tell people I developed a site in Brighton and they say which one? I tell them where, and they always know it, straight up. The building with the pitched roof. The fact that they can identify if straight off, they know your building, suggests that it’s different and it’s been well received. That gives me a lot of joy. I get a lot of pride from that.”

Panos Miltiadou, Managing Director of Lucent

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Traditional land owners
Bunurong People of the Kulin Nation

Austin Maynard Architects, project team
Andrew Maynard, Mark Austin, Mark Stranan

Site Area
1392m2

Total floor area
2783m2

Completion date
2022

Developer
Lucent

Builder
Swell

Project Managers
Lucent

Engineers Structural - KPA
Engineer (services) - Form

ESD
GIW Environmental Solutions

Traffic Consultant
Ratio

Planning consultant
Ratio

Waste Management Consultant
Ratio

Access Consultant
Access Studio

Landscape Architects & Arborist
John Patrick Landscapes

Acoustic Consultant
Cogent Acoustics

Building Surveyor
Florenancig Smith

Photography
Tess Kelly

Helvetia

2023

Check out Helvetia on GRAND DESIGNS TRANSFORMATIONS here (beginning at 23 minutes of episode 5, series 1)

Building of The Year 2024 - Nominated, Archdaily.
Dezeen’s : Top 5 Houses.
New Atlas: Top Ten Houses of 2023
Winner : Residential Architecture Award - Alterations & Additions. Victorian Institute of Architects Awards 2023.
TOP 5 Finalist - Archello’s House of the year.
TOP 5 Finalist - Archello’s “For the Planet Award”.

Jury citation
Helvetia emerges as a beacon of thoughtful architectural reinvention. Once a dark Victorian terrace, twice reconfigured and long in disrepair, it has been reimagined through a series of subtle yet transformative interventions. The surgical removal of problematic central spaces and a playful pivot towards the side laneway has led to a spatial metamorphosis, introducing multi-level gardens, improved connection to the outdoors, flexible spatial zoning, and a theatrical entry experience.

A true exercise in sustainability, the renovation champions reuse over demolition. The existing brick structure is not discarded but revitalised and repurposed, preserving the building's history while bestowing a new vitality. Internally, the removal of partitioning walls creates openness and adaptability. A generous lightwell, etched out of the building's core, bathes the interior in natural light. The home's layout embraces the rhythms of its inhabitants, creating an urban haven that is playful and practical. Every detail, from re- glazing of the restored bay window to the reimagined balcony terrace, contributes to an elevated living experience.

This project is a testament to the restrained yet impactful decisions of Austin Maynard Architects. Seamlessly integrated into the streetscape, Helvetia's curious details, like the fishpond entry, curved downpipes and subtle graphics, ignite intrigue and hint at an architectural treasure waiting to be discovered.

Nigel Bertram FRAIA, Jury Chair
Aimee Goodwin RAIA, Juror
Chris Haddad RAIA, Juror
Julie Pham RAIA Grad, Graduate Juror

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“Happily, the serious but subtle business of retention and reuse that underpins Helvetia's latest transformation has done little to dampen the exuberance associated with Austin Maynard's work. Lightweight, playful transitions and details continually reinforce the structure's newfound permeability. Perforated and grated steel details form delicate bridges across a range of thresholds and levels, including the spiral stairs that wind up to the elevated gardens on the patio and garage root. These elements respect, reference and reinscribe aspects of Helvetia's more recent architectural adaptations, adding to, rather than editing out, the building's transformations over time.”

“A commitment to principled repair and retention shaped the subtle but serious adaptive reuse of this historic Melbourne terrace.”

Houses Magazine.

The name ‘Helvetia’ is formed onto the original parapet at the front of the building and also printed on the toplight above the front door. Originally home to the Duscher family in the late 1800’s, Helvetia is the Latin word for Switzerland.

At the foundation of environmental sustainability are ‘the three R’s’ - “Reduce”, “Reuse,” “Recycle”. Too often people attempt to buy their way to a sustainable solution. Solar panels, ERVs, heat pumps, grey water systems are purchased as a means to finance an escape from climate catastrophe. All of this tech is important and vital, however, no building can be truly sustainable if a functional structure was demolished in its place. The capitalist reflex, to buy our way out of the problem, simply won’t work.

In retaining the bricks, concrete and steel at Helvetia 17.7 tons of embedded carbon, equivalent to 321,970 Balloons worth of C02 omissions, were negated.

Helvetia is an examination in ‘Reuse’, and also in ego restraint. Helvetia is an exercise in making the most of what you have, before spending money on sustainability tech. Helvetia is one of the most considered, detailed and dynamic ‘before and after’ projects Austin Maynard Architects have completed so far.

THE WHAT
Helvetia is the alteration and renovation of a double storey Victorian terrace in Fitzroy, Melbourne. The residence had been separated into two dwellings in the late 1960s to operate as a boarding house and reconfigured again in the mid 1980s into a three bedroom apartment at ground level and a one-bedroom with large studio at first floor. Muddled, confused, dark and in a sad state of disrepair, the challenge was to resurrect Helvetia. In removing two rooms (above and below) from the dilapidated centre of the building and utilising the side laneway, Helvetia has been transformed into a light-filled family home, with multiple gardens, a flexible floor plan, central entryway and dramatic sunlit atrium.

THE WHERE
Right on the edge of the CBD, Fitzroy was once a low-rent suburb, gritty and urban with small workers cottages, cobbled laneways and a smattering of slightly grander double fronted homes. When the artists, in search of cheap rent, moved into the area so too did bohemian chic and steady gentrification, bringing with it a rise in desirability and property prices. Fitzroy’s history and its progression is visually evident as strict heritage overlays abut areas of minimal restrictions, creating a strange juxtaposing of sites protected adjacent to sites developed. Fitzroy retains its gritty character and within this urban environment our clients dreamt of an oasis, light filled, green and joyous.

THE BRIEF
The owners of Helvetia wanted to convert their house back into a single dwelling and to make the dark and awkward home more liveable. They asked for an environmentally sustainable home that would be practical, functional and aesthetically pleasing; filled with natural light and surrounded by well-designed green spaces and a productive garden, with strong visual connection to the outside. They asked for three modestly appointed bedrooms with built in robes “but no ensuites” and lots of creative and defined storage space to house and work on their hobbies and display their travel collections. The living/dining area would be open plan, with a galley kitchen that continued out to an external bench top with BBQ and wok burner. The owners professed a love of vertical spaces and a desire to have an inbuilt fish tank.

SMALLER FOOTPRINTS
When working on a project with a heritage overlay the standard response is to retain the frontage in accordance with policy, and demolish everything else beyond. At Helvetia we discovered some serious issues at the core, but no cracks or structural damage to the solid 1960s rear extension. Rather than allow our architectural vanity to prevail by tearing down and replacing the (albeit it uninspiring) 60s built form, and encouraged by the owners to limit the carbon footprint, we thought ‘why not use the existing brick fabric and work with the skin we’ve got?’

Like most Victorian terrace houses, Helvetia was gloomy with dark corridors and internalised rooms. The resurrection required major surgery, from the inside out. One of the rare occurrences where the client was happy to take away floor area, we removed two rooms completely and created a substantial lightwell through the centre of the house. The vertical expanse of open space introduces a flood of natural light. Fixed timber awnings control the western and northern sun and, along with the oblique steel blades of the entry gate and the light reflected off the fish pond, cast beautiful shadows throughout the afternoon.

Internally most of the dividing walls were removed to open up the areas with sliding doors and curtains to offer flexibility of use and function. All internal finishes were renewed throughout, a new concrete slab with hydronic heating was poured into the open plan living/dining/ kitchen and all exisiting windows were replaced with thermally efficient double glazing.

Upstairs the original large bay window in main bedroom, overlooking the rear garden, was retained and restored. Built in cabinetry with concealed sliding bedside tables and a hidden sliding door, forms the division between the bedroom and the walk in robe /desk area. Some inclusions were also made to the studio, already a large multifunctional space, facing north and overlooking the street. The addition of two windows let in light and provide a visual link to the rest of the house, while a curtain creates a cosy TV lounge, or extra guest bedroom when required.

AN INTERNAL OPERATION
At Helvetia we inherited a resilient building, not pretty, but structurally stable. The house however, had a problematic area in the middle; a recurring leak in the roof causing water damage, rot and mould to the upstairs bathroom and down into to the dining room below. Unlike another of our projects, Newry House, which underwent keyhole surgery (minimal invasion for maximum results), Helvetia had a tumour that needed to be cut out. Instead of a scar, we left a beauty spot, the atrium.

THE ATRIUM
The owners, both medical professionals, dreamt of an inner city “sanctuary”- a home that would exist in stark opposition to their “sterile work environment.”

Addressing one of the primary issues of a terrace house, whereby guests enter at the front of the home and have to pass by private bedrooms to reach the entertaining zone, the side laneway was utilised and the front door re-sited. The new entry creates a stark contrast between gritty cobblestones and lush garden. Step through a soaring white metal screen into a green oasis, cross a steel blade bridge over a pond streaming with fish and lilies, and arrive at the new front door, right in the centre of the house.

The size and scale of the atrium exists in the area that used to be the dining room and bathroom above - the once diseased part of the house. The two-story high steel screen precisely replicates the original external form and pitched roof line of the Victorian terrace.

The metal screen blades are strategically placed to appear solid at oblique angles and open when viewed straight on. The angled blades provide complete privacy from the main street, whilst affording passive surveillance in the laneway.

THE CENTRAL ENTRY
Having relocated the front door to the side the new central entry ensures all the circulation is condensed into one spot. Turn right for entertaining/ living, left for private bedrooms, or straight up the stairs to the studio/study and main bedroom. The staircase, formed as a sculpted piece of furniture, has been specifically designed for display and store with lower treads opening as drawers for shoes removed at the door. The volume under the stairs is maximised for larger items while the balustrade is open shelving, lining up perfectly with the steps. At the top of the stairs the landing is constructed of perforated metal to further enhance and celebrate the abundance of natural light and voluminous space afforded by the atrium. The contrast between the old entry and corridor - once dark, closed in and always requiring artificial light, is fundamentally different.

GRAPHIC
A study conducted by Bernard E. Harcourt in the Michigan Law Review explored the social influence conception of deterrence known as ‘broken windows theory.’ - ‘A core tenet of broken windows theory is that a poorly maintained environment inspires criminal behaviour and explicitly that graffiti attracts more graffiti.’ *

The side wall at Helvetia is high and long and runs alongside a busy alleyway, constantly in use. A large, exposed expanse, in an urban side street setting, the wall was potentially a very inviting blank canvas. The approach to deterring probable defacement lay in the broken window theory. The design of the graphic is simple, clean and, ensuring the owners had enough surplus paint, easy to maintain.

The graphic has been designed to be part of the architecture, almost shadow-like, simple shapes referencing the curves and pitched roofs of the building.

AN URBAN FARM ON THE ROOF
Typically in high-density urban environments green open space is a rarity but at Helvetia we maximised all possibilities to create five gardens. From the landscaping at the front of the house, to the central atrium, the back garden, to the large balcony terrace off the main bedroom, and the sizeable vegetable garden over the carport at the rear of the block. The urban farm on the roof is practical and sculptural and brings, according to the owners “life and beauty to the heart of a very dull laneway.”

Barrel vaulted wire mesh keeps out the possums while allowing attachment for creepers and climbers. The cylindrical spiral staircase is enclosed in translucent polycarbonate to ensure the shed beneath is kept dry. In amongst all the mesh and bountiful produce it has the look of a sci-fi tube elevator.

The east facing balcony garden was existing, part of the 1960s renovation, and had held its charm. The original external staircase from balcony to back garden was replaced by a less intrusive spiral stair. Curved steel mesh covers and encloses the terrace, a framework for deciduous creepers which will soon to cover the balcony, providing privacy and shading in the summer and eastern light in the winter.

LITTLE MOMENTS OF ART
Internationally renowned product designer Dieter Rams theorised that great design was invisible. “Good design is as little design as possible,” he said: "Less but better.”

There have been many occasions, sometimes months after we finish a project, that the owner tells us they’ve noticed something, or realised how well-thought-out a certain design element is. If a function is not always required, the element should almost disappear rather than be something purely for the sake of it. Beautiful design has a calmness and serenity. Art can be creative and energetic but there comes a need for respite; for exploring nuanced layers and discovering little moments of art.

At Helvetia there are number of unassuming design elements. Quietly functioning, practical aspects that relay Dieters Ram’s view of ‘less but better.’

- The produce tray.
The productive garden at Helvetia yields in abundance, more than the owners can consume. Generous and community spirited, they wanted to share their harvest with the community. Built within the new brick wall, above the letterbox, at the front of the house is a specially designed steel tray. It sits quietly in the wall when not in use, but when rotated becomes a tray, allowing neighbours to help themselves to produce.

- The playful ladder
To access the solar panels on the roof we needed to install a ladder on the side balcony terrace. As an affordable alternative to a regular metal ladder, we using galvanised steel as sculptural, playful rungs that merge and converse with the white mesh covering.

- The structural posts
When it comes to structural posts, the norm is erect a steel frame then add a window frame next to it. At Helvetia the structural posts are arranged to become the window frames. Chocks in the timber post/window frame showcase the owner’s smaller treasures as well as add bracing to the structure. The angled timber is repeated where sliding doors have been installed:one solution or element to do multiple tasks. Using angled timber, instead of framing to synergise the overall language.

- The down pipe.
A down pipe on the side of the house created an interesting challenge. How to ensure the rainhead flows into the legal point of discharge, on a busy laneway, without being vulnerable to damage or looking unsightly. Turn it into a theatrical moment. The pipe is curved, conversing with the curves of the graphic, turning a problem into a little bit of art.

- The original columns.
So many aspects of Helvetia were saved, repaired and restored, rather than replaced, including the original columns at the front of the house. They were carefully removed and taken away to be restored and in the process the original timber was discovered. The clients wanted to retain the home’s rich history, and so the upper half of each column was left stripped to expose the beauty of the original timber.

SUSTAINABILITY
The main sustainability objectives adopted at Helvetia were the retention of existing built fabric and the opportunity for increased garden area. All existing walls, floors and roof of the Victorian house which were deemed salvageable or in good solid condition, were repaired and restored rather than demolished and rebuilt with new construction. The wastage of materials from previous iterations of the building, from the original 1880s structure, through to the 1960s and 1980s renovations, were avoided, minimising the project’s overall carbon footprint.

Five distinct garden areas were created, to encourage as much plant growth on the site as possible, including a productive garden on the roof over the carport with Biofilta Foodcube wicking bed planter boxes.

Where the condition of the external fabric was beyond salvation, it was upgraded with thermally efficient materials. All the windows were replaced with timber framed double glazing and the poor quality ground floor structure was replaced with a concrete slab for thermal mass, containing hydronic heating coils. Where new walls were installed a high degree of insulation was included and a high R value roof insulation was installed throughout.

North facing windows were installed within the atrium lightwell, to provide direct solar gain into the living area and study above. Fixed shading is installed to the northern and western glazing of the lightwell, where the existing house and new laneway screen do not provide shading from the summer sun.

In the back garden a 3,000 litre water tank is buried, to harvest water from the roof to use throughout the house for flushing toilets and watering gardens. A 3kW Photovoltaic solar system is installed on the roof with panels tilted to the east and west to provide power in the early morning and late afternoon.

Internally the home contains LED light fittings throughout, low VOC finishes and coatings and ethically sourced timber flooring and veneers.

OWNER’S STATEMENT
It took sixteen years for us to come to the late epiphany (pre-pandemic) that a forever home would be essential to maintain our wellbeing. Our pre-existing double brick, double fronted, double storey Victorian Terrace could be fittingly described as a mongrel. The front half of the house was twisting in one direction with the back half steadfastly fixed on solid foundations. A major renovation was required, rejuvenation was beckoning and we needed a sanctuary.

In the search for an architect, Austin Maynard Architects were fully aligned with our philosophy and had the track record to demonstrate talent and passion for sustainability. Their works were respectful of the past but not constrained by conformity or classical styles. There was genuineness in the sustainable philosophy of practice. Each of their houses had their own uniqueness in design cleverly incorporating the needs of their clients with an infusion fun and extraordinary aesthetics.

The outcome of our engagement with AMA speaks for itself. Our sanctuary has been created and the effect on our lives has been profound. The house has an uncanny ability to draw a passing glance back, then saturate the senses with its elements and invite exploration for delight and surprise. The connection of the inside of the house with the outside has allowed that joy to be shared with visitors, neighbours and passers-by alike. Our brief has been fulfilled in ways we have never imagined and are still discovering!

- Vaan & Hilton, owners of Helvetia.

Austin Maynard Architects Project Team
Andrew Maynard, Mark Austin, Ray Dinh

Completion date
Jan 2023

Total site area: 227 m2

Total floor area: 287 m2

Builder
Weiss Builders

Landscape Design
Chin Liew

Engineer
Co-Struct

Building Surveyor
Code Compliance

Photographer
Derek Swalwell

* References
https://www.jstor.org/stable/1290289?seq=1

Terrace House

GOLD - The Good Design Awards.
WINNER - ArchDaily Building of the Year
WINNER - ‘Multi-Residential Dwelling’ Sustainability Awards.
WINNER - Sustainable Architecture Award, The Australian Institute of Architects 2022.
COMMENDATION - Multiple Housing, Victorian Architecture Awards.
National Architecture Awards - Sustainable Architecture. Shortlisted.

“Terrace House creates a series of homes that re-imagine a past inner-city suburban life, where rows of workers cottages generated and nurtured a close community. Modeled on this plan of traditional terrace houses, stacked and elevated, the building holds and balances a light, open, and communal domestic intimacy within an exposed, almost infrastructural framework to great effect.

At the point of entry, it is immediately apparent this building’s primary focus is geared towards the wellbeing of its residents and the planet, with bike parking, gardens, and spatial generosity adjacent to the ground floor circulation and an architectural techtonic that exposes its systems, economy, and structure.

The lean, dematerialised multi-residential building by Austin Maynard Architects excels in making all aspects of its base materials and constructed volumes hard working and incredibly efficient while maintaining and enhancing a sense of domesticity and communal wellbeing. Extending building materials for maximum economy and concise structural systems reduces the carbon footprint while holding a sophisticated and playful language.

The fossil-fuel-free building is commended for its integration of various passive and technological systems including universal use of ERV, airtightness, high insulation, and PV, resulting in a NatHERS Rating of 8.1.

It is also important to register the effort taken by the architects to carefully craft opportunities for the growth of an interconnected and sustainable residential community. This is a building that achieves a great deal while rigorously reducing its use of resources.”

2022 Victorian Architecture Awards: Sustainable Architecture, jury citation

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"This fossil-fuel-free building fills a much needed gap in the housing market. Austin Maynard Architects has considered what it means to live in a Terrace House, extracted many of those highly appealing elements and wielded them to drive this design. This is a project that invites intrigue and encourages conversation in its mission to contribute to Brunswick with gusto.”

The Local Project

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Terrace House is the result of past Austin Maynard Architects clients, staff and allies putting their own money at risk to create community-focused homes that are equitable, ethical, cost-effective, robust and resilient in the face of the growing climate crisis. Amongst our incredible investors, who risked so much, are past clients at Union House, Grant House, Mills: The Toy Management House, Mash House, Sproule House and Walker House. Also the patriarch of Melbourne architecture Emeritus Professor Leon Van Schaik supported and helped fund Terrace House as did fellow architects Scale Architecture, Phooey Architects and more. All of them champions of ethical housing who have been incredible supporters of Austin Maynard Architects in the past and whom we look forward to sharing future adventures with.

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“One of us is a public servant, the other is a school teacher. In our income bracket options for home ownership are limited to cookie-cutter suburban sprawl with a lengthy commute to work (likely requiring a car), or an inner city shoebox not suited to raising small children. We would certainly never be able to afford an architect-designed new build, let alone one in Brunswick. Terrace House has given us peace of mind that we can live car-free and carefree in a 20 minute neighbourhood, walking distance to all the amenities we need, and that we will be able to raise our children in a stable community of owner-occupiers that like us values equitable outcomes, environmental sustainability and great design.”

- Paula, resident of Terrace House.

“This building is the future, setting the tone for what is possible; to see how good it is to live a bit more simply and more sustainably, in a very tight knit community, in an area where everything you need is within walking distance. It’s a great place to be and everyone is so warm and open and equally happy to be here. It’s a perfect home.”

- Griff, Director Hermann Studios and resident of Terrace House

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THE WHAT
Terrace House is an ethical, beautifully-designed, highly sustainable and 100% fossil fuel free building in Melbourne, comprising twenty (2 & 3 bedroom) residences, with 55 bike parks and three commercial spaces at ground level. Austin Maynard Architect’s first multi-residential project as both architect and developer, Terrace House takes a revolutionary approach to housing and delivers quality apartments that are environmentally, socially and financially sustainable.

Terrace House, is the re-imagining of a former inner-city suburban life, where rows of workers cottages generated and nurtured close community. Street parties, shared childminding, communal gardens, neighbourly lending and borrowing, conversations over the washing line and unlocked front doors - these ideals are the basis of Terrace House. These are not apartments, these are homes - terrace houses stacked six storeys high.

BOTH ARCHITECT & DEVELOPER
Over the years developers have approached Austin Maynard Architects, seeking our unique, joyful and award-winning design. At Terrace House we committed to doing it all, ourselves. We committed to being both architect and developer. Instead of profits, we focused on deliberative design, working directly with the residents to form a community and help them author their collective future. With the design of the building we set out to tackle the big issues, climate change and the lack of affordable housing; to be a really good example of urbanism and to be financially sustainable. To achieve this we democratised investment capital. We asked ethical investors to bank-roll us. We went to past clients and asked them to help us house others in the community. Our clients chipped in, at significant risk, as did many of us at Austin Maynard Architects. After a search we found an engaged landowner who wanted to do something positive within the neighbourhood they called home.

BEAUTIFULLY LARGE HOMES
Located on Sydney Road, a busy high street in Brunswick, Melbourne, Terrace House is sited on a thin, long block (10m x 57m). Typical small inner-city apartment buildings cannot be arranged on a block this size without the homes facing inward, towards each other, using saddlebacks or compromising bedrooms. We believe homes should have an aspect out from the site, into the surroundings, and to the sky, not facing each other at close proximity. The response to this unique site led to generous homes and the opportunity to emulate traditional terrace house plans. Homes with big external outlooks, a front verandah, a study and a shared ‘backyard' on the roof. These are highly sustainable terrace homes in an engaged community, at a relatively affordable price, with low running costs, and without the constant demands for maintenance and poor thermal performance of typical terrace houses. 

IT’S ALL RELATIVE 
A terrace home, as a typology, is an efficient type of free-standing housing. With homes up to 130m2 - Terrace House is large relative to other apartments, yet they are highly efficient relative to the typical Australian home. The average Australian home is 233m2, and generally inefficient in its use of space and energy, poorly designed and unsustainable. Terrace House fills a much needed gap in the housing market. Notably more affordable than similar sized, un-renovated, homes in the area. Large enough for families, but still with the shared resourcing and community that apartment living can bring. 

INFORMATIVE DESIGN
Terrace House is an evolution of apartment living. As architect and developer, it offered Austin Maynard Architects a way to create ethical, sustainable, cost-effective housing, while also allowing the community to craft an outcome that suits their needs and wants.

In June 2016, we made available a survey to potential purchasers, the results of which strongly informed the design of Terrace House. All respondents expressed a willingness to purchase homes designed by Austin Maynard Architects. 55% of respondents were first home buyers and 75% of respondents were aged under 45. The vast majority wanted a shared laundry and a rooftop clothes line, to ensure that they had larger living spaces. A rooftop garden was very important to most respondents. Everyone was concerned about climate change and wanted a highly sustainable and resilient development. Almost no-one requested air-conditioning, with the knowledge that Austin Maynard Architects would be designing a highly thermal efficient building. The vast majority of respondents wanted a car free home as almost everyone commutes via public transport, bicycles, walking and Uber.

“Our path to Terrace House began in 2013, in conversations with friends about architecture, good design, urban planning and the future of Melbourne. How communities, thoughtful policy and planning decisions can shape really liveable, exciting communities that are also future-proofed.

With Austin Maynard Architects we found we shared the same strongly held convictions about the environment and social justice, we joined the list for Terrace House and in 2017 our ballot was successful. We are not the sort of people who ever felt that need to buy a house. The only reason that we have bought anything is because it’s sustainable, community-focused and ‘location, location location’. Terrace House is premised on good design, on liveable apartments and we love that it tries to up-end the paradigm of development in Melbourne at the moment.”

Paula, resident of Terrace House

THE COMMUNITY
Brunswick is a wonderfully diverse suburb, with residents from a range of different socio-economic backgrounds, ethnicity and lifestyles. Issues of equality, sustainability, the arts and ethics are high priorities of many locals. The majority of Terrace House purchasers are Brunswick residents and many are renters in the area who have been unable to find suitable or affordable options to purchase. They already have an established social network here, but cost issues are forcing many to relocate to the outer suburbs, further from the city, from their familiar neighbourhood and infrastructure. Terrace House fills the gap in the market and maintains the spirit of community.

“As a consumer, what I really think Austin Maynard Architects has designed and built here, first and foremost, is a community. A thoughtfully designed and constructed community of like-minded people, who have been brought together by shared values and empowered by co-design. By involving us all in design decisions, AMA have given residents the permission to make this building our own; to take the design principles and run with them.”

Paula, resident of Terrace House

RESPONSE TO BRUNSWICK’S BUILT HERITAGE
Brunswick is one of the most eclectic and multi-cultural suburbs in Melbourne. It has a rich and diverse heritage that remains to this day. Terrace House is a love letter to Brunswick’s eclectic heritage and specifically to its often undervalued Mediterranean-Australian built history. Sadly, arches and brown brick are not in fashion at the moment and as such we are seeing the erasure of a very important part of post-war Australia.

Terrace House borrows from the plethora of unique arches of various types and epochs along Sydney Road, in a respectful and playful way. We studied these facades and have created a modern interpretation of the context, yet using light, utilitarian materials on the eastern and western facades that reflect Brunswick’s industrial past. Although we are very fond of the masonry arch balconies of neighbouring buildings, the lack of natural light provides poor amenity to the inhabitants, compared to the metal mesh and gardens established at Terrace House.

Undertaking yet another thoughtless, boxy development is exactly what Brunswick does not need. Neither does it call for a direct copy of heritage structures. Instead we have designed a green lung that borrows the forms and rhythms of the area. The utilitarian concrete and metal mesh provide the backdrop for substantial gardens on the east and west facade, and elegant, simple graphics of the North and South facades. The balustrading is simple vertical posts, which ensure that the balconies are not scalable by youngsters whilst providing abundant light to the inhabitants.

Our vision is that Terrace House will become a vertical community garden within a masonry context. Our aim is to provide a tall garden full of life.

AN URBAN RESPONSE TO TRANSIT AND PARKING
As determined by the transport plan, increased car usage on the street at the rear of Terrace House (Saxon Street) should be discouraged. A relatively narrow, ‘no-through’ road with a pedestrian park at the end, meant it could not effectively tolerate car usage. In fact, increased car activity would not only be an ineffective transport outcome, it would be to the detriment of the area. Saxon Street is an important public space and artery to public infrastructure, such as the school, the swimming baths, the train station, bike path, library, council building and other services, all tightly packed in this unique public realm. Furthermore the purchasers of Terrace House articulated a commitment to sustainable transport options and most have a history of non-car usage. With a reliable public transport system, car sharing on their doorstep, and with 55 secure bike-parks inside, the by design “no car no garage” urban response to transit and parking is the ideal solution for the residents of Terrace House, and importantly for the broader community.

STAIRWELL GRAPHICS
We were already fans of Melbourne based design studio Hermann Studios - of his clothing and his mural - we even had the t-shirts, so when we heard the company director, Griff, was successful with his ballot and would be moving into Terrace House, we approached him with an idea.

“The idea was to design a series of graphics in the building that would communicate earth and man and how they all intersect. It was a really good brief to work from, with that imagery, and so I kept it abstract but also symbolic. I really wanted to communicate the earth and then a human abstract of form and then unify them. They don’t all communicate that, some have plant structures entering the human head and other ones have a globe - you can interpret it as you want, art is subjective, but it was a great brief.”

Griff, head of Hermann Studios and resident at Terrace House.

SUSTAINABILITY
“Over its life span this building will emit -7000 tCO2eq less than average or standard buildings providing the same functionality. This is equivalent to:

– 42,000 trees planted

– 1842 cars taken off the road for a year

– 932 zero energy Australian homes for a year

– 203,855,455 balloons of CO2 gas removed from the atmosphere”

From Hip V Hype 120 year life cycle assessment 2021.

Terrace House addresses 10 key Ecologically Sustainable Design (ESD) categories in design and operations. The following is a summary of how each has been considered and what has been achieved, the results of which culminate in a building that will have reduced environmental impacts in the long term and will offer residents comfortable living conditions and reduced running costs.

1.Indoor Environment Quality

Low VOC & formaldehyde materials

Fresh Air: Natural ventilation and energy

recovery ventilators

Thermal comfort (ceiling fans, insulation)

daylight

2.Energy Efficiency

Insulation and high performance glazing

Thermal mass

Average NatHERS Rating of 8.1 Stars

Air tightness…

•Target ≤4.0 m3/hr/m2 @50Pa

•Achieved 2.1-2.3 m3/hr/m2 @50Pa

Energy Recovery Ventilators (ERV’s)

Lightwells with Cool Mist

Condensing clothes dryers and drying lines

Apartment master switch

LED lights throughout

2a. 100% Fossil Fuel Free

All Electric Building

No Gas

Induction Cooktops and Electric BBQ

Electric Heat Pump for hot water

Solar PV System

Embedded Network with 100% Green Electricity

3.Water Efficiency

High Water Efficiency Fixtures &Appliances

10,000L Rainwater Collection for Reuse

5,000L Fire Sprinkler System Test WaterCollection Tank for Reuse

Water Sensitive Landscaping

4.Stormwater Management

Reduction of Stormwater leaving the site during a storm event

Improved Quality of Stormwater leaving the site achieved through a combination of soft landscaping and rainwater tank.

5.Building Materials

Concrete with Cement Replacement,100% Recycled Water

Recycled Clay Red Brick Façade

Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)approved Timber

Steel from Responsible Steel Maker (WSACAP membership)

PVC: Best Practice Certified

Durable and Sustainable Materials

6.Transport

No Carpark

Access to Public Transport (trains, trams, buses)

55 Bicycle Parking Spaces

Car Share within 20m

7.Waste Management

Waste Management Plan

Dedicated Waste Room with:

•Recycling Facilities

•Shelf for Batteries & Electronic Waste

•Wormfarm

No Waste Chutes

90% of construction waste recycled

8.Urban Ecology

Landscape Designed for Improved Site Ecological Value

Veggie Garden

Soft Landscaping for Reduced Heat IslandEffect

Reduced Light Pollution

9.Innovation

No jaw-dropping-ground-breaking Innovation Initiatives (that might not work)

Simply thoughtful design

10.Management

Construction

•Environmental Management Plan

•Contractor Environmental Education

•12 Months Building Tuning Process

Operation

•We have given the residents the tools for sustainable living.

The initiatives that have been utilised during construction, and built into this project for its future operations, are exemplary. We are incredibly proud to be have made a positive contribution to the environment and the community.

Traditional land owners

Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung

Austin Maynard Architects, project team

Andrew Maynard, Mark Austin, Mark Stranan

Site Area

597m2

Total floor area

3225m2

Completion date

November 2021

Developer

Austin Maynard Architects

Builder

Kapitol Group

Project Managers

Armitage Jones

Engineers Structural - Adams Engineering

Engineer - Services - BCA Engineers

Engineer - Fire - Omnii

Engineer - Acoustic - WSP

ESD

Irwin Consult

Traffic Consultant

Ratio

Planning consultant

Hansen

Access Consultant

Architecture and Access

Landscape Architects

Openwork

Building Surveyor

Steve Watson & Partners

Photography

Derek Swalwell

Photography

Maitreya Chandorkar

Garden House

2021

Best Project - Archilovers 2021
Commendation - The Victorian Institute of Architects Awards
Finalist - Australian Sustainability Awards 2021
Nominated - Dwell Design Awards 2021, Dwellings.
Building of the year - Nominated, ArchDaily.com

Located on a rare, inner city battle-axe block, Garden House presents to the street as an unassuming gable front with little clue of the oasis that lies beyond. Retention of established trees provided a driver for the arrangement of linked pavilions, each intermingled with wandering garden spaces. This provides the setting for logical yet seamless integration of sustainability initiatives, both natural and technical. Internally, considered and playful spaces flow from one to another, with personal history brought to the site from a brick quarry.
Jury citation

Our most sustainable house so far, wrapped through an established garden.

“We needed an architect with vision as we were specific about the things we wanted the house to include. We wanted a super modern, high performing, highly sustainable, longterm family home, with the ability to change and adapt over time. It had to be an architect who was creative and could think outside the usual ‘square house’ box. We found most architects were very similar in their designs, but with Austin Maynard Architects, each house was very different, with its own personality - you could tell the homes had been specifically tailored to the owners. Our brief was for a really super modern house, in every sense but still really warm, and that’s what we have."
- The owners of Garden House.

The average Australian house uses 19kwh of energy per day. Garden House produces 100kwh per day and has a 26kwh Tesla battery. A high-performing, hi tech, inner-city oasis, Garden House is our most sustainable home yet.

More than just a house, Garden House is a power station, pushing far more sustainable energy back into our shared energy grid than it uses. This is the future of sustainable energy. Electrified homes, powered by the sun, powering our shared energy grid. (1)

With a Prime Minister championing the polluting coal industry, and limited federal targets to curb carbon emissions, homes like Garden House enable Australians to singlehandedly change our carbon heavy power grid.

“One in four Australian homes have rooftop solar panels, a larger share than in any other major economy” New York times

“As Australia, California and other parts of the world seek to increase their use of renewable energy, they will have to invest a lot more in batteries or other forms of energy storage, experts said.”

“In Australia, battery prices are expected to fall 10 to 15 percent this year,”

“We’re easily generating way more than what were using,” the owner said, adding that the battery had helped keep the lights on during a storm in August that caused a citywide blackout. Climate change, he said, “is going to create more of these storms.”

THE WHAT

Located on a long and narrow street, lined with long and narrow blocks, in inner-city Melbourne, Garden House is an unexpected oasis. Hidden from the street and accessed via a pedestrian laneway, this new family home sits within lush established greenery. Designed for a family of five with the capacity to regularly entertain dozens of people, the home comprises of four distinct elements appearing as separate buildings, ‘invisibly’ connected via mirrored glass corridors that reflect the well established garden.

A two-car garage and workshop faces to the street, with an all purpose rumpus room behind and home office above. Living/ dining / kitchen (with hidden pantry and laundry) open out to the garden. The main bedroom has an ‘open balcony’ lounge area and ensuite while the children have a dedicated space, with three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a TV room and a netted play-stair.

THE BRIEF

The owners came to us with a highly detailed and specific brief. They wanted a sustainable, “super modern”, longterm family home, that could change and adapt over time. They had a fantastic and usual block. Facing the street was a tired, single-fronted cottage, with a 1980s addition at the rear that opened out onto a sizeable and wholly unexpected private garden. The owners - eco- conscious and “a little quirky” - wanted to save as much of the existing garden as possible and build within it, a ‘homely’ house that was highly sustainable.

BIGGER ON THE INSIDE

By nature of its location and by design, Garden House belies its size and scale. At street-view the shingled, simple and domestic scale garage appears to be the house, in its entirety. A pretty, white shingled cottage with a perfect pitched roof. Walk down the side pedestrian alleyway and the main front door opens up to reveal a much bigger property concealed within - like discovering Narnia at the end of a literal yellow brick road.

The owners cited our 2015 project Tower House (2) as inspiration. They liked the way we dealt with visual bulk, by breaking down the home into smaller components. They wanted a home that allowed for large scale entertaining, space for their three children to grow up and a dedicated office/conference room, but they didn’t want the feeling of a big house.

BREAK IT DOWN

So the challenge was: How do you design a home big enough to accomodate a large family and yet not have it look like a large family home. How do you keep an intimate personal scale but then be able to have the flexibility of suddenly being full of people?

The response was to break up the bulk of the house into four smaller scale zones, office, kitchen/living, dining and kids area - with smart interactions. Each zone is connected via mirrored glass links or bridges, reflecting the garden and essentially making them disappear - giving the impression of four separate buildings, set within lush greenery. Internally there are concealed doors allowing for spaces to be opened up or sealed off (between kitchen and dining, and the staircase and kids zone). Large openings connect the inside with the garden, with seasonal outdoor spots such as the fire pit, shaded outdoor table, sunny lawn and heated pool.

“Our home doesn’t feel too huge, it feels homely and cosy. It’s like a little eco system, the more people the more sense it makes. It’s a multitasking house, doing four things at the same time. There’s logical space for it and it all works.” The owners

FINDING THE HOUSE THROUGH THE TREES

The initial sketches of Garden House were dictated by the random siting of three significant trees. The proposition was to save the trees, and as much of the establish plant-life as possible, whilst maximising passive solar gain and northern outlook by building along the southern boundary. With the guidance of an arborist and detailed surveys of tree root zones and trunk dimensions, the structural solution evolved. Garden House is not simply built around the trees, but, in places, suspended - hovering above ground to protect tree root zones.

Working around the trees resulted in a re-thinking of the typical circulation path. Quite often when designing there is one main path through the home and everything branching off it. At Garden House there is a more complex type of circulation borne out of saving trees. Without a defined circulation spine, the garden becomes the reference and orientation point.

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SUSTAINABILITY FEATURES

-Optimised passive solar.

-External venetian blinds.

-Double studded with double thickness wall insulation, underfloor insulation, an insulated concrete slab.

-Double glazed windows with thermally broken aluminium frames.

-50% fly-ash content cement, making it much lower in embodied emissions than standard concrete.

-Recycled brick.

-Retained most of the original garden.

-Maintain 10-15 degree heat variation to outside for reasonable periods without active heating or cooling.

-Fossil fuel free.

-No Gas.

-Hot water, space heating and cooling, hydronic heating, pool heating - is all supplied by highly efficient heat pumps.

-Induction cooktops and electric fan-forced ovens (and a steam oven).

-17kW of solar panels, facing North, East and West - to maximise solar output throughout the day.

-Produces 100kWh of electricity/day. The average Australian home uses 20Wh of electricity/day.

-2 Tesla Powerwalls - that store 26kWh of electricity.

-The house effectively is self-powered.

-Excess electricity back into the grid. Garden House is a sustainable power station.

-Tesla Model 3 charged by batteries, so effectively it runs for free.

-Fully automated smart home. Blinds, lights, fans and HVAC can be controlled from anywhere.

-The hydronic heating runs off a Nest thermostat which automatically optimises usage.

-The house has heat recovery ventilation which is constantly bringing in fresh, filtered air at the same temperature of the interior of the house.

-15,000 litres of water tank storage, stored under slab in garage.

-Tank water used to irrigate garden and for toilets.

-Zoning: only need to heat or cool the section of the house being used.

-Teleconferencing: The office is equipped with high-quality teleconferencing equipment, which reduces the need for travel.

-Bicycles: design cuts down on car use.

-Compost: Hungry Bin which can get through 2kg of food waste / day

-Vege patch/herb garden: Irrigated from 15kl tank.

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Photos by Derek Swalwell

(1) How Coal-Loving Australia Became the Leader in Rooftop Solar - https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/29/business/energy-environment/australia-rooftop-solar-coal.html
(2) Tower house https://maynardarchitects.com/#/865004006353/

Charles

2017

“Housing affordability, childcare and aged-care offer some of the biggest challenges in Australian society. Austin Maynard Architects proposes an adaptable multi-generational home in their latest project, Charles House.”
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Extract from the New York Times
”Though large families living together is not a new idea, purpose-built multigenerational homes are largely a new phenomena in Western society. But they have a strong tradition in Asian society.

That figured into the thinking of a couple with Asian roots who commissioned Charles House, a multigenerational home in Melbourne, Australia. “For them it was kind of a natural way to have a house,” said Andrew Maynard, whose firm, Austin Maynard Architects, designed it. For this project, Mr. Maynard turned the traditional Australian “granny flat” (normally akin to a shed out back) on its head by incorporating it into Charles House as an adaptable space on the ground level. Although multigenerational homes are not typically part of Australian culture, Mr. Maynard said the country could certainly benefit from them.”
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In Brief
The clients wanted a house they could live in for at least 25 years. They wanted a home that would grow with the family, anticipating and accommodating different demands at each stage. They wanted a home that could adapt to the needs of their young children as they grew into adulthood, and a place where they could comfortably accommodate grandparents in the near future. They asked for a practical, low maintenance house and garden filled with light and water features and blurred distinctions between the indoors and outdoors.

Siting/Context

Charles is sited in the upmarket suburb of Kew, Melbourne, on a street lined with McMansions and mock Georgian townhouses. Whilst some neighbouring buildings compete for attention and status our challenge was to create a home that didn't dominate the street and was imbedded in gardens. We aimed to create a home that didn't have a tall defensive fence, but instead offered openness and life to the street.

The house is sited on the southern edge of an east/west block, to provide all the living spaces northern sun and direct access to the garden. The garden runs from the street to the school sports fields at the rear of the site, rethinking the suburban backyard and allowing a visual connection through, creating a continuous green strip.

Intended to house a family of five, plus grandparents, Charles is a large home relative to our other projects, yet it is small compared to many of its neighbours. To break down the large mass, a number of forms are linked together, each given their own personality by using different slate patterns. Two sections of these forms are lined with bridges and ponds that run out to the garden. The external slate cladding flows through inside in certain areas, which reinforces the separation further.

Multi-generational & spacial flexibility

Multi-Generational housing is a double edged sword. It is wonderful in many ways - a diverse family home is often a healthy family home. However, Multi-Generational homes also reflect the nature of our economy and the dire consequences of housing un-affordability.

Though we approve of increasing the number of people in a home, we also approve of a broader support network from each member of the family unit. We welcome a more complex understanding of what family means and recognise modern urban isolation, longer work days, child care difficulties, increases in retirement costs and the inaccessibility to quality affordable housing - for not only our young, but increasingly the elderly.

The ground floor layout of Charles offers flexibility of space and function. A music/ living room, can become a student den or a Granny flat/apartment, with its own bathroom and direct (wheelchair-friendly) garden access. This is a truly adaptable space that can either extend the families living areas, or be closed off to be its own independent zone. For now this space is for the family to share music, to read and to rest. In a few years it will become a home to Grandparents.

Upstairs, the kid’s bedrooms open up to each other, onto hallways and the living area, as well as the study. All spaces can be opened up or isolated according to ages/functions/uses. As the children grow and change, their spaces can adapt to suit their level of engagement with their home and their family. The parent’s room, with walk-in-robe and ensuite, is separated visually and physically, as it is accessed via a bridge.

The natural beauty of slate

A covenant demanded that any new home built on the site be clad in stone. While there are many recently erected McMansions in the area made of brick, stone and tile, there are also a number of wonderful older homes that were crafted over a century ago. We loved the lichen covered slate roofs on many of these old Edwardian, Federation and Victorian homes and were keen to respond to and connect with this rich material history, without copying or creating a pastiche of the past.

The slate contractors (Slate Roof Service Company) engaged to clad Charles are responsible for the care and maintenance of some of Melbourne's most important heritage buildings, including the Victorian Parliament and Carlton Garden’s Exhibition Building. During their many decades of working with slate these seasoned craftsmen were excited by the challenges of applying their craft to vertical walls, rather than just the roof. Each of the patterns used on the various facades are patterns recommended by the contractors, from their years of experience working with slate. The beauty, skill and detail usually lost to the sky up on the roof, can be appreciated close up at Charles.

Sustainability

With its double stud walls, bulk insulation, solar array, water collection, double glazing, adjustable sun shading and siting, Charles is one of our most sustainable homes.

Rather than simply extruding the existing structure we have and run the new form along the southern boundary, so that it is bathed in northern sunlight. Windows are all double glazed and have protection - awnings, external blinds and adjustable louvres - designed to optimise passive solar gain in winter whilst minimising solar gain in summer, thereby drastically reducing demands on mechanical heating and cooling. The ponds offer further passive evaporative cooling. Solar panels with micro-inverters cover parts of the new roof and water tanks provide ample water for the gardens and the toilets. High performance insulation is everywhere. Where possible we have sourced local trades, materials and fittings.

Landscape design, by Bush Projects

The residents asked for a garden they could use, that would interest the children in plants and to provide a setting for long term engagement between the inhabitants of the house and the landscape they live in.

An eclectic combination of native and indigenous plants, as well as a mix of ornamental and edible planting, runs along the length of the house and responds to the inhabitants requirements, including a soccer pitch, outdoor areas for dining and play, vegetable & herb gardens and two large fish ponds. The new bush landscape of primarily indigenous plants within the front yard introduces valuable biodiversity, already well appreciated by local insects and birds. The garden locates the house in its particular setting with a nod to its pre-colonial landscape.

Progress through the space sees the landscape change into a domestic jungle, where oversized leaves and grasses immerse the visitor at a scale that reflects the size of the house.

The distinct architecture of Charles House required a landscape that responded and connected to its form in a direct way. The folding up and out of the outdoor spaces connects visually with the folded tabs in the facade of the house and the deep slices of pond and glass connect the inside and outside from several points. The permeable pathway ramps up and down to match the levels of the internal spaces providing an accessible route to each of the entry/exit points to the interior spaces.

As the outdoor areas wrap around the entirety of the house it is visible from many perspectives within the building. This required the landscape to be able to be read from many aspects. Careful attention was paid to the site reading as a landscape by using the materials of slope, topography, rock, water and planting, which allows the outdoor spaces to be experienced in many ways and at many points, both visually and sensorially.

The property backs onto a large school oval with its large cricket net fence and mature eucalyptus trees . The outdoor spaces utilise these borrowed views by not concealing the perimeter of the property making the areas surrounding the house seem expansive. The aspect of the main bedroom takes in the view of the schools domed chapel and it was important for this view to be enhanced and retained.

The house and its outdoor spaces encourage connection between the interior and exterior spaces, all year round.

Architect
Austin Maynard Architects

www.maynardarchitects.com

PROJECT TEAM:
Andrew Maynard, Mark Austin, Kathryne Houchin

BUILDER:
Overend Constructions

ENGINEER:
Hive Consultants

GARDEN FURNITURE
Tait

LANDSCAPE DESIGNERS
Bush Projects

PHOTOGRAPHER
Peter Bennetts

Tower

2015

INDE Awards -- Tower House, Best of the Decade
Winner -- The Eleanor Cullis-Hill Award, National Architecture Awards 2015
Winner -- The John and Phyllis Murphy Award, Victorian Architecture Awards 2015
Winner - Lysaght Inspirations Design Awards 2018, Major Award
Winner - Lysaght Inspirations Design Awards 2018, Zenith Award
Winner -- HOUSES Awards, House alteration & addition 2015
High Commendation -- World House of the Year, World Architecture Festival 2015

S+P and their 8 year old twin sons asked for a home “for community, art and nature to come together”. We designed them a village.

What?
Tower House is a renovation and extension to a weatherboard home in Alphington, Victoria, Australia. We restored the original, where we have two kids’ rooms, a bathroom and living spaces. A studio, bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and dining occupy the new part of the house. Tower House is the result of endless conversations with a trusting, enthusiastic, patient and encouraging client.

Who?
Mum, dad and twin boys live at Tower House. The family have keen interests in the environment, outdoor recreation and the arts. We first met to discuss Tower House just days before a federal election. Fear that in two days we would have a new, particularly nasty, negative and destructive Prime Minister loomed heavily in the air. Our discussion on that first day was not about kitchens and bathrooms. Our discussions were about life, art, politics, charity, the universe and everything. We knew we had a great client on that first day. The words S+P used were carefully considered. Nurturing, stimulating, gallery, inspiring, delightful, both social and private, introverted and extroverted, legacy, responsibility, character, engaging, discourse and community. In their home S+P wanted the story to be about more than them. S+P wanted the story to include us. All of us.

Context?
Tower House is near parkland and the Yarra River, with views to the Amcor chimney stacks. Tower House is bound by two roads. One is a leafy post-war suburban street. The other, which faces onto backyards, feels like a country road. With the exception of a few new homes the context is small, humble weatherboard and brick abodes. A chunk of large contemporary architecture would be an imposition in this context.

Why?
Tower House is the result of a vast number of concurrent discussions about issues far broader than the home itself. Though the brief was not small, our proposition was to create a series of small structures of a scale and texture that did not dominate its context. Tower House is about a lot of things. Here are our highlights:

The twins’ sketches
During an early design meeting we handed the twin boys paper and pencils and asked them to quietly entertain themselves while the adults spoke about ‘more important things’. After discussing the complexity of designing a home, and the various possibilities, we had all found ourselves deep down the rabbit hole, confused, lost and tired. We looked over to the boys to discover that they were not drawing cars, soldiers or dragons. Instead they had drawn their house. With modest confidence they slid their simple sketches, complete with notations, to me saying in unison “there you go”. Their sketches distilled a lot of ideas. They had firmly pushed the boat off the shore and we were on our way.

Home as village
As homes increase in size they increasingly appear as hostile monoliths. When a home is extended, often the monolith crashes into the original. The later looking like an alien cancerous growth on the former. Tower House is anti-monolith. Tower House is village externally and a home internally. The house defies logic as the exterior appears to be a series of small structures, while internally the spaces and functions are large and connected. Like the Tardis, it’s small on the outside and large internally.

Missing No.5
The mysterious case of the missing No.5. There is no No.5 in this street, which is odd. No.3 and No.7 sit side by side and no one can explain why No.5 was omitted. Tower House finds a small gap between 3 and 7 to build a new structure. It’s not No.5. The new tower fills the numerical gap. But the mystery remains.

5th elevation
When designing the Sydney Opera House Utzon spoke of the fifth facade, knowing that the roof will be the part of the building that dominates the view from the Harbour Bridge and the tall buildings nearby. The street front is no longer the public face of our buildings. Google Earth has made the roof the public face of our buildings, accessible to anyone at anytime. We can now easily see all of the mess that has been hidden on the rooftop. What was once hidden is now fully displayed. With this in mind we deliberately designed Tower House so that it looked beautiful from the sky and from Google Earth.

It’s all about community.
Increasingly our houses are overly concerned with privacy. Fences are getting higher and we are turning our backs to our neighbours. It’s starting to look less like house and garden and more like compound and security. What’s happening to neighbourhood and community? Tower House can be both. The front yard is now a communal vegetable patch. Neighbours are invited to help themselves and, if they wish, do a little gardening from time to time. The rest of the garden has a high fence around it, however you can see through the fence and, importantly the fences can be left open wide. With streets on both sides of Tower House neighbours can use the garden as a short cut and grab a few veggies on the way through. With the gates wide open the line between public and private starts to get blurred.

The Net
Australia is wide and flat. As a result our homes are wide and flat. Our HOUSE House project explored the idea of creating a vertical home, in contrast to the typical Australian home. The boy’s studio pushes this idea further. It is a wholly vertical space with a bookshelf running from floor to ceiling. The boys desks are at the base of the studio, where they can studiously work. Hanging within this tall space is a net where the boys can read, and contemplate with a view to the street and a view to the backyard. The boys study is designed to inspire the boys as they grow and learn.

Her library.
S’ library is a place of thought and contemplation. Slightly submerged, the desk is almost buried in the garden. Lined with dark spotted gum the library has an age and a wisdom that is in contrast to the playful contemplation of the boys study.

His spot.
P has a sneaky spot in the roof space above the kitchen. Lined in synthetic grass with nothing more than a banana lounge and a book P’s spot it a hideaway within the centre of the house.

Cha-cha-cha-changes
Tower House is a long-term family home. The boys will be adults when (if) they leave. The house can easily adapt from being a shared family home to being two separate zones with distinct entries. Within the original house we have hidden sliding panels which allow the large shared rooms to be divided into small. A variety of different activities can take place, whether shared or private. It’s the best of both worlds.

Sustainable?
Like all of our buildings, sustainability is at the core of Tower House. Rather than simply extruding the existing structure we have run the new form along the southern boundary so that it is soaked with sunlight. The openings and windows have been designed to optimise passive solar gain, thereby drastically reducing demands on mechanical heating and cooling. All windows are double glazed. White roofs drastically reduce urban heat sink and heat transfer internally. Need for air-conditioning is eliminated through active management of shade, and flow through ventilation. Water tanks have their place as they do on all of our projects. High performance insulation is everywhere, even in the walls of the original house.

Builder
Overend Constructions

Engineer:
Maurice Farrugia & Associates

Landscape design
Bush Projects and Andrew Maynard Architects

Plant selection
Bush Projects

Landscape contractor
Lucida Landscapes

PHOTOGRAPHERS
Peter Bennetts Studio / studio@peterbennetts.com
Tess Kelly / contact@tesskelly.net

Terracotta

2021

Best Sustainable Project - Inside Out/ Brickworks: Home Of The Year Awards.
Overall Winner - Inside Out/ Brickworks: Home Of The Year Awards.
High commendation - Think Brick Awards 2021.
Building of the year - Nominated, ArchDaily.com

“The property is a wonderful example of how we can accommodate more people in our urban centres without jeopardising anyone's quality of life. At its heart, sustainability is about making the most of the resources we have and preserving them for future generations. This project, which 'upcycles' an existing house and adds a durable second dwelling on the same block, achieves both those goals.” Judges citation

Living in bustling, vibrant Fitzroy, our client asked us to help her with a tree-change, without changing postcode. Her priority was to have a big veggie garden and a farm house, while remaining in the city. With our help, she found an inner suburban cottage with a huge backyard in a community-spirited enclave. We built a new home for her at the rear of the block and renovated the original house at the front for her son’s family to live in. Between the two cottages is a communal pavilion and a large productive garden. With the subtle mix of shared and private spaces, this is a multi-generational home like no other.

A dramatic rise in life expectancy is considered one of the great achievements of the twentieth century, but there are certain ramifications caused by an ageing population.

In the Australian housing market, already facing pressures of affordability and the shortage and cost of child care and aged care facilities, the changing demographic structure has driven demand for intelligent design response and resolution. There has been heightened interest in ‘multigenerational houses’ - homes that can adapt to a families changing demands; “Fonzie” flats (self-contained, usually built above garages); and perhaps most enduring and iconic - granny flats.

Beyond its simple definition - ‘self-contained accomodation suitable for an elderly relative’ - a Granny flat has proven to be hugely beneficial in terms of local planning and sustainability, particularly within high density inner city areas. Encouraging infill, maintaining and utilising local amenities and infrastructure and helping retain character. With many families relying on their parents to assist with young children, a granny flat ensures help is close by, with future potential as an autonomous space for teenagers or rental income for empty nesters.

Terracotta House is no ordinary ‘granny flat’. Architectural, highly detailed and beautiful - it is multi-generational living, but acting in reverse. Where typically a young family look to accomodate and care for their retired parents, at Terracotta House it is the parent, Belinda, who is helping her son and his wife; allowing them the opportunity to live in a house in a vibrant inner-city Melbourne suburb, close to their work, they would otherwise be unable to afford.

TERRACOTTA POTS
Walking around Belinda’s original home she illustrated why she wanted to leave it. A small dark courtyard was her only outdoor space, with a few well-cared-for plants in terracotta pots huddled in the brightest corner. “That’s what I want,” she said, gesturing to the much-loved but struggling pot plants. “I want to stay in my community, and have a thriving veggie garden. How can I have both? Help me find the right block.”

The brief to us was clear. Whilst her kitchen, bathroom and bedroom needed to function well, her priority, the soul of her home, was to be her garden. We kept the scale small and rational, to maximise outdoor space. The home spills into the garden, while the recycled brick and terracotta tiling creates a sympathetic background to her flourishing garden.

THE WHAT?
Far more than a granny flat at the end of the garden, Terracotta House is, essentially, a communal-living family “compound.” It comprises of two separate houses, a shared pavilion and a productive garden, sited on a long block in Melbourne’s inner north. At the front is the original cottage, now renovated with two bedrooms, a bathroom and an open plan kitchen/dining and lounge. A shared building is centrally located, a demilitarised zone with laundry and toilet, functioning as a library, guest room, writer’s studio, music room and general social space. At the back, with independent entry from the rear laneway, is Terracotta House itself. Built boundary to boundary (East/West) filling living spaces with northern light, it comprises living room, kitchen dining, bathroom and study/guest room on the first floor and main bedroom and ensuite upstairs.

TRUE AND TESTED
At Austin Maynard Architects we always aim to maximise space, relate internal spaces to the garden, embrace the street and make the most of laneways. The site that Belinda purchased offered potential to achieve all of these ideas and more.

The original house, a timber clad Victorian workers cottage faces the street. With a thoughtful internal renovation and some maintenance, the existing character was retained and enhanced. The layout was internally re-arranged, moving the living zones (kitchen/dining/living) from the rear of the house to the front, looking out onto the street and front garden, and facing the sun. Walls were removed and a new kitchen and bathroom installed, creating a simplified circulation. Though the front garden and verandah didn’t change in form too greatly, it changed in function - rather that purely ornamental it’s now a productive, working and recreational space that connects to the life on this friendly, community-rich street. The two bedrooms and the bathroom are now located in the rear of the home, a quieter and more private location.

“WELCOME TO THE COMPOUND”
The owner, Belinda, always held a fascination with common shared gardens and linked adjacent houses but opportunity and cost meant owning neighbouring properties was impractical and elusive. At Terracotta House, we discovered another way to achieve communal living. By creating a type of village square, or what Belinda jokingly calls a “compound”, she and her son’s family reside individually, in separate homes, on a shared block. With enough distance and enough garden between each cottage they both have privacy and space, but also the reassurance of help and support close by. This factor particularly resonates with Belinda, who moved to Melbourne from the UK and faced the struggle of working and raising two children without any family support.

FORM AND MATERIALITY
Belinda found inspiration in our 2015 project Tower House, which broke down the bulk of a large family home into five smaller components - reducing scale and introducing garden.

“I saw that and I thought, of course! You don’t have to build up, you can spread around, and it can be beautiful.” She says. “I wanted my house to be beautiful. That really mattered.”

The beauty of Terracotta house derives from the materials. Earthy red tiles, that respond in tone to the light throughout the day, spill down the walls to meet reclaimed brick. Beautiful and emotive, a nod to Belinda’s love for gardening, the application of terracotta tiles as a wall cladding came from exploring the possibilities of using materials in an unexpected way.

The roof form pop-ups respond directly to siting and sunlight. The main bedroom upstairs faces east, allowing for morning sun, whilst downstairs in the kitchen, dining and lounge room, an Eastern facing skylight captures the same early sun, with operable louvres to help with regulation throughout the seasons.

CONTEXT
The three elements of building at Terracotta house each relate to the context of the suburban area. The existing house at the front, sitting within the existing streetscape, was left untouched externally, to retain the street’s character and amenity.

The library pavilion is located on the western boundary, abutting a sizeable built form on the neighbour’s side, and opening directly onto the garden, to maximise the width of external space.

Terracotta House, at the back of the block, has a direct relationship to the rear laneway and sits in amongst neighbouring garages and outbuildings.

THE VILLAGE HUB
An important element of the brief from the very beginning was the library building. Located along the western boundary, in the centre of the block and facing out onto the shared garden - this freestanding, flexible pavilion, serves as the village hub. A light-filled, multi-purpose community room, with a pull-down Murphy bed (also used as a projector screen), a laundry and a toilet, it functions as guest accommodation, library, cinema, writer’s studio, music room and social space.

COMIC BOOK DETAILS
Architects spend a lot of time detailing the connection between materials. It’s important. Not only does it create a resilient and robust structure, it also makes the architecture legible. We spend a lot of time concealing flashing and capping so that the materials and form are coherent, without the waterproofing details dominating. However, finely crafted details are also, often, time consuming to construct, which has a direct effect on the budget. At Terracotta House, where the budget was tightly fixed, we decided to do the opposite detailing strategy. Rather than hiding the flashings and capping, we accentuated them. Like the thick outlines of a comic book, each form is captured within lines of black steel of various thicknesses, framing and accentuating the tiles and the recycled brick. Reviving the dying art of line weights, Terracotta House is a comic book illustration brought to life by developing pragmatic details designed to drive down construction costs.

WILLIE WESTIN WALLPAPER
A major interior feature of Terracotta House is the beautiful wallpaper, supplied by Willie Weston. - a local business run by two non-indigenous women in partnership with Indigenous artists, through indigenous owned art centres. Two designs were chosen by the owner for the walls in her kitchen and lounge: Jilamara ‘Stone’ and Pandanus ‘Stone’ adds a sophisticated and artistic delicacy to contrast with the earthy, exposed reclaimed brick.

OWNERS STATEMENT
“I came to Austin Maynard Architects with just an idea. I wanted to buy a block on which it would be possible to have two houses, plus a shared building and a productive garden - but not in the outer suburbs. I loved their Tower House project, the fact it wasn’t built up, but was spread around and it was beautiful. I wanted my home to be beautiful. That mattered.

Now I have a beautiful house and the grandchildren love coming here, it’s like a little village for them. We’ve found a new way of achieving communal living."

SUSTAINABILITY

As with all our projects, sustainability is at the forefront of design with Terracotta House. As well as incorporating a large productive garden and maximising space on this inner city block, Terracotta House embraces many passive energy design principals. The majority of the home’s heating and cooling is passive, through design, materials, and window size/placement. Operable windows facilitates cross-flow ventilation as well as exhausting off air throughout the hotter months. Glazing is designed to capture the winter sun and keep out the summer sun and the choice of external fabric maintains a comfortable internal temperature.

Fixed awnings and screens are located on northern and eastern windows to protect against the sun with vertical screens to the western face where the summer sun is lower in the sky and harsher. The concrete floors contains hydronic coils that heat the slab from within, radiating the warmth throughout the day. Northern orientation, utilising as many full height windows as possible, allows the slab to be heated by the sun also, reducing the reliance on the heating system.

The highest quality insulation available - made using recycled glass, was also used throughout all internal walls, floors and ceilings. Windows are powder coated, thermally broken aluminium frames with double glazing throughout.

Recycled bricks, cleaned by hand, were used extensively throughout the house, and the left-over supply was used to build the raised garden beds.

High quality materials such as brick, concrete, aluminium framed windows, metal roofing and terracotta tiles were selected to construct a home that will last and reduce ongoing maintenance.

Ceiling fans are installed in the living area, library and kitchen to provide efficient cooling during summer. Rainwater from all roof areas is harvested and directed to two above-ground colorbond steel slimline water tanks, for toilet flushing and garden irrigation.

The design utilises low-energy LED lighting throughout and low energy usage appliances.

A photovoltaic solar power system has been connected to supplement electricity use, with the capacity for future connection to storage batteries. Panels are located on the roof of the old part of the house.

A large, and well tended, productive garden forms the centre of this communal home. Every endeavour was made to ensure the growing of fruit and vegetables was made easy. Visible from all parts of the house, tending and harvesting is a part of daily life.

Photos by Derek Swalwell

St Andrews Beach House

Winner -- 2019 Architizer A+ Award
“This is an unparalleled honor. With entries from over 100 countries, your work truly represents the best of architecture worldwide.” - Architizer jury

Less than five metres in radius, St Andrews Beach House is an object in the landscape. A Euclidean form set amongst the rough and sandy terrain it provides - in modest form - everything you would need and want in a beach shack.

“I've always quite enjoyed work but now I find myself longing for the weekend so we can head down and chill.” - The owner

THE BASIC BRIEF

Australians have some of the biggest houses in the world and holiday houses are increasingly becoming carbon copies of the suburban home. The owner of St Andrews Beach House recognised this. He challenged us to design him a ‘bach’ - a New Zealand word used to describe a very modest, small and basic shack, or shed.

THE WHERE

Located on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula, St Andrews Beach has no shopping strip and no restaurants. There’s a corner store, a brewery, and not much else. What it does offer is serenity and seclusion, a wildly beautiful coastline, and some of the most celebrated residential architecture in Australia. The owner was fortunate enough to own land abutting national parkland, close to the foreshore and directly within the sand dunes.

CIRCLES AND ROUNDABOUTS

St Andrews Beach House is a two storey circular holiday home, which takes advantage of the remoteness of site and expansive views, which extend in all directions. The house stands alone, in amongst wild bush, rugged sand dunes and scrub. The location is fragile and the house respectfully integrates into the environment. With no neighbouring forms to respond to, the brief - to design a modest, two-bedroom beach house, was freely imagined.

The shape of the house grew from a response to the views and the simplification of the interior spaces. At St Andrews Beach House there are no corridors. Corridors and circulation space are, in our view, a waste. A corridor free home lends itself to a circular design.

TO THE BEACH AND BACH

Beach houses exist for simple relaxation, an escape from the city, for quietude and downtime with family and friends. It should provide contrast from day-to-day normality, be super low maintenance, relatively self-sustaining and basic, but not without simple creature comforts.

Australians have some of the biggest houses in the world and, increasingly so, Australian holiday houses are becoming carbon copies of the suburban home. Simple shacks are replaced with oversized structures that are all too literally a-home-away-from-home. The owner of St Andrews Beach House recognised this. In his brief he would frequently use the term ‘bach’ - a word used in New Zealand to describe the rough and ready beach shacks built mostly in the mid century from found and recycled materials. Regardless of how much money you’ve made, you get yourself a bach, and that bach has to be the most basic, down-to-earth thing. The owner challenged us to design and build him a ‘bach’ in the dunes.

A CIRCLE IN THE SAND

Less than five metres in radius, St Andrews Beach House is an object in the landscape. A Euclidean form set amongst the rough terrain. The plan of the house is generated using the rational and precise geometry, as the circle extrudes into a tube. The internal spaces are generated by a tightly controlled plan adhering to the rules of form, guiding and arranging segments that divide the space, with a spiral staircase as its central core, providing light and air but also snug spaces. The house displays an innovative use of timber, with chunky details and exposed portal frames. This is not a slick beach house, but a relaxed and informal escape, designed with materials that will patina and weather, like an old coastal wharf.

ALL FRONT

The house has multiple outlooks. Without a dominant orientation there is no need for a front, back and sides, St Andrew Beach House is all front. The ground floor comprises of kitchen, living and dining, with a bathroom and a laundry. An open deck area, within the tube, unites the spaces when the bi-fold doors are opened. Most Australians want a deck or veranda, instead of adding something to the outside, like that of the classic old Australian home, at St Andrews Beach House the deck has been eroded out of the form itself, creating a two story space that’s both outside and inside.

WHEREVER I LAY MY HEAD, THAT’S MY BED

A central spiral staircase leads upstairs to the bathroom and bedroom zone. Unlike a traditional bedroom layout, the upstairs sleeping area is essentially one bunk room, separated by curtains. (The space can also function as a second living or games room.) Rather than design a series of sealed bedrooms, each with ensuite and walk-in-robe, the sleeping zone at St Andrews Beach House is informal, casual and relaxed, where floor space is the only limitation. And when that limitation is reached, guests are invited to pitch a tent on the soft sand outside and use the house as a central hub.

ATYPICAL LIVING

A single cylinder concrete water tank acts as a gateway marker to the beach house, from here onwards you leave cars, the road, your troubles and everything else behind. Though the building is precise, following the rigid geometry of a circle, staying here provides a complete escape from regular life. Not adhering to a typical layout allows you, if not forces you, to live differently. With a standard home arrangement (a long corridor, with rooms leading off etc) everyone knows how to use the spaces, a circular home with strong open connections horizontally and diagonally throughout, serves to both engage and liberate.

SUSTAINABILITY

St Andrews Beach House stands at less than five metres in radius, creating a very small footprint amongst the dunes. Like all of Austin Maynard Architects buildings, sustainability is at the core of this project. The materials used are robust and designed to weather. Passive solar principals are maximised by the design. All windows are double-glazed. Solar panels with micro-inverters cover the roof providing electric hydronic- no fossil fuels, no gas. A large cylinder concrete water tank collects rainwater, captured and reused to flush toilets and water the garden.

The block had been previously cleared and connected to the road for services. Construction was difficult as shifting sands required deep footings. Landscaping and retaining the existing fauna was especially important to minimise sand blasting caused by wind.

Project team

Andrew Maynard, Mark Austin, Ray Dinh

Builder

Spence Construction

Site area: 8304 m2

Total house area: 139m2 (ground floor 78m2 / first floor 61m2)

Completion date

December 2018

Engineer

Perrett Simpson

Building surveyor

Steve Watson & Partners

Energy Consultant

Efficient Energy Choices

Land Surveyor

Steve Palmer Surveys

Photographer

Derek Swalwell

RaeRae

2019

Best Project - Archilovers 2021
Winner - Residential Architecture Award, The Australian Institute of Architects 2020
Commendation - National Architecture Awards 2020

“Through a sense of enquiry and intrigue, Austin Maynard Architects creates a considered impression of discovery to unveil a home that bridges time and transcends a typified response“ The Local Project

“We consider ourselves really lucky. Lucky that the property next door to our house came on the market, lucky to be in a position to buy it, and give ourselves the opportunity to build a home for our family of 5. But the biggest stroke of luck was meeting Andrew and Mark and the Austin Maynard Team. We wanted to capitalise on our luck by building a home for life, for us and our family....something that will be fun for our young kids today and equally fun for them in the future. We are so delighted with the amazing house that AMA designed for us. Their care for our needs and wants during the design phase and attention to detail during build has resulted in a house where we really wouldn’t change a thing.” - Fiona and Tim, owners RaeRae house.

Unconventional but thoroughly logical. Like a German sports car, the beauty of RaeRae’s exterior belies the highly tuned rationalism that generated it. Responsive, contextual and strategic, this is a functional home with nuanced moments of surprise and discovery.

THE WHAT
RaeRae is a new five-bedroom family home which incorporates the front of two pre-exisiting terrace homes. A glazed entry, set back between the heritage buildings, unites the two and forms the gateway to the new build, surprising in light and scale. The entry leads from front garden to reveal more greenery, through to a lounge, kitchen and dining room. Above the kitchen is the parent’s bedroom, with walk in robe and ensuite. Beyond the dining room and concealed laundry room, is the two-storey kids-zone, with three bedrooms and a bathroom accessed via a spiral staircase. Below is a rumpus room, a study and a multifunctional utility/garage space. The front room of one the existing terrace houses is now a self-contained guest suite, including separate entrance via the original front door. The other terrace is now a home-office and, located behind the other front door, a garden shed which leads directly through to the central garden.

THE BRIEF
The owners of RaeRae were preparing to renovate and extend their tired single-fronted terrace in North Fitzroy, Melbourne, when the house next door came up for sale. The two terraces are each sited on long blocks with dual frontage potential, a street at the front and an unusually wide lane at the rear. The newly purchased home showed signs of a previous life but was dilapidated and unliveable. Walls were covered in George Michael and Pat Cash posters and floorboards squatters had pulled up and burnt in the fireplace. Structurally unsound, this home needed to be demolished, however a heritage overlay dictated that the street frontages of both homes must remain. Austin Maynard Architects were asked to combine the neighbouring properties to create a family home and garden for a family of five.

THE WHY
Whilst first appearances may suggest otherwise, logic, reason and rationality are the cornerstones behind the design of RaeRae. Initially it looks to be a fanciful design, an architectural mountain range, but at its core the house is responsive and strategic. The roof form is contextual, every rise and fall is tuned to minimise overshadowing and visual bulk, only truly apparent if it were studied from above. The roof is low against abutting gardens to avoid overshadowing, and high where the neighbours have built against the boundary. In creating height in all the areas, both internally and externally, the mountain profile emerged.

EXTERIOR
The same rational principle applies to the exterior materiality. The considerable weight of brickwork always meets the ground, and is never elevated. Wherever there is an opening, there is timber above, resulting in minimal structural steel, significantly reducing cost while also adding pattern and beauty. It is a strategic way of thinking about structure which ensure budgets are met, yet also leads to a diverse aesthetic. The form is the result of rational design. It’s not decorative. The timber and brick create an aesthetic that is not just fanciful but based on solid pragmatics. Similarly the window locations, externally randomly placed, yet internally undertake specific spatial functions.

The wide laneway at the rear of the block has an emergent aesthetic, lots of garages, but also extensions, subdivisions and newer builds that have capitalised on the dual frontage aspect. Rather than defend from the street, the design opens to this public space. With no heritage constraints to this frontage, the aim was to engage with the street and the neighbours, with direct access, large openings and windows. With the potential change in future transport needs, the garage at RaeRae is a multifunctional space, well designed and fully insulated to allow for future use as a bedroom or airbnb studio.

Though not the tallest building on the block, AMA recognised that the roof form would be clearly visible within the neighbourhood. Rather than adding more clumsily erected metal roofing the natural beauty of slate was chosen. Over time the slate will age and lichen will establish, creating a beautiful canvas beyond its utilitarian function.

DELIBERATELY NUANCED
Austin Maynard Architects work is eclectic not merely due to the abundance of ideas they explore, but more importantly because the team engage with clients to find out what they really like. The master bedroom at RaeRae is an example of this. Instead of the usual request for a parental retreat, a quiet place far away from active family areas, the owners asked for the main bedroom to be at the very centre of the house. Here, located directly above the kitchen, the parents have the opportunity to directly engage with the activity below, or close the large sliding doors to create a private space.

The children also have their own versatile areas. The rumpus room opens out to the garden and also to the street, future-proofed to become self-contained with its own direct street access. Behind is a dedicated craft/study area, designed to allow for both maximum creative mess and quiet secluded revision. A spiral staircase leads up to a bathroom and three bedrooms, with a bright colour carpet chosen by each child. The perforated steel landing connects the bedrooms and bridges a double height void. The three bedrooms feature full height sliding panels, which allow the siblings the option of being private, or to open up and converse with one another across the hallway - both between the bedrooms and from up and downstairs.

The house is deliberately nuanced in this way. Every part of the house can be a secluded space, closed off with hidden sliding doors, or opened up to be free flowing. The occupants can be engaged and connected or alone and private. They have both/and, not either/or.

ALL SECRETS, NO LIES
Often highly functional and rational homes are banal, but RaeRae house is Austin Maynard Architects’ attempt at challenging this; to create a rational house filled with secrets and discovery, not for outward show, but for the occupants individual experience and evolving needs. Unconventional but thoroughly logical is the location of the shed and bin storage. Directly behind the old front door, it allows for a wheelbarrow of dirt or firewood to be transported to the garden without going through the house.

In the kitchen there’s a hidden pantry, appliance storage shelves and food preparation area. Slide away the glass splash back to expose the cooking secrets behind. The kitchen bench hovers above the floor, allowing for an abundance of natural light, with cables and wires hidden within tubular ends. The rumpus and craft rooms hide a multitude of secrets - pin-boards, blackboards, sliding doors, recharging zones, cubby holes and toy storage. A ladder in the study leads to extra storage space or a place to hide. Outside, the passive solar awnings that shade the windows are as honest as they are delightfully functional, perfect to hang baskets or lights.

SUSTAINABILITY
RaeRae was specifically built along the southern boundary to take full advantage of the northern aspect. Living spaces face the sunny northern garden, while storage and services are to the south. Reorienting the home along the southern boundary maximises passive solar gain and ensures a sunny garden with minimal shadow, ideal for Melbourne’s climate. Sustainability is always at the very core of each project. All new work aims to maximise available daylight and optimise passive solar gain in winter, while ensuring that summer sun does not hit the glass. All windows are double-glazed with fixed external awnings to provide shade. With active management of shade and passive ventilation, demands on mechanical heating and cooling are drastically reduced. A large water tank has been buried within the garden. All roof water is captured and reused to flush toilets and water the garden. Where possible Austin Maynard Architects have sourced local trades, materials and fittings. The home is designed to be durable and long lasting. High quality and highly sustainable materials are used throughout. Beyond its obvious aesthetic qualities, slate roofing offers a highly robust surface with a lengthy life span and no maintenance. Most importantly slate is a natural material, simply cut out of the earth and installed, it doesn’t go through a resource and carbon hungry manufacturing process, it’s not full of chemicals and it can be un-nailed and re-used in another life.

Photos 1 to 40 by Peter bennetts. Photos 41 to 51 by Stephanie Rooney. All other photos and images by Austin Maynard Architects.

Union

2020

The Dezeen Awards 2020, ‘Longlist’ - ‘Urban House Project’

At Austin Maynard Architects, we typically throw a lot of playful ideas for our clients to pick from but at Union House we’d met our match. What happens when you put Austin Maynard Architects together with a family of five vibrant and dynamic people with diverse interests, a huge bag of enthusiasm and endless creative suggestions. The answer is Union House.

WE SEE YOU

Union House is hiding in plain sight. “We can all see you” the neighbourhood says, as Union spills over its original facade. This is not a quiet and unassuming building, cowering in the back yard. This is an intervention that directly layers one epoch on top another.

The dutch gable of the original home is an identical copy of its eastern neighbour. From there the similarity abruptly ends. Union is an entirely new house, which has retained, restored and incorporated the beloved original cottage facade, despite no heritage overlays or council requirement. Memory is important and heritage can be lots of fun. Demolishing a building and erasing history is far too easy. Union House is a place of memory, a home the family had lived in for years. Whilst it was a quaint cottage with a lovely facade, there was no stipulation to keep or protect it. Regardless, both the owners and ourselves wanted to retain a piece of the home’s former life.

THE WHAT

Located in Brunswick, Melbourne, Union is a playful, multi level new home, sited on a narrow 5.5 metre wide block. A couple with three energetic teenage boys asked for a robust family home they could live in ‘forever’. Union is a 4 bedroom, 3 bathroom family house with a study, a basement rumpus room, a roof deck and a carport. However that’s just the beginning of the story. Union is an example of people literally living on top of each other, and making that part of the joy of the house, rather than a problem. The house engages with the occupants in fun and dynamic ways. Despite being narrow and stacked, the home never feels cramped as spaces are designed to merge into others in various and sometimes surprising configurations. Using height, sliding walls, voids and openings, the volume of the rooms are blurred, fluid and flexible. Here, the standard house layout of cells and corridors has been subverted. There are split levels and ramps, hidden slopes, concealed steps and bookcase walls that split apart.

SUBVERSIVE AND FUN

Rough brickwork at the front entry - all that remains of the original house, slides behind the new Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) walls. A ramp leads past the study and guest bedroom/reading retreat, to a central perforated black steel staircase that cuts through four levels within a CLT volume that rises the height of the house. Though intended to be covered up as a structural material, the CLT is exposed throughout, including walls, floors, stairs, ceilings and doors, unifying the interior.

An open plan living /dining/kitchen is filled with secrets and surprises, including an outside escape route for the family’s two Siamese cats. Cupboard doors are constructed from Equitone, a material generally used as an external cladding. It contrasts with the pale CLT timber and shock of camellia pink inside. Glass floor panels allow sunlight to stream directly into the basement rumpus below, one opens to allow daring direct entry via a steep ‘slide.’

The boys’ bathroom upstairs is filled with a moulded fibreglass blue ‘cartoonish’ landscape - incorporating shower, bath, steps and hob.

AN ALTERNATE ROUTE

A plethora of intriguing and imaginative ideas arose in client conversation, including the playful notion of an alternate route though the house. In the centre of Union is a black steel winding staircase, with part perforated treads. It is a beautiful way to move between levels, however the clients wanted a back up plan. A way to get from the basement all the way to the roof without needing to take the standard route. A ramp, a glazed trap door, a series of climbing holds and nets enable this energetic family to clamber up walls without ever interacting with the stair. A throughly unconventional way to move through a home, and a wonderful way to distract active boys. Though filled with ideas Union is a coherent and practical family home that encompasses and responds directly to this unique client.

SUSTAINABILITY

Union is a vertical house, with stacked spaces and voids, unified through the use of exposed Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) walls and ceilings. Carbon sequestering CLT was used to reduce time on site, minimise trades and accumulated layering within the building process. CLT offers a multitude of benefits in terms of performance and environmental sustainability. It comes from sustainably managed forests and is manufactured to exact measurements leading to very little waste and simpler construction. As a product is it not only durable but also entirely recyclable.

A water tank is buried the backyard, a green roof above the bedrooms improves thermal performance and a concrete slab adds thermal mass at ground level. At the rear, a concealed retractable awning provides shade, while external recycled brick paving, plinth and fences are a nod to the site’s history. Where once there was a high, oppressive front fence there is now a concrete bench, providing a resting spot for pedestrians and neighbours.

Heidi & Craig - owners of Union House

“Our old single-fronted residence suited us fine when our children were very small but, after time, the property was no longer practical for our needs. Attached as we were to the place, rather than sell up and move elsewhere, we decided to engage the services of an architect who understood the challenges of building in the inner city, with limited space, restricted access and proximity of neighbouring residences.

Our new home is long, narrow and vertically sophisticated: a fun multi-level home that doesn’t sacrifice practicalities and environmental considerations. Light streams into the top of the central stairwell, down two storeys into the centre of the house through perforated steel, netting and voids. Thoughtful design features confer fluidity and flexibility. There are spaces to be shared and spaces for seclusion; there are levels that are split, transparent and modular; there are features that are dramatic and playful.

We now live in a harmonious space with real utility, coordinating our work, study and leisure activities; everything functions even better than we expected. The house itself engages with us in ways that are subtle and dynamic. It continues to delight our family and friends, almost as though it has its own sense of humour. It is beautiful without taking itself too seriously. Mostly though, as many have pointed out to us, although radically transformed, this is a house that still possesses the essential character of our first Melbourne home.”

Austin Maynard Architects project team Andrew Maynard, Mark Austin, Natalie Miles

Photo credit: Derek Swalwell.
All photos taken during construction by Austin Maynard Architects.

Picket

Australian Design Review’s top ten Australian homes of 2022

“I came across Austin Maynard Architects website and I loved the detail and the playfulness. Every project responded directly to the family, with such imagination and also a very keen sense of design - not in a linear sense, but really creative, and we loved that aspect. I always remember the first email exchange we wrote something about ‘following the yellow brick road’, and all along the way it felt like there was a magical element.”

Zoe & Merez, owners of Picket House

THE WHAT
Picket House is a two storey addition to a freestanding Edwardian timber house, at the top of a hill in Northcote, Melbourne. The old part of the house has been re-roofed and internally upgraded and now forms the dormitory, with three bedrooms, a study and a bathroom. The new addition has living, dining and kitchen in an open play layout, with a pantry, powder room and laundry along the southern side at ground level. The living area is double height to maximise light and volume. The first floor has a multi-functional open space (currently used as a playroom) with a walkway out to an external deck.

THE BRIEF
The owners Zoe and Merez, professional chefs and parents of two young children, began their renovation plans with a simple aim, they wanted a deck at the back of their house. The exisiting, run down 70s lean-to at the rear of their property, though “had to go” and by extending the footprint a more prescriptive brief evolved; coupling the owners requirements with functional aspects and their desire for “an overall sense of warmth, volume and light”.

The typical approach by Austin Maynard Architects is to find the opportunities within the brief and the site, to seek responses that surprise and delight rather than adopting typical approaches to residential design. At Picket House suggestions such as the flexible space at first floor level, the entry between the existing home and the new build, and the separation of sleeping quarters in the old house and living zones in the addition, all evolved during the design process.

THE WHY
The original property had been used as a share house for many years and was in a state of general disrepair. While the front of the house had great character and required straightforward upgrade and improvement, the old weatherboard lean-to at the back of the house was unsalvageable, removed and the rear yard cleared. Responding to site and orientation, the new addition is positioned on the southern side of the block, to maximise the garden space and allow northern sun into both levels. A vertical linking element between the old and the new building forms the new entryway, with staircase between the varying floor levels responding to the gradient of the block. To reduce height and ensure the southern wall along the street is at fence height, the addition has been sunken in the ground.

NEVER CORNERED
As architects, whenever we’re presented with a laneway, or a corner, it’s always exciting because it means we can add another dimension. Often you see houses on corners that have not responded to site or opportunity. Instead they stick to the typical linear layout, and build a huge fence along the street, as though they might one day have a neighbour on that side. Whenever we have the ability to change the orientation, we do. At Picket House we were presented with three frontage possibilities. By creating a new entry in the central link between the original home and the new addition, visitors to the house are invited directly into the entertaining, living and garden areas, rather than past private bedrooms.

LEVELS
The block is sited on a fairly steep gradient, with the front of the house at the top of a hill, sloping downwards to the rear of the block. This presented the opportunity to investigate levels between spaces and the idea of vertical connection.

At several points the ground levels were pre-determined and could not be raised or lowered, such as the door between the old lean-to and original house and the footpath along the side of the block - but there was flexibility in setting new internal floor levels.

Having repositioning the front door at the side of the house, the entry floor level was set at kitchen bench top height, allowing a flow of space from the entry through to the kitchen and out to the BBQ zone. Half a flight up is the original doorway to the old part of the house, which is now dormitory. Another half stair up there’s a timber batten landing which provides a connection between ground and first floor, and an open entry way through to the rumpus and out to the external raised deck.

Though it serves to access a total of four levels within the layout of the house, the central staircase appears, by design, small and simple.

‘A VISUAL SHORTHAND FOR THE GOOD LIFE’
White picket fences became synonymous with a dream suburban life in the 1940s & 50s. Highly culturally symbolic, thanks to films like ‘It’s A Wonderful Life’, a white picket fence was, as the Smithsonian magazine surmised, ‘a visual shorthand for the good life.’ In the 1980s white picket fences enjoyed a revival as new urbanist developers sought to entice potential residents with a sense of safety and security. You can see through a picket fence, you can have a conversation through it, unlike a brick wall, a picket fence allows for friendly, neighbourly interaction.

Having relocated the new addition along the southern boundary to maximise northern light, we sought to address the outcome of added bulk along the street. Rather than add on a big high contemporary box, we took a lighter approach to the new build. We sunk the new addition to reduce height and embraced the suburban language of the area.

For the visual, practically and financial benefit, we initially considered white pickets as an option to creatively reinterpret the need to a side fence. As the design progressed, the typical fence material of the paling/picket became the external cladding, concealing the lower level wall of the addition on the southern side, and wrapping the entire first floor of the addition.

Concealed shutters within the palings on the northern side provide sun protection, while on the western side the pickets have been rotated to provide outlook as well as some shading. The decking timber is trimmed at the edges to match the palings, as if fence palings were laid flat to become decking.

The white picket fence is a relatable and easily identified element of the suburban landscape. A friendly device that defines the division between neighbours. The white palings at Picket House make it distinct from the old house but not a foreign object: an object clad in a suburban friendly coat.

THE LINK
A distinct separation was created between old and new with the insertion of a vertical black box covered in ‘archbar’. Over time, the link will be entirely engulfed with climbing vines, creating a green connection.

Having removed the lean to, the external wall was re-clad in weatherboards to match

The external weatherboard cladding of the old house was re-done on the western wall to match the existing cladding and to finish the rear of the old house. This cladding (weatherboards and bargeboards) was run through internally along the entry wall to appear as though the new addition was slid up against the rear wall respectfully interacting with the old structure.

“We wanted to celebrate the architecture and the era of the original house, but make this new addition entirely different. I love how it became all about living, while the old part is dormitory. That’s where the link between the old and the new is quite dramatic. It’s not a huge space but having the light and the volume was so important. I love the progression of steps, coming down and seeing the levels and the light and the terrazzo. We just love this space. It’s a joy to live in a beautiful designed home that works for us.”

INTERNAL FINISHES
Within the new addition a range of materials and textures create a warmth and character to the ground floor living, kitchen and dining space. Brass detailing, mirror, terrazzo, a timber ceiling, polished concrete, navy cabinetry and wall finish complete the palette. Rather than a neutral interior materials and colours were selected to bring a warm personality to the living space.

“We wanted a new build that had a 60s modernist vibe and that wasn’t easy for the builders we know. We had collected so many things over the years, furniture, art, all the Danish light fittings, which we’ve been holding on to for almost ten years, the old french chateaux doors. We’re really happy we were able to bring older elements into the new part.”

SUSTAINABILITY
Northern orientation- slab on round
Ceiling fan
In-slab hydronic heating
Shading of glazing
Double glazing
Water tank
Retention & renovation of as much of old house as possible

Austin Maynard Architects Project Team
Andrew Maynard, Mark Austin, Natalie Miles

Completed
December 2021

Total Site Area:
418m2 (Addition, 120m2 total. 102m2 (Ground = 67m2 + First = 35m2) + Balcony = 18m2
Existing House 112m2 total 94m2 + Verandah = 18m2)

Builder
CBD Contracting

Engineer
Adams Engineering

Photographer
Tess Kelly

Traditional Owners of the land
The Wurundjeri-willam clan, speaking Woiwurrung and Boonwurrung languages, of the Kulin Nation are the traditional owners of the land where the Park St house is located.

King Bill

- Winner -- The John and Phyllis Murphy Award, Victorian Architecture Awards 2018 for King Bill
- Houses Awards 2018 Commendation
- Dezeen, World’s Best Architecture Awards 2018 Long list
- 2018 Australian National Architecture Awards Commendation
- Finalist- World house of the year, World Architecture Festival 2018
- Best Project 2018, Archilover

King Bill is a love letter to Fitzroy. King Bill is a collage of Fitzroy’s built history, its textures, its forms, its order and its chaos.

The high land values of Fitzroy would encourage many owners to add as much building as possible. Not so for the owners of King Bill. They sought to give something back to the suburb they love. They sought to create a new pocket park.

IN A NUTSHELL
Located in the vibrant back streets of Fitzroy, Melbourne, King Bill is the renovation and extension of a double story terrace house and neighbouring garden. The house (one of 5 terraces built circa 1850) and its eastern garden were initially separate lots that were recently consolidated onto a single title. Recognising the importance and heritage significance of the area, as well as the rich eclectic nature of the location, the terrace facade remains untouched. A glazed corridor now runs along the eastern outer wall of the original terrace, linking the original house with the stable (garage and parents retreat) and the new pavilion, which houses kitchen, living and dining.

WHO MADE WILLIAM KING?
A family of four (asked Austin Maynard Architects to design them their “forever house”. They asked for a renovation to their two story terrace home, incorporating the empty garden site to the east and re-using the old stable building at the rear. Long time Fitzroy locals, the clients chose not to capitalise on their block by exploiting the vacant site. They wanted more living space but they had no intention of maximising the economic yields by creating a huge home. Instead they sought to give something back to the suburb they love through a rich and generous garden.

A COLLAGE OF AN ECLECTIC SUBURB
For two centuries Fitzroy has been a highly diverse suburb of Melbourne. Throughout Fitzroy we see examples of this. Brick terrace homes, weather board cottages, post war stud-veneer homes and 1960s flats sit comfortably next to corrugated sheds, old factories and repurposed warehouses, randomly broken by pocket parks and dense gardens. This diversity surrounds one of the finest neo-classical buildings in Australia, The Fitzroy Town Hall, one block form King Bill. Fitzroy’s history of boom and bust is written in its buildings, which has created a diversity and eclecticism rarely seen nor maintained with such affection. Here there is memory but also a dedication and willingness to be playful. Fitzroy is not nostalgic about its heritage, it engages with it. If you want to bring an old building back to life you do something vibrant so it doesn’t become a museum piece. King William Street is a wonderful example of Fitzroy’s eclecticism. King William Street has bursts of consistency broken by pocket parks and greenery. King Bill House is a love letter to Fitzroy. King Bill is a collage of its built history, its textures, its forms, its order and its chaos.

A HOUSE OF CONTRASTS
At King Bill Austin Maynard Architects set out to completely re-think the terrace house and the principles that created them. Typically you walk through the front door of a terrace, past two bedrooms to the kitchen/living and small rear yard, which is usually overshadowed by the house itself. Austin Maynard Architects set aside these principles and looked at the house as empty spaces that needed new purpose. Holes have been punched through the boundary wall on the east and the entrance has been moved to the side to become a light filled corridor linking the old house with the stable and pavilion. With the entry moved, the original terrace entry porch is now a garden that the entry corridor is now a bathroom, which brings delight to the owners as they watch visitors scratch their head while they try to figure out how to find their way inside.

Surrounded by established garden, the glass pavilion sits in stark contrast to the dark masonry walls of the robust two story terraces either side. As with many Austin Maynard Architects projects the spaces created vary greatly in nature, thereby enabling the users to occupy spaces that best suit their mood, at any specific time. The introvert who wants to hide away and read a book in a dark space, verses someone who wants to slide away the walls and be in amongst the garden. Retaining the existing trees was fundamental to creating a variety of spaces. The house and the structure was meticulously designed to ensure that the exisiting trees remained intact throughout construction.

A PLAY SPACE FOR GROWN UPS
The brick and metal rear stable was in general disrepair. The original brick walls, internal fireplaces and timber beams were retained. The new zincalume walls provides contemporary memory of the former life of the stable, which now houses a car stacker and a study, with the parent's bedroom and bathroom above. A large curved sliding wall separates the parent's bathroom from an open net over the study below. The parents can now step out of the bath, slide the wall away and then air dry themselves on the net in front of the big sunny north facing window.

“MORE CURVES PLEASE”
Good architecture requires a great client. King Bill’s owners are a dynamic and enthusiastic family. While the strategies have not changed greatly since the first sketches, the addition of curves was something that the owners were very keen to see. The original aesthetic was rectilinear, similar to THAT House. The owners wanted to see something more like MASH House. Inspired by the owners, Austin Maynard Architects added curved corrugated metal, curved internal walls and an inset curved concrete slab.

CORRUGATED STEEL
The distinguishing and unifying feature of King Bill is the corrugated colorbond steel metal cladding. Surfmist Custom Orb is used to define each of the additions - the stable building, the glass pavilion, and the bedroom pop out. The use of a singular material highlights the additions, particularly in the old stable building where the clean white steel contrasts with the original old brick. The advantage of the profile is that it can be rolled to create sweeping curves and sun shading eyelids. The versatility of using the linear ribs vertically or horizontal - allows the material to be used practically in different applications, to shade and guide rain water (the stable and pop out), or to create the curve of a building (the pavilion.)

SAVE THE TREES
Austin Maynard Architects were determined to maintain and encourage a significant indigenous garden, to enrich the block, to contribute greenery to the street and to create another pocket park in Fitzroy. The eastern garden, which was obscured behind a tin fence, was already long established with thriving Ornamental Pear and Silver Birch trees. Instead of clearing the site (the easy option), great care, consideration and even greater lengths were taken to save the trees. This was a project in itself.

The concrete slab of the living/kitchen/dining pavilion cantilevers beyond its footings so as not to encroach on the root zones of the trees. The foundations for the Y-shaped steel framing are thin piers designed to pierce the ground in the smallest way possible to avoid causing root damage. The Y’s themselves were meticulously arranged to avoid trunks and branches, with the screening allows generous space for natural growth.

SUSTAINABILILITY
Like all of Austin Maynard Architects buildings, sustainability is at the core of King Bill. The large garden increases the permeability of the site and also radically reduces heat sink in the area. Passive solar principals are maximised by the design. The pavilion is set back to create a sunny northern garden and is a deliberately low structure allowing sunlight into the garden to the south of it and passive solar gain into the re-imagined ‘shed’ on the southern boundary. The northern facade of the shed has been rebuilt to create a smaller footprint. The new facade is clad in Surfmist Colorbond which significantly reflects heat. The wall is double stud and thermal broken with high performance insulation throughout.

All new work aims to maximise available daylight and optimise passive solar gain in winter, while ensuring that summer sun does not hit the glass. All windows are double-glazed. There is no glazing on western facades and limited glass on the eastern facades. With active management of shade and passive ventilation, demands on mechanical heating and cooling are drastically reduced. A large water tank has been buried within the rear yard. All roof water is captured and reused to flush toilets and water the garden. Where possible Austin Maynard Architects have sourced local trades, materials and fittings. Solar panels with micro-inverters cover the old roof.

Architect
Austin Maynard Architects
www.maynardarchitects.com

Project team
Andrew Maynard, Mark Austin, Kathryne Houchin, Ray Dinh

Builder
CBD Contracting

Engineer
Hive Engineering

Landscape Architects
Bush Projects

Yarra Bend

2022

Dezeen Awards 2022 - Finalist, Residential Rebirth Project.
Archello’s ‘Best of 2022’

“To say that I am ecstatic about the end result would be a huge understatement. From very early on I knew I could trust Austin Maynard Architects with this project. Their initial suggestion of a central courtyard resonated with me and felt right, I knew I could trust their decisions. I loved the whole experience and felt bereft when it was finished because I loved having the contact with Austin Maynard Architects and the builders, Dimpat. I love my home. Every day I wake up and look at something and think, that is such a beautiful piece of detail.”

AGEING IN PLACE
An academic study, published in The Gerontologist, examined the concept of “ageing in place” - a popular term in current ageing policy (defined as “remaining living in the community, with some level of independence, rather than in residential care”). The report illuminated the concept in terms of functional, symbolic and emotional attachments, and meanings of homes, neighbourhoods, and communities.

The results found that older people wanted choices about where and how they age in place. As reported: “‘Ageing in place’ was seen as an advantage in terms of a sense of attachment or connection and feelings of security and familiarity in relation to both homes and communities. Ageing in place related to a sense of identity both through independence and autonomy and through caring relationships and roles in the places people live. Having people remain in their homes and communities for as long as possible also avoids the costly option of institutional care and is therefore favoured by policy makers, health providers, and by many older people themselves (World Health Organization [WHO], 2007).”

“Clifton Hill is my longterm, chosen community. I’ve lived here for thirty-five years and I have lots of friends and neighbours and I feel very supported. I know if I can stay here, I’m in a good place.” Jane, owner of Yarra Bend House.

THE WHAT
Yarra Bend House is the alteration and addition to a single-fronted terrace cottage in Clifton Hill, Melbourne, with an internal renovation at the front and a new double storey at the rear. In response to the suburb’s heritage overlay, the old part of the house has been externally enhanced and respectfully renewed. The front two rooms have been reconfigured with the old front bedroom divided to become a dedicated study (facing out to the street) and a bathroom, while the second bedroom now has a pop-out bay window projecting into a central courtyard garden. The courtyard, (with a Japanese Maple Tree), provides fresh air, open sky and greenery, and serves as a link transitioning between the old and the new.

The double story addition maximises the full 4.5 metre width of this narrow block, with kitchen, living, dining room connecting directly to the external areas at each side. Upstairs there is a bedroom, a central bathroom and multi-purpose room overlooking the north facing rear garden. A new laundry/shed building is positioned at the rear of the garden to separate the utilities from the main house to create more internal living space.

IN BRIEF
Jane, the owner of Yarra Bend, came to us with two things, a considered forward-thinking objective, and a small piece of beautiful green terrazzo. The plan was for a complete renovation of her two-bedroom, single-storey terrace cottage, to ensure she could continue to reside in her chosen community. The terrazzo was to symbolise a splash of drama, a nod to her partner (“a bold person who loved colour, particularly red and green”), who initially owned the cottage, but who had passed away suddenly.

Jane’s brief was for a sustainable, adaptable, long-term, low-maintenance home that would be as energy efficient as possible, but above all, “a beautiful space”. The build was to be architecturally interesting, practically driven over aesthetics - “to create a ‘warm feeling’” rather than being a personal statement. Ultimately Jane wanted a fully renovated, future-proofed home, as she didn’t want to move again.

ALL CHANGE
The original old cottage was homely but space inside was tight with minimal indoor/outdoor connectivity. The aim was to design a living /dining zone that could open fully to the garden, to maximise entertaining space, make full use of the northern orientation and hopefully re-ignite Jane’s love of gardening. Having entered a new phase of her life - less work /more life - Jane wanted to focus on friends and family, supporting the community, engaging with politics, keeping active and singing with the 12 members of her local community choir. The house has been designed specifically in response. The upstairs level allows for flexibility of use - a large open space divided into two zones by a central bathroom ‘box’ with a south facing bedroom and a north facing multipurpose space for sewing, puzzles and choir practice. A hidden sliding door gives privacy to the bedroom without compromising the sense of volume provided by the cathedral ceiling. At ground level a reconfiguration of the original two front rooms allows for single level living, if required in the future.

COMMUNITY SPIRIT
Atypically spacious and picturesque for an inner city suburb, Clifton Hill was reportedly, for a time, the centre of Melbourne’s bohemianism. The houses here are, predominantly, well-preserved and intact examples of late 19th and early 20th century development, and consequently Clifton Hill is almost completely protected by two heritage planning controls. The community is known for being close knit and neighbourly with many longtime residents. Jane has resided here for over thirty-five years and describes it as “a wonderful place to live”. She wanted her home to be welcoming, able to host her local choir and entertain her friends and neighbours. Though she has many favourite aspects of her new home, she particularly loves the planter boxes on the other side of her back fence, bordering the rear laneway. Filled with flowers they are essentially a gift to the laneway, brightening up the route for people utilising the alley as a shortcut to the local school.

A BEAUTIFUL “BUNCH OF METAL”
The north facing rear orientation and close proximity to neighbouring properties required some form of screening to the new addition. Responding to the owners desire for an architectural proposal that served a practical purpose, white aluminium angle slats, fabricated in rotated diagonal patterns, follows the external form of the addition and projects into the rear yard. The sculptural screen serves many purposes, providing protection and shade from the sun for both levels, controlling over-looking, providing a level of privacy and concealing an awning providing weather protection to the lower level.

“The screen is very practical but it’s also just the most beautiful thing. I could not imagine a bunch of metal could be so aesthetic in its own right.” Jane.

IN AND OUT
As is standard in many terrace houses the entryway is a long corridor, running along one side of the block. At Yarra Bend House the entry runs along the eastern side, extended into the new addition by a connecting link. The end of the old corridor is capped off with a recessed white steel plate surround, that also acts as a door jamb for a newly installed fine steel and glass hinged door. The floor material of the link changes from the baltic pine floor of the old house to a crazy-paved bluestone that extends outside into the central courtyard. The paving installed internally creates the impression that you are passing through an external space (an extension of the courtyard) further enhanced by full-height sliding glazed doors.

A large window over the kitchen bench meets the link doors at a frameless junction. When all glazing and retractable fly screens are fully opened, the kitchen, courtyard and link create one space, bringing the landscaping into the very centre of the home.

THE HIDDEN TRUTH
Challenged with the limitations of a 4.5 metre wide block, the staircase on the western side has been designed to maximise floor space and economise functions that would have taken up valuable room. Underneath the stairs are secretly concealed storage joinery, a tv cupboard, a pantry, an integrated fridge and part of the kitchen itself. The green 2-pack painted cabinetry of the kitchen doors and drawer fronts below the counter top are run through to the lower areas of the stair, integrating the kitchen within the stair and the living and dining spaces. Recessed handles cut into the timber panelling further conceal the hidden functions contained within. The beautiful piece of green terrazzo that Jane brought to our first meeting has been used on the island bench as well as the countertop in the concealed pantry.

Behind the cook top the mirrored splashback slides open to reveal additional concealed storage.

Along with the hidden functions of the ground floor stair spine, there are additional concealed elements on the first floor. The central timber clad box that separates the two zones upstairs contains a bathroom, wardrobe storage in the bedroom, cabinetry in the hallway and a sliding door to close off the bedroom.

THE OOZY MORTAR WALL
When Jane first presented us with a list of wants, do’s and don’ts, she wrote, under the heading: ’Things that I Like’ - “Interesting brickwork”. At Yarra Bend House we were given the opportunity to implement an unusual and potentially divisive technique on the external brick wall of the laundry/ shed at the rear of the garden. Architect Peter Muller notably used the technique, which he daubed ‘snotted brickwork’ in 1953 at The Audette House, as a distraction technique to steer away from low quality bricks.

A prominent back drop to the garden, the oozy mortar wall provides visual interest and texture, working as both a screen and a landscape object.

“At first I thought it was a bit over the top, I thought it looked like a sponge cake, but I absolutely love it now.”

SUSTAINABILITY.
Sharing our core values on sustainability and long-lasting architecture, Jane’s brief called for high quality, environmentally conscious materials that would result in low maintenance, low operating costs and reduced energy usage. “Sustainability is very important to me and that was a big part of my brief.”

At Yarra Bend House we took a considered, long term approach, designing a functional, flexible and future-proofed forever home. By retaining the front section of the house the amount of waste through demolition was minimised, as well as reducing the amount of carbon-intensive newly built structure by building less.

The materials used externally in the new addition are robust and low maintenance. As well as recycled red brick, white cladding was selected to maximise solar reflectance, drastically reducing demands on mechanical cooling. Although the site is constrained in width, natural light and air to all spaces has been maximised. Cross ventilation, provided by windows around the central courtyard, along with ceiling fans reduce reliance on mechanical cooling at both levels. All windows are double-glazed and the thermal mass of the exposed slab is utilised in winter to store heat from the sun. The screen on the Northern face of the addition creates shading to the large glazed openings so that the direct Summer sun does not reach the interior spaces, whilst allowing the Winter sun to warm the thermal mass of the concrete slab of the ground floor. A water tank at the rear harvests rainwater which is reused to flush toilets and water the garden. High performance insulation is everywhere and a PV solar system is installed on the roof.

Grant

A hidden cellar, a central garden and a secret room in the roof, Grant House is Austin Maynard Architect’s most recent inner city renovation. Playful, imaginative and future-proofed, it draws on fifteen years experience and experimentation solving the problems posed by dark, narrow and poorly-circulated old terrace houses.

THE WHAT
Grant House is the alteration and addition to a dark and narrow single-storey terrace in North Fitzroy, Melbourne. The old part of the house has been respectfully maintained and a new extension has been sleeved between original boundary walls. The new extension comprises kitchen/living/dining (and secret cellar), with parent’s retreat upstairs. Utilising the side laneway, the main entry is now in the centre of the house. A large and imposing galvanised steel door opens onto a light-flooded courtyard that separates the old house from the new addition.

IN BRIEF
In late 2014, the owners of Grant House decided to renovate their dark and poorly laid out terrace.

Their brief focused predominantly on the living space - they wanted an entertaining zone that avoided the embarrassment of having to lead guests down a dark corridor, past bedrooms, a bathroom and through a dim, cluttered study. They shared the house with their teenage son and wanted somewhere self contained that was fun for him to live. Future-proofed to provide independence into adulthood. As a relocated Scot and an Englishman, the owners would often have family stay for long periods, so adaptable space and privacy was paramount on this small block.

THE BEFORE
The house had been renovated sometime in the mid 1980s, with a typical long rectangular addition stuck on the back. The rooms were completely internalised and the floor plan convoluted, with entry and exit point that cut directly through rooms which lacked windows and fresh air. The old addition stretched to the boundary, with light sourced from (thermally weak) polycarbonate skylights. The 1980s renovation failed to solve the big problem terrace houses suffer from; an entry way filled with junk, dark corridors past private bedrooms and windowless walk-through living zones. In these instances, the challenges are always the same. How do you adapt the old layout to modern living? How do you get light and air into the home and make it sustainable? How can you make all this work within the spacial constraints of a terrace house on a long thin block?

RESPONDING TO THE CHALLENGE
For the past fifteen years Austin Maynard Architects have been successfully battling issues of inner city living and regeneration of ageing building stock. Austin Maynard Architects have learned how to deal with dark terraces, with bad circulation and gained the experience and skills to address the challenges. Through development and experimentation designs that are economic and imaginative have consistently been realised.

Though dealing with the same challenges, Grant House has a prime advantage - laneway access. The bonus of a side laneway meant traditional terrace entry constraints could be subverted. Typically a dumping ground for bicycles, bags and bins, a narrow path leads from the front gate to the rear living space. In this case, moving the entry to the side allows the front to remain practical storage and the bedrooms to remain private, while the new entrance opens into a bright and welcoming living zone.

In rethinking the functionality of the house and how it is used, garden space has been protected and expanded. Reduction of the original footprint created more natural light, more garden and easier access. By stripping the 1980s extension, eight metres of brick wall was exposed and the character and history of an old sailing boat mural was discovered and celebrated. Our aim of creating vibrant architecture is never at the expense of heritage. Respecting the importance of heritage, we prefer to gently abut, sit beside or in the case of Dorman House, hover over. At Grant House we created a visual and spacial separation between the old and the new with a courtyard. Having that separation brings light and air into the back of the old house and into the new addition.

ARCHITECTURE MADE EASY
When you first begin to study architecture, in a naive way it seems easy, especially when you start model making. You grab a piece of corrugated cardboard, wrap it over and think that looks awesome. That was easy. I’m an architect! Then, when you begin to consider constructing the same form on a realistic scale, the simplicity all falls apart. Grant House is a homage to those university days. The design has been executed as if it was that easy. Reminiscent of a corrugated cardboard model, the roof form of Grant - though highly detailed and complex, relates back to that one simple gesture, that one corrugated sheet bent over, to make a simple extruded form.

THE ENSHROUDED HOUSE
Austin Maynard Architects are known for playful spaces. At Grant House both fun features and practical surprising elements were created. In the initial brief the owner asked for a basement. On a narrow site, stairs take up valuable floor area. A creative solution was to hide the entrance to the cellar in the floor, under the sliding island bench. Like a train carriage, the storage section of the island bench rolls along tracks to extend the bench when the cellar is not in use, or nestle beneath when access is required. The cellar is completely hidden and secret, unless you are actually using it. A perforated aluminium sheet can be used over the entrance for safety and ventilation.

At 2x4 metres the size of the cellar was dictated by economic restraint and to avoid underpinning neighbouring property.

In the old part of the house the teenagers bedroom took advantage of the high ceiling with a suspended platform bed space and a lounging net. Above the bed a hatch leads up to a secret ply-lined roof space, a whole secret room his parent will likely never visit. Exactly what a young teenager needs?

BEHIND CLOSED DOORS
Deliberately imposing, the front door of Grant House sends a certain message - if you want to come in, you have to work for it. The owners had previously experienced a break in, they were home when it happened, an incident which had helped informed the brief. Though they wanted to avoid making a fortress, they did not want a similar incident to happen again. The galvanised steel door creates safety and security but behind it lies a generous and calming garden - an embracing welcome home. The contrast between the two is stark and joyful.

THE DECK
Designing a deck typically involves drawing a square or a rectangle. At Grant House we wanted something that pulled in the edges to allow for more garden at the sides. The answer was simple, what if the facade fell down? A core design principal at Austin Maynard Architects is - if you have something to solve try and borrow from what’s already been designed. Don’t add a new idea. Here we had the shape of the house, an asymmetrical roof, lower on the neighbours side, the deck directly relates, as if a slice has been cut and fallen down. It becomes part of the whole narrative, not a separate design problem. Like the folded corrugated cardboard, it seems so simple, yet it is a result of time and tenacity in design.

FUTURE PROOFING
Grant House has been designed to deal with a multitude of probabilities and possibilities, such as how to co-inhabit with a growing child, maximise re-sale and be generous to your neighbours. By future-proofing with design forethought, multifunctional spaces can evolve as needs change without having to demolish and rebuild.

At Grant House the owners teenage son occupies the front part of the terrace. In the future this can become a more independent space, as it has its own front door, bedroom, living and bathroom.

Upstairs the parents retreat is light-filled and open, with a bedroom at one side, a lounging area with mezzanine reading platform at the other and a bathroom ‘box’ at the centre. Divisional walls stop short of the ceiling to create volume and height which celebrate the curve of the ceiling. The open layout is dedicated parent space, not enclosed and therefore used for relaxation rather than a place to store/hide stuff. Should needs change, or to maximise resale, the retreat can easily become two bedrooms and a bathroom with the use of strategically placed partitions.

The asymmetrical roof is lower on one side to avoid shading the neighbours backyard in the morning. Though it would have been simple to go straight up (as they had built on their boundary), we aimed to future proof here too. To ensure we weren’t making the clients happy at the expense of their neighbours, we thought about the possibility of reciprocal development. Having a laneway on their side too meant, they could have an internal courtyard with silver birch trees that got sunlight. We didn’t need more height, so we could make that gesture and future proof for the neighbour. It seemed like the right thing to do.

SUSTAINABILITY
Preserving and maintaining is always at the core of our projects. Sustainability is not simply about using recycled materials and maximising passive solar gains. At Grant House we have continued to consider and tackle changing needs and design spaces that have flexibility, future-proofing the use of the house without demolition and re-construction. The house can evolve in the long term rather than the heavy carbon expense of re-building. Over time the house is designed to require minimal maintenance, minimal servicing and minimal adaption.

The materials used externally in the new addition are robust and low maintenance. White cladding was selected to maximise solar reflectance, drastically reducing demands on mechanical cooling. Although the site is constrained in width, natural light and air to all spaces has been maximised. All windows are double-glazed and the thermal mass of the exposed slab is utilised in winter to store heat from the sun. Solar panels are installed on the roof of the old part of the house and a water tank harvests rainwater which is reused to flush toilets and water the garden. High performance insulation is everywhere.

Architect
Austin Maynard Architects
www.maynardarchitects.com

Project team
Andrew Maynard, Mark Austin

Completion date
April 2018

Builder
Sargant Construction

Engineer
Perret Simpson

Site area: 278 m2

Total house area: 211m2 (ground floor 60m2, first floor 53m2, cellar 10m2)

Building surveyor
Code Compliance

Energy Consultant
Efficient Energy Choices

Photographer
Derek Swalwell

Newry

2019

"Can I take this opportunity to thank everyone for the wonderful space that has been created. Whilst in the depths of unpacking over the weekend we were saying to each other ‘it is so good to be home in such a wonderful space....warm...light filled and so colourful’. So thanks everyone for your hard work and care. We are truly very lucky.” - Newry House Owners

A redesigned family home within an existing 90’s shell. Why add a tiny lightwell to your dark, cold Victorian terrace when you can add a conservatory full of warmth, light and plants?

IN BRIEF

The owners of Newry, a family of four, wanted to renovate their single-fronted terrace home in inner-city Melbourne, on a tight budget. Though the house had already been renovated in the 90s, the two storey addition at the back failed to address the primary issue, a lack of light. The owners asked Austin Maynard Architects to reconfigure their living zone to allow in sunlight and make better use of their limited space.

KEYHOLE SURGERY

Situated amongst a row of adjoined terraces, Newry is a fairly small family home which has been dramatically transformed by a relatively small renovation. As an architectural ‘operation’, it’s akin to keyhole surgery. Here, a small incision has been made to access and fix the problematic central core, to maximum effect.

Through years and years of learning, Austin Maynard Architects have become incredibly incisive dealing with the problems of dark and poorly laid out terraced houses. Though typically, in terms of design and build, the team are more inclined to chop off a limb and add new cyborg arm, the restraints of budget, (as well as ego and eco conscience), led to a more considered and restrained approach.

The ‘90s addition was structurally sound. The bathroom and laundry at the rear was neat and functional. To demolish, simply because it wasn’t in the ideal location, would have been wasteful. Instead, discipline was required to work with what was already there, implementing strategic moves to solve and improve.

THE CORE

Apart from new carpets and joinery in all three bedrooms, the front and the back parts of the house remain largely untouched. The ‘rotten’ middle section of the house was gutted, including the old timber floor, replaced by a thermally efficient, hydronically heated, concrete slab. A wall that once separated the kitchen from one of the smallest, darkest, bleakest dining rooms to ever exist, was also removed, opening up the kitchen/living dining space. The ceiling, and above it a leaky roof deck outside the main bedroom, was also demolished and a large pitched glass roof with sliding awnings installed.

Part of the client brief was to not build bigger, but to design better. Their old kitchen had a huge amount of wasted space, was very inefficient and difficult to access. The space was compact and so the staircase, kitchen and storage are all combined into one object. A merging of perforated steel and blackbutt timber, concealing doors, drawers and cupboards. In the centre a beautiful Studio Italia bench provides further storage. The exposed garden has been integrated into a bench seat, optimising space in the dining area.

AN INDOOR GARDEN

The fundamental concern with most terrace houses is a lack of natural light. This problem is generally resolved with some form of light well, open to the sky with some kind of garden greenery at the base. At Newry there is no lightwell, no ‘box’, the garden greenery is inside, integrated within the space, exposed and easily accessed beneath a glass roof that allows for an abundance of natural light.

In a space that is already tight, the question was, why take away indoor space to capture outdoor space? Instead we focused on the conservatory idea; a glass house which brings the outdoors inside, with responsive sliding shade awnings to shield from too much sun. In seconds the raised shading can be remotely closed, (partly, fully, on one side etc), to provide almost 100% protection from UV rays.

COLOUR RUN

It wouldn’t be an Austin Maynard Architects project without moments of discovery and delight, although at Newry these were largely thanks to the client’s great taste. The home’s modest palate is dashed with colour that pops and converses throughout the whole house. The perforated steel staircase - bright white but for a surprise twist of vivid green at the top is a nod to the green of garden and the bench seat. The rich burgundy Tretford carpet in the entrance hall balanced by the sofa in the living room.

MAKING ALLOWANCES

Newry is a small project, much smaller than AMA usually undertakes. The clients were locals, neighbours who posed an interesting challenge. They wanted to dramatically improve their home-life and also the way their home performed (on a thermal and sustainable level) but were aware of their limitations and were prepared to pick their battles. Instead of spending their tight budget thinly across the entire site, and compromising everywhere, they chose to completely subvert one area, the main living space, and do it very well. They identified how they lived as a family and prioritised their needs and wants. Focusing on one area is difficult, but it’s a great way to deal with budget.

SUSTAINABILITY

Sustainability is always at the core of Austin Maynard Architects’ work. Most old homes, or 80s/90s renovations, tend to be breezy, cold and thermally inefficient. A few straightforward moves can solve these issues. At Newry, windows and doors have been re-fitted with thermally separated double glazing. Drafty timber floorboards have been replaced with hydronic heated concrete.

The installation of a Tesla battery ensures the home not only performs well but pumps excess green energy back in to the grid. With the ongoing dilemma of air conditioning, caused by increased weather extremes, good design and passive solar gains are not always enough. A solution is to work with the natural elements to ensure carbon zero is attained.

Photos 1 to 27 by Tess Kelly. All other images by Austin Maynard Architects.

Empire, Canberra

Winner — The Canberra Medallion, The Australian Institute of Architects
Winner — The Gene Willsford Award, The Australian Institute of Architects
Winner — HIA Project of the year, Housing Industry Association
National Commendation — 2019 National Architecture Awards

“Our new living space improves our wellbeing beyond anything we had imagined.” Lindy, owner of Empire house

Against the current Australian trend - to build large, fast and cheaply, Empire Canberra is a relatively small, hand-crafted home. Located on a beautiful, wide, tree-lined street, in a culturally significant and important part of the capital, Empire is unapologetic in its architectural detail and craftsmanship, as this is what the area deserved.
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Awards Jury Citations…

Canberra Medallion
”Nestled within established suburbia, Empire speaks on multiple levels to the greater concerns within the current built environment of our city.

Canberra is experiencing rapid change as the suburban residential scale 'govies' and bungalows are making way for multiple levelled residences and amalgamated blocks. At a civic scale, office blocks, award winning institutional buildings and public housing developments are being demolished or proposed for demolition with the push for higher, faster, larger. Our beloved green spaces — the lungs of the city - also face an uncertain future in many areas as land is sold and developed. Our built and natural heritage is at risk of being swallowed in the drive for redevelopment of all facets of our community.

Enter Empire. The provocation of Empire lies in the challenge it casts not to build bigger but to be smarter, more considerate and respectful of neighbours and our past whilst lunging forth into a new and exciting future. At no point do the new insertions by Austin Maynard Architects seek to dominate or push their agenda onto the original inter-war style bungalow. The heritage of the existing home has instead provided a delightful springboard and reference point for all design inclusions. This is evident in the continuing datum lines, repurposing of apertures, considered cladding details and colours, and the reinvention of the surrounding informal garden by Bush Projects in keeping with the history of the suburb.

Empire is a refreshing experiment in quality over quantity, with value placed on craftsmanship and detailing to create relatively compact, bespoke additions to the existing home. This has resulted in highly liveable spaces inside and out for all seasons.

As the 2019 jury, we unequivocally believe that Empire is the worthy recipient of the Canberra Medallion.”

The Gene Willsford Award

“Empire is an exemplary piece of architecture demonstrating the unwavering commitment of a client, the considered and evolving vision of an architect and the fine hand of experienced craftspeople.

With the compact addition of a bedroom, bathroom and kitchen to an existing inter-war style bungalow in Forrest, Empire celebrates the practice of architecture through timeless, elegant, playful incisions. The spatial qualities of yesteryear are largely retained and reinvigorated for a new generation of occupants.

Loosely defined spaces emerge where old meets new, providing informal conversation points and quiet spaces through the journey of the home. Decisive slices into the existing home speak of a deft hand understanding the importance of responding to history, rather than erasing it.

The seamless transition from the built form into the surrounding garden is a crafted and considered realm in its own right. Rainwater is celebrated and detailed exquisitely, from the cleverly integrated box gutter over the bedroom wing to the custom designed tapered rain head tucked away at the rear of the kitchen.

Empire is a gift from its owners to the street. The considered proportion and materiality of the delicate shingle-clad additions hint at the memory of the past whilst embracing future possibilities.”

National Award Commendation.

“Empire is a deftly executed project that balances fine craft and detail with an intelligent response to the larger issues of suburban living.”
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Words by Austin Maynard Architects…

THE MASTERPLAN

Canberra is home to some of the best examples of post-war and modernist architecture in Australia. Empire house is located in a culturally significant and important area of the city, on a ring-road that forms part of architect Walter Burley Griffin’s masterplan. The houses here are a product of an aspirational time in Australia. As architects we felt an incredible sense of responsibility to protect and preserve the original modest cottage, rather than following the trend of demolishing Canberra cottages and replacing with large mcmansions.

SETTLE DOWN

The owners of Empire Canberra are well-travelled professionals with fantastic and diverse taste. They had previously commissioned acclaimed architect Enrico Taglietti (an Institute Gold Medalist) on a project in the 1990s. Like us they are ‘lefties’. It was our polemic project, the Styx Valley Protest Shelter - a literal platform for environmental activists, that led them to contact the Austin Maynard Architects office. They owned a modest, inter-war style bungalow in an amazing location and wanted it to become their permanent base. They asked us for “a longterm family home that catches the sun.” The result was two added pavilions, sympathetic to the existing post-war house, but distinctly contemporary in detail.

AN EXERCISE IN RESTRAINT

Empire House is an exercise in considered intervention and restraint. It would have been easier, and a lot less fun, to knock down the existing cottage and start again. The two new pavilions sit comfortably adjacent to the existing house and place the inhabitants in a beautiful, established garden that is characteristic of this Canberra suburb. The aim was to retain as much of the existing character of the site as possible and avoid the common trend of knocking down or adding a dominant and unsympathetic addition. The two biggest issues were - how do we have a conversation with the original building without attacking it or infecting it? And how do we create sunny spaces when the steep site levels and orientation of the house overshadows much of the garden.

The answer was to go in with a scalpel, making some big moves, without damaging too much. We cleared the site lines and created a corridor straight through the house, allowing still spaces and activity zones. We opened up to the outdoors and celebrated the exterior, giving clarity and creating a discussion between the old and the new.

A TALE OF TWO PAVILIONS

The house was in fairly good condition overall, though the kitchen, laundry and bathrooms were oddly positioned and in poor state. The original hearth and fireplace in the living room had a great feel and were retained, along with the light fittings, windows, timber picture rail and skirting. The kitchen was relocated and seperate living and sleeping zones, or pavilions, were constructed.

The new living addition is a pavilion in the garden that maximises passive solar gain, connected to the existing house via a corridor ‘link’. A large north facing roof window spans across the pavilion, and is protected by operable louvres. The master bedroom pavilion is a similar approach of addition accessed via a link. This pavilion is visible from the street, so it was important to respect the character of the existing house, but create a distinctly contemporary piece of architecture. The white shingle form rests on a datum of red brick, responding to the materiality of the existing house.

SHINGLES

The craftsmanship of the white metal shingles, each one hand-finished and hand fixed with mathematical precision, is the distinguishing feature of Empire House. The material creates a relationship, a language and a discussion between the two eras, while making it incredibly transparent where the old and new elements meet.

Preferred Builders took great care in executing very refined details - particularly the concealed box gutter and the oversized shingle ridge capping. The detailing of materials externally are reflected internally, as the builders approached the inside with the same skill and care - most evident in the Blackbutt timber lining.

FUTURE PROOFING

Cars are always a massive issue - typically visually dominant and taking up valuable living space. In light of an automated future on the horizon, which will radically reduce car ownership, it make obvious sense to have other uses for a garage or carport. The car port at Empire House serves as an outdoor space to inhabit by humans, rather than a space entirely dedicated to a machine.

SUSTAINABILITY

Canberra has more defined and extreme seasonal climes than other Australian cities. It’s a lot colder in winter here, so there was a lot of emphasis on insulation, thermal mass and thermally broken windows. Throughout the colder months the sun streams in through the north facing window, heating the concrete slab which continues to warm well into the night.

The large garden increases the permeability of the site and also radically reduces heat sink in the area. Passive solar principals are maximised by the design.

All new work aims to maximise available daylight and optimise passive solar gain in winter, while ensuring that summer sun does not hit the glass. All windows are double-glazed. With active management of shade and passive ventilation, demands on mechanical heating and cooling are drastically reduced. A large water tank has been buried within the garden. All roof water is captured and reused to flush toilets and water the garden. Where possible Austin Maynard Architects have sourced local trades, materials and fittings.

The real sustainability of Empire comes from saving and working with the original build. Knocking down and replacing with an 8 star building will never be as sustainable as retaining and re-using.

Project team
Andrew Maynard, Mark Austin, Ray Dinh

House area: 233m2
Total site area 941m2

Completion date
January 2019

Builder
Preferred Builders

Engineer
Ken Murtagh

Landscape Architects
Bush Projects

Photographer
Derek Swalwell

Greenacres, Newcastle NSW

2018

GREENACRES

- Winner - - Award for Residential Architecture, Newcastle Architecture Awards 2019
- Nominated - - Building of the Year 2019, Archdaily.

“It is easy to believe we are each waves and forget we are also the ocean.”
― author Jon J. Muth, on the subject of neighbours.

It takes a lot of effort be a good neighbour and it's often a thankless task. Austin Maynard Architects are extremely proud to have successfully walked the tightrope with Greenacres, to deliver the maximum outcome for our clients without negatively impacting their neighbours.

In brief
Greenacres is Austin Maynard Architects first completed project in New South Wales. Unable to save the original dilapidated house, a new home was constructed on the steep block, a topography that set new and exciting challenges. The varying heights created the opportunity for multiple platforms to view the expansive outlook over the ocean, the Merewether Ocean Baths, and the city of Newcastle.
In their brief the owners, Basil and Jo, asked for a family home that they could grow old in, with a lift, lots of light, sleek, clean lines and, they tentatively requested: “a window with a view if possible.” Austin Maynard Architects designed them a home which captures the views from almost every space within and around the house.

The what
Set only metres from the ocean cliffs of Merewether in Newcastle, Greenacres responds to both site and location. Stepping down a steep gradient at three levels the house works with the landscape as it terraces down the hill towards the street. The garage is buried at the base of the property, with the entry path and garden weaving beside, up and over the top, through the green roof. The design of the driveway is landscaped to reduce the impact of a large expanse of hard surface in front of the house. A simple, white rectangular form, propped on three giant steel ‘paperclips’, houses the kitchen/ living and dining area, with two bedrooms and a bathroom beneath. At the back of the block is the parent’s bedroom, with a walk-in-robe, ensuite and a study - quiet and private. In the garage a lift provides direct access to all three floors, concealed within the kitchen cabinetry at the third floor level.

Contrast
Inspired by the macrobinoculars in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, the white suspended living zone was designed to bring the views into focus, like a lens, framing the vista. Capping the end is a light and transparent balcony, with all five sides - the fibreglass floor and linear arrangement of the battened ceiling, balustrade and sides, drawing the eye out.
The sci-fi associations extend further, as the white box appears to be a different study entirely, hovering or docked to an industrial brick base. The contrast is stark. The recycled bricks, a colourful mixed palette bearing approximately 20% graffiti, provide colour, character and a sense of past. Earthy, textured, heavy and robust. Resting on this brick plinth, is the extruded form, a clean, white steel and panellised, machine-made form.

Neighbours
Greenacres is situated on one of the most sought after streets in Newcastle. It’s a street that terminates in a cul-de-sac, with a park bench overlooking the sandstone cliffs. It’s quiet, high up and every house on the street strains to capitalise on the incredible vista, often at the expense of someone else. Greenacres has been carefully designed to nestle into the hills of Merewether without impacting on the neighbours' views any more than the original house did.
The house does not project forward beyond the neighbours to steal extra ocean view. The extruded form is not heavy or bulky. It neither dominates nor does it obscure, instead it is light and transparent. Where the roof of the original house was pitched, the new house has a lower flat roof, giving the neighbours at the rear of Greenacres more ocean to look out on.

The view
Build a house in front of an ocean and everything becomes about the view. At Greenacres Austin Maynard Architects not only captured the view from the living space, but also from the rear of the building and every space in between. Careful design thought ensured the house didn’t get in the way of its own view.
The deliberate transparency means that even whilst sitting in the back garden or working from the study in the master bedroom, you can still see the ocean. Even in the very last room on the block, the shower, through the rear garden, and through the house there are unimpeded views of the ocean to the right, and the city to the left.

Sustainability
Great care was taken not to bench the site but to work with the landscape, reducing excavation and impact on the natural topography. The design also ensured minimal landfill and the knock on effects of water table disruption. Locally sourced recycled brick was used throughout the house. Orientation, window shading, attention to cross ventilation, together with a central fish pond, aids passive cooling and reduces the reliance on mechanical ventilation. All windows are double glazed and protected from the northern and western sun. Water tanks have been buried in the garden, providing ample water for the gardens and the toilets. High performance insulation is everywhere. The transparent balcony allows light to permeate into the ground floor bedrooms, thus reducing the need for artificial lighting during the day.

Architect
Austin Maynard Architects www.maynardarchitects.com

Project team
Andrew Maynard, Mark Austin, Natalie Miles

Builder
CHC Builders

Engineer
Lewis Engineering

Landscaping
Octopus Garden Design

PHOTOGRAPHER Tess Kelly

Kiah

2018

DWELL -- Nominated, Best of Design 2018 Awards: Outdoor
High Commendation -- 2018 TIDA Australia, Architect- designed Kitchens.

More and more Australians are working from home. Kiah House explores a new approach to the home office, while also fulfilling the owners need for a strong and positive sanctuary.

WHAT IS THIS?

Kiah House is an addition to a weatherboard cottage in North Fitzroy, Melbourne. The extension comprises two separate pieces of architecture, the master bedroom ‘haven’ - which sits beside the original house extending to the northern boundary, and the separate office poised above. The original house has been respectfully restored and updated with a new kitchen and bathroom.

THE BRIEF

The owners, Angela and Rahul (and their three cats) had a clear idea of what a home meant to them - “a sanctuary”. They wanted a light and airy house, with a “strong and positive vibe”, to entertain friends and family and also to relax and meditate. Influenced by Japanese gardens and the Buddhist retreats of Kyoto, the design responds to the client’s desire for peace and mindfulness.

MORE THAN JUST A PLACE FOR SHUT-EYE

A bedroom can be far more than just a dark space at the quiet end of your home. A bedroom can be a contemplative, meditative space that at one time is wrapped up cosy and tight in layers of beautiful heavy curtains and then open to the outdoors the next. At Kiah House we were charged with the task of creating spaces, both private and shared, that spill out into the garden and yet adaptable enough to create solitude and privacy when needed.

The master bedroom ‘haven' has a dedicated Buddhist prayer space and opens up to the garden and ponds via sliding double-glazed glass panels blurring the lines between inside and outside. The towering lemon scented gum tree is enclosed by a small deck area, a place for the owners to “sit and meditate”.

The roof of the retreat is turf, covered in plants and edible vegetation (Disphyma Crassifolium) to provide an abundance of insulation as well as creating a buffer in the event of falling gum tree limbs. Accessed via a modest ladder, the green expanse also means the study is not overlooking a dull roof, instead Rahul looks out on a thriving roof garden.

STREETVIEW

Kiah challenges the suburban binary of the ‘front yard’ and the ‘backyard’. In this small enclave of North Fitzroy, an unusual road lay-out has led to some houses having two street frontages at either end of the block (see diagram). At the rear of Kiah, high fences and ugly garage doors dominate the neighbours houses, while across the road, on the northern side, old weatherboard homes form a traditional street front.

We found the defensiveness of the rear elevations to be odd. We decided that the backyard should be a second front yard. Kiah engages with the northern street and the northern neighbours. The new deck is elevated enabling views and interaction with the street. The new bedroom retreat faces directly onto the street, with operable louvres that allow Rahul and Angela to connect as much, or as little, as they wish. The new bamboo fence allows view and light between the garden and the street. A pedestrian gate creates a new ‘front door’ to the northern street where previously a high and defensive fence turned its back.

IT HANGS SUSPENDED

At Austin Maynard Architects we are interested in the rapidly changing nature of work. The number of employed Australians who work from home has dramatically increased to over 30% of the entire labour force. Today roughly 3.5 million employed Australians work from home on a regular basis. The kitchen table or an awkward corner of the lounge is not a productive or feasible way for many Australians to get work done at home. A dedicated workspace is required. But does this mean that we need to dedicate a spare bedroom to office space? And how do we create a clear separation between work and life? How do we isolate or escape the stresses of work if it has a permanent presence in our homes?

Rahul is a film maker who enjoys working from home. Rather than opt for a study nook or a converted shed in the back garden, he asked for a dedicated place to work in each day. Elevated above the original house and accessed via a spiral staircase, Rahul’s office provides a very different spacial experience to the rest of the house. The office sits above the deck, up in the canopy of the gum tree, with elevated views of the dense green roof of the master retreat and beyond. The office is long and narrow, lined in timber, with perforated steel shelving. Like all of the newly built spaces, Rahul’s office looks out onto the garden, yet this space is elevated and feels separated and private. A different space for a different household function.

TREE HUGGING (pretty literally)

An old towering gum tree dominates the backyard. It has been the wise old elder of the home for decades. Rather than shy away from it or cut it down as some of the neighbours requested, we encircled and embraced the tree, metaphorically and physically. From the retreat you can reach out and touch the beautiful old gum. From the office you are in amongst it, amid the branches and leaves.

THE ‘ONSEN’

The bathroom at Kiah takes you to a different place. The sunken brick bath, big enough for two, has an earthy character similar to the ancient Onsen. A strong connection to a small private garden, created in the gap between the new addition and the old house, offers a relaxed feeling of bathing within the landscape. The bathroom leads up to the kitchen via a secret passage, concealed behind cabinetry.

I AM AN ISLAND

The large island bench is the focus of the kitchen at Kiah. Angela is a passionate cook who loves spending her free time creating modern gastronomic dishes. She wanted a high functioning kitchen with double ovens, zip taps, sous vide and custom designed storage space that could be cosy and intimate from day-to-day, yet could also open up for entertaining large gatherings. Importantly, this is not a typical island bench, this is a sculptural highly crafted piece of furniture. Half timber bench top, half stainless steel, it is both homely and commercial. The back of the bench top flips up to give extra practical kitchen surface when needed.

ORDER 55 MURAL

The mural on the side and underneath of the timber lined office is called ‘Awakened Flow’ by Seb Humphreys (aka Order 55). We first worked with Seb at Alfred House, where he painted on an old brick wall with a tall, aggressive, flaming mural. The mural at Kiah has a very different energy. Seb has responded to the rich gardens and the peaceful nature of the home and its occupiers, to create a gentle explosion of colour that contrast beautifully to the spotted gum cladding.

“The mural seeks to bring forth the innate power within nature.

By using the soft palette of the underlying woodgrain, the wood is reimagined as a container of hidden information that is emancipated from its dormant locale within the structure. Once released this energy transforms; expanding as it morphs into lighter fluid aqua shades and then is released back into its original confines.

To me this draws many analogies to the story of the house, the birth of a new space, The home taking a breath and expanding its rib cage as it fills itself with a renewed sense of being.”

Seb Humphrey’s Order 55

SUSTAINABILITY

Once a cold uninsulated weatherboard cottage, May House is now a high performing sustainable home.

The timber used throughout the kitchen is over 100 years old, salvaged and recycled by Timber Revival, from the CSR sugar mills in nearby Yarraville.

The Red clay bricks in the bathroom were all salvaged and recycled from demolition sites around Victoria, cleaned by hand without the use of chemicals or machinery.

Although the site is small we have maximised natural light and air to all spaces. The openings and windows have been designed to optimise passive solar gain, thereby drastically reducing demands on mechanical heating and cooling. All windows are double glazed. The green roof provides additional insulation, helping to maintain a constant temperature in the bedroom retreat. A large water tank captures roof water and is reused to flush toilets and water the garden. High performance insulation is everywhere, even in the walls of the original house. Where possible we have sourced local trades, materials and fittings. Solar panels with micro-inverters cover the new roof.

Architect: Austin Maynard Architects

www.maynardarchitects.com

Project Team

Andrew Maynard, Mark Austin, Natalie Miles, Ray Dinh

Site / Floor Area:

Site area 309m2

Existing house 95m2

Addition 68m2 (53m2 ground + 15m2 first)

Total Floor area: 163m2

Builder

CBD Contracting

Mural

Seb Humphreys - Order 55

Cabinetry

Grange Joinery

OWNERS STATEMENT

Rahul. “We are in love with our home! We so thoroughly enjoyed the process of the 12 month build. Between the architects (Austin Maynard Architects), the builders (CBD contracting), our landscape gardener (Damon Fuhrer Landscapes), our home technology experts (Lifestyle Connect) and our interior decorator (Amanda Grillini), we all worked to create this amazing space that we very luckily get to call home. These people have become friends and having worked together in a creative state of mind, we all collectively share this unique bond which we are extremely grateful for. Angela and I promised ourselves (for this reason), that no matter what, if someone passing by wanted to have a look at our space, we would never say no. We’ve kept that promise so far. It’s not just our house to enjoy. We think and believe that if we can share that joy with others, that is the best gift you can give someone. Making someone happy.”

THAT House

2016

Winner -- Residential Architecture Award, Victorian Architecture Awards 2016 for THAT House

In a Nutshell

The site is neighboured by huge houses. We were asked to provide the family with ‘just the right amount of space’. By creating large openings and generous connections to the garden we aimed to make this modest-sized house feel abundant and broad. The result is a home that is almost half the size of its neighbours without compromising liveability.

The largest houses in the world.

Australian homes are the largest in the world. This is a significant problem for Australia. A stable economy, aspirational culture and relatively flat topography have enabled Australians to occupy homes that are far bigger than they require. Melbourne’s flat landscape, loose topographical boundaries and rapidly growing population have meant that large homes have spread over the food belt and into arid areas. Large homes, and their associated sprawl, are highly problematic. Services and infrastructure, such as food, water, electricity, communications, health and education are stretched at great expense to the public, both financially and environmentally. Large, deep homes are less responsive to the climates of Australia’s cities. Therefore heating and cooling demands are radically increased. Large homes, and the subsequent sprawl, place significant demands on private car ownership and associated infrastructure, which is by far the least sustainable transport option. People who are unable to drive (the elderly, children, people with disabilities, etc) are often left isolated without reliable alternative transport options. Walking and riding become difficult, and often dangerous, in sprawl areas.

In short, large homes are an environmental disaster for our cities, whilst also being a cultural/social disaster for our communities.

Living with community.

“We (Australians) tend to seek those things in a private space rather than going and seeking them in a public space or mingle with others in the community and I think that is a worrying trend,” Professor Stuart White

Like many of our wonderful clients, the owners of THAT House are keen to open up to the community rather than permanently hiding or fortifying themselves. As Australian homes and culture become increasingly inward looking and protective, AMA is reacting against this trend. THAT House can open up to the outdoors, both private and public. Importantly a house that can be very transparent needs to be able to adapt to multiple privacy needs. Hence we have installed upwards blinds to give the owners control over their level of privacy. How many times have you seen huge windows with their blinds permanently down? This happens because of the binary a downward blind creates. A downward blind provides no privacy until it is completely down. An upward blind enables you to cut-out almost all view into a home while still being able to look out to the garden, and the street beyond. This gives control over all levels of privacy and intimate control over the light let into each space.

Alone, together.

Running through most of our projects is the concept of being alone, together. In its simplest terms, we aim to have secluded spaces withinshared spaces. We’re not fans of open-plan living. We also avoid completely enclosing rooms or functions. We try to make the connection of each space adaptable and loose. The ground floor of THAT House is ostensibly open, however the arrangement of spaces allows the owners to be together, or secluded, or any level of engagement in between. For example, someone could be quietly reading in the study, whilst another family member watches cartoons in the sitting space, and two others are discussing football at the dining table. They are within a large, shared area, however it is not a noisy open plan, nor is it a series of enclosed cells. THAT House enables the residents to be as engaged or as removed from the family as much as they wish, at any time.

If your spaces can adapt to suit your mood, the weather, time of day and usage, then you don’t need numerous rooms. Adaptable, complex areas allow us to make the most of our space, while keeping our homes modest in size and enabling us to have large, well-connected outdoor spaces and gardens.

Defiance.

Let’s be clear, THAT House is not a small home. It’s not a solution, nor ‘new prototype’ for Australian housing. However within its context THAT House is defiant and resistant. THAT house is a conscious effort to build a home that is almost half the floor area of its neighbours, yet without compromise of spatial types, functions and quality. The anxiety of not having enough, or leaving something out that you may need later, is a real fear. However with good design and planning, modest size homes are not compromising. In fact, due to their access to the garden and the sophisticated nature of their internal spaces, well designed smaller homes are far superior to their bulky, poorly-considered neighbours.

Sustainability.

Like all of our buildings, sustainability is at the core of THAT House. We have optimised passive solar gain into all north facing windows. All windows are double-glazed. We have no glazing on western facades and limited glass on the eastern facades. High performance insulation is everywhere. Along with active management of shade, and passive ventilation demands on mechanical heating and cooling are drastically reduced. A large water tank has been buried within the rear yard. All roof water is captured and reused to flush toilets and water the garden. Where possible we have sourced local trades, materials and fittings. Solar panels with micro-inverters cover the new roof.

Please contact Austin Maynard Architects if you have any questions about THAT House. info@maynardarchitects.com

Architect
Austin Maynard Architects (formerly Andrew Maynard Architects),

www.maynardarchitects.com

Project team
Andrew Maynard, Mark Austin, Kathryne Houchin

Builder
Sargant Constructions

Landscape Architect
Ben Scott, Garden Design

Engineer
R. Bliem & Associates

Pool contractor
Out From The Blue

PHOTOGRAPHER
Tess Kelly

Mills, the toy management house

2016

Winner -- National Architecture Awards, House alteration & addition 2016 for Mills House
Winner -- The John and Phyllis Murphy Award, Victorian Architecture Awards 2016 for Mills House
Winner -- Interior architecture Award, Victorian Architecture Awards 2016 for Mills House

In a nutshell

She’s a senior executive and now a new mum. For her and her newborn baby she wanted a light-filled home that could hide the mess. We gave her a floor that was a giant toy-box.

The what

Mills is an extension to a one level weatherboard terrace in Melbourne. The original facade and front 2 rooms of the terrace remain. One of those rooms has been altered to incorporate a study and a bathroom. A large lightwell separates the original structure from the new extension. The extension has two bedrooms and a bathroom above an open kitchen, living, dining space.

Mills is a complex home, full of ideas, however there are 2 core elements.

1. The floor is a giant toy box.

2. The rear facade filters and softens the strong sunlight that had previously dominated the backyard.

The floor is the cupboard

Everyone wants an abundance of storage. Terrace homes are roughly 6 metres wide. After adding walls, corridors, stairs, heating panels and cupboards we are left with very little width for living space. What if we didn't have wall cupboards? We’d get almost 1 metre of space back into the width of our terraces. What if our storage space was within our floor? Floor space is often left to the mice and spiders. Lets convert the floor into storage space and make the living area as big as possible without lining the walls with bulky cupboards.

Beyond the need for storage we were also concerned with the radical day-to-day changes a new baby brings. The endless management of ‘stuff’ was the key. Gravity is colluding with your child and conspires in its favour. Parents constantly pick things up, whilst kids throw them down. Children seem to love dropping things on the ground. We have all seen the torturous game of a baby sitting in a high chair throwing a toy to the ground the moment it is placed on their table. It’s cute the first three times. It’s a nightmare the next 200 times. While gravity amuses the child, it punishes the parent. The trick is to work with the chaos a child brings rather than naively hoping that your child will choose to be neat. At Mills we have made gravity the parents’ ally rather than the child’s by enabling the floor to swallow all the mess. Rather than picking toys up to put back in the toy box, we’ve made the floor one big toy box. Let’s get a broom and sweep all the lego in from the top and sides. It becomes a game for the child as well as a new hiding place to play.

450, the magic number

The toy-box floor is 450 millimetres deep. A typical seat is roughly 450 millimetres high. The open floor is not only storage space, it is also play space at a comfortable seat height for adults. A kitchen bench is roughly 900 millimetres. Therefore a kitchen bench is two seats high. The kitchen sits on the original floor height therefore the bench is 450 millimetres above the new toy-box floor. The kitchen bench is a seat to the new floor. We’ve upholstered a seat under a flap on the kitchen bench so that there can be one extra seat at the dining table when visitors are over, or when Louis wants to cook with Mum. Furthermore, the lightwell garden is at the new floor height, 450 lower than the benchtop, which makes access to the herbs very easy. 450 is the magic number.

Corridors are wasted space

We like to give corridors dual functions. The kitchen at Mills occupies the original corridor space. Therefore the substantial space the kitchen would have occupied in a typical location has been used as living space. Upstairs the master bedroom wall can slide entirely away so that the room can increase almost 2 metres in length when open to the corridor.

Perforated metal

We’ve used perforated metal throughout Mills. Stairs are tricky, especially in tight spaces. We have tried to create a stair that feels light like lace, which is difficult considering the constant live loads a stair is under. Perforated steel sheet is folded allowing light to be shared while also enabling conversations from one level to the other, without requiring you to be in the same space. One can lounge by a sunny upstairs window while having a conversation with someone below. Although it is a small home with numerous spaces we’ve avoided creating isolated cells by using translucent materials like perforated metal.

We’ve also employed perforated metal to control sunlight. We all want an abundance of sun in our homes, however too much sunlight makes any home very uncomfortable. The rear facade of Mills faces North-West, therefore it gets hit with the most aggressive sunlight of the day. Before the renovation the owner had felt very uncomfortable at the rear of her house. We’ve draped a white perforated metal facade down the face of the rear elevation. The facade reflects most of the unwanted sunlight in summer, allowing a soft filtered light to penetrate the house. The lines between inside and outside have been blurred. The glass walls of the living space are offset from the perf facade which creates a comfortable outdoor space that feels as though it is within the skin of the house. The facade feels solid and protective on a bright, hot day. On a dull day, at dusk and in the evening the facade appears far less solid and the metal skin feels more like lace than a wall.

That bathtub

The bathroom is not big, therefore we have created very large windows towards the lightwell and towards the original roof. This makes the bathroom seem large, sunny and bright.

No one likes cleaning a bathroom. Adding a bathtub to a small space creates a lot of fiddly details where grime, mess and mold can gather. To avoid the mess, and to create a bathroom that was easy to maintain, we made our own bathtub out of fibreglass. There are no seams or joins. Along the walls a slim, continuous gutter that ensure water runs around the bath and drains through the floor. Simple, neat and clean.

Sustainability

Like all of our buildings, sustainability is at the core of Mills House. Although the site is small we have maximised natural light and air to all spaces. The openings and windows have been designed to optimise passive solar gain, thereby drastically reducing demands on mechanical heating and cooling. All windows are double glazed. White roofs drastically reduce urban heat sink and heat transfer internally. A need for air-conditioning is eliminated through active management of shade, and passive ventilation. A large water tank has been buried central within the lightwell. All roof water is captured and reused to flush toilets and water the garden. High performance insulation is everywhere, even in the walls of the original house. Where possible we have sourced local trades, materials and fittings. Solar panels with micro-inverters cover the new roof.

Architect
Austin Maynard Architects

www.maynardarchitects.com

Project Team
Andrew Maynard, Mark Austin, Natalie Miles

Builder
Tim Callaghan, Grand Plan Properties

Engineer
Jon Anderson, Hive Engineering

PHOTOGRAPHER
Peter Bennetts

Dorman, Lorne

2016
Winner -- Residential Architecture Award, Victorian Architecture Awards 2017.
Best of Houzz - 2019
Archilovers best projects 2017

In brief
A couple of years ago Kate and Grant showed us around their beautiful little shack, in bushland near the ocean, which they loved and valued greatly. They asked ‘how could we add a clear and elevated view of the ocean without demolishing, damaging or dominating our beloved shack?’

It’s a simple brief, but inherently problematic. Solutions can easily become expensive and complicated. After stumbling through the complexities many people choose to demolish their shack and start again. It is an economic decision that many shack owners make, at the expensive of local and family heritage. Our challenge was to avoid doing what some neighbours, and many other people along the coast, have done. We refused to have yet another Great Ocean Road shack sacrificed and replaced with a McMansion. We refused to be part of the slow erosion of the Great Ocean Road’s collective cultural memory. Kate and Grant couldn’t agree more.

The What
Dorman House is a finely crafted timber box, independently constructed to hover over an existing beach shack in Lorne, Victoria. In contrast to the neighbours, it has been designed to weather, to go grey, to age, and sink back into the landscape, back into the bush.

The elevated extension sits on top of a heavy timber structure and comprises a kitchen, dining and living room, accessed via a spiral staircase. Polycarbonate was used as a lightweight cladding to infill the structure below, creating a useable space without adding mass that would dominate the original property. The new living space does not protrude forward over the ridge-line of the old house and avoids dominating the original shack unnecessarily.

Whilst the old kitchen was transformed into a second bathroom and laundry, the original beach shack remains mostly unchanged. It was tidied up and repainted, so that the charm and character of the post war shack was retained.

The Why?
In the post-war period many Australians aspired to own both the suburban home and the bush/beach shack. The suburban home served the purpose of projecting an aspirational image of self to the street, whilst the shack allowed people to drop their social facade and be themselves. The home and the shack served specific functions in enabling Australians to celebrate diverse facets of their individual and social personalities. Today, sadly, we see the steady demolition of the Australian shack. Modest, humble shacks are being replaced with incongruous and unnecessary McMansions. Increasingly we see a duplication of the suburban home where once stood the shack. Through this process we not only lose important parts of our built heritage, we also lose a significant part of our social and emotional diversity. We lose parts of ourselves. At Austin Maynard Architects we do our best to avoid the simple temptation of demolishing and replacing. Where extensions are required/desired, we aim to retain and respect the existing shack and its scale.

Inside out
While Kate and Grant asked to “save our shack but give us the view” they also wanted to create a space that was not solely focused on the vista. What could easily have been a white plasterboard box full of downlights is, instead, detailed and well considered. Internally lined with Silvertop Ash, it’s a space that exudes character and responds to the seasonal changes and hours of the day. The lighting inside is very evocative, controlled so you can work, or prepare a meal, without flooding the space with light and compromising the view. Full height windows on the northern side of the living space slide open to allow in the sea breezes. The screening, required in bush fire zones to stop fire embers, acts as a balustrade.

The undercroft of the new living space is a simple infill of the heavy timber structure that holds the living space high up in the view. We have lined the space with polycarbonate so that an abundance of filter light fills the room. Although it was originally envisaged as a rumpus room, Kate and Grant loved it so much that they wanted it as their bedroom. We added heavy curtains and huge sliding doors so that the space could have as much light and openness as they wanted. They could leave it open on a moonlit night and sleep with the sea breeze rolling over them, or close it up and curtain it into darkness for a cool summer afternoon nap.

Sustainability
Like all of our building, sustainability is at the core of Dorman. It is always a challenge to maximise glass and view while also achieving thermal efficiency however we have worked hard to create big views without compromising performance. Most of the glass faces north and all windows are double glazed with thermally separated frames. There is a hood above the northern windows to shield the summer sun yet still achieve optimal passive solar gain in winter. Along with active management of shade and passive ventilation, demands on mechanical heating and cooling are drastically reduced. The old timber decking was recycled and re-used internally. A large water tank is in place, used to flush toilets and water the garden. Where possible we have sourced local trades, materials and fittings.

In all, the most sustainable factor of this project is that we retained the existing shack. It is irrelevant how sustainable you make a new house if you knock down an existing structure. Even if you have a 9 star home, the carbon debt in the demolished house takes many decades to repay.

Architect
Austin Maynard Architects

www.maynardarchitects.com

Project Team
Andrew Maynard, Mark Austin, Natalie Miles

Builder
Spence Construction

Engineer
R. Bliem Associates

PHOTOGRAPHER
Peter Bennetts

Alfred

2016

Commendation -- Residential Architecture Award, Victorian Architecture Awards 2017.

In a Nutshell

Alfred House is an addition and reconfiguration of an existing two storey, two bedroom terrace, with a tired lean-to that had little relationship with the exterior space. The client wanted us to replicate one of our previous projects, Vader House, as they liked the idea of a centralised courtyard. It was an interesting idea for us to revisit and to evolve, as we were able to push the concept further due to the property’s connection with the laneway. The big challenge was that Alfred had less than half of Vader’s budget.

Embracing the laneway

Why do we have all these residential laneways that everyone fears and hides from? Why not embrace them as fun, cool spaces to be played in and used. It’s a topical subject at the moment, with a council led push for us to use our communal zones. Here, by building on the boundary and internalising the back garden, the clients now have this open area which nobody uses. By opening the doors to the back it extends their property and allows light and air to pour in.

The distance between us

The lean-to was removed and the space redesigned to include an internal garden, kitchen/laundry, living/dining room, bathroom, (mezzanine) office and store room/garage - for the client’s prized motorbike. Rather than placing the addition directly on the rear of the house, we moved it back to the boundary laneway. In doing so we essentially turned the dodgy little lightwell that you find in most terrace houses, into an entire garden. With a backyard you have to choose to go outside, whereas here you don’t have to make that decision, the walls easily fold away to activate the space in a more natural way.

The Drop

The floor level of the rear addition is sunken to a depth of 600 millimetres from the height of the laneway. The floor drop results in a generous internal height and uncompromised internal volume but reduces the height of the building externally. The clients wanted to go through council without making any noise, which is difficult when you build in a backyard. In order not to overshadow or overlook, and to maintain the floor levels between the old and the new, we dropped the level down by four steps. Using glass panels directly on the rear lane which slide back fully, the view as you come from the old house is completely unobscured and creates a wonderful relationship to the laneway.

Detailing the detail.

Alfred was a real fine tuning exercise, unrelenting on every detail whilst working to a tight and constrained budget. The way the doors in the kitchen come together without the use of a central column, the deceptive mirror splashback, use of perforated steel to filter light, the way the back glass window opens up completely without a fixed panel - it all required the greatest of effort but appears effortless. There are also great moments of discovery, the street art by Order 55, specially commissioned by the clients, that adorns the original rear facade, and the canary yellow bathroom that dazzles in the otherwise pure white.

Sustainability.

Like all of our buildings, sustainability is at the core of Alfred House. We’ve introduced North-facing glass and perforated metal awning to enable passive solar gain. All windows are double glazed with thermal separated frames. White roofs drastically reduce urban heat sink and heat transfer internally. High performance insulation is everywhere. Along with active management of shade, and passive ventilation demands on mechanical heating and cooling are drastically reduced. A large water tank has been buried within the courtyard. All roof water is captured and reused to flush toilets and water the garden. Where possible we have sourced local trades, materials and fittings. The new hydronic heated concrete slab provides a large area of thermal mass. Partial submersion reduces surface area and stabilises the internal temperature further.

Architect
Austin Maynard Architects

www.maynardarchitects.com

Project team
Andrew Maynard, Mark Austin

Builder
TCM Building Group

Engineer
Hive Engineering

Landscape Architects
Bush Projects

Artist (wall mural)
Seb Humphreys - Order 55

Building Surveyor
Code Compliance

PHOTOGRAPHERS
Tess Kelly
Fraser Marsden

Brickface

2017

Best of 2017 - Urbis Magazine
Finalist - 2017 Think Brick Australia, Think Brick Awards
Finalist - 2018 Dulux Colour Awards
‘Long list’ - Dezeen, World’s Best Architecture Awards 2018, (Small Building)

When the new build on the block, looks like the oldest building on the laneway.

What is this?

Brickface is a compact building situated at the rear of an existing house in Richmond, Melbourne. It consists of a garage at ground level, studio living/guest suite at first floor, and a roof deck. A new pool and entertaining space extends the home’s entertaining area, while the roof terrace becomes the missing productive garden. The main living area of the existing house faces south and opens up onto the new terrace and pool. The backdrop to this view is the rising high wall of Brickface.

Shadows and the sculptural form

Brickface is constructed of recycled red brick, interspersed with contrasting red and blue glazed bricks from the PGH Vibrant range (Rhapsody and Watermelon) to introduce light & shadow, pattern and colour. The round windows of the building and the sculptural form of the parapet combine with the character of the recycled brick to soften the solid block. The spiral stair adds further sculptural interest.

New place, new space

The clients asked for a new building at the end of their rear yard. The previous garage, with studio above, was large - it dominated the garden and compromised their outdoor space. The new building, though taller, is smaller, tighter and more efficient. It minimises its footprint to maximise the rear yard.

Blue blue electric blue

To separate the private studio space from the garage below and the roof terrace above, the room has been painted blue throughout - walls, ceilings and skirtings. The cohesive use of colour unifies the room and draws a domestic scale to the studio: using colour to provide contrast and signify a change in function.

The studio design and specifically the colour, provide a contrast to the surrounding gritty laneway and industrial brick facade. The owners wanted a space that would be calm and playful despite its 'seedy laneway’ location. The studio/guest suite also serves as both a reminder and as a connection to the new outdoor pool area, despite it being hidden away behind the towering brick fort. The owners expressed a desire to create a resort style garden and Miami beach feel studio, to escape from the bustle and stresses of a busy inner-city suburb. The use of a uniform bright colour, along with the large porthole windows creates the sense of a fantasy bubble. The result is a sophisticated yet very playful escape.

A generation living in laneways?

Melbourne’s property market is so inflated, that we’re now seeing a generation that are not only unable to buy a home, but also struggling to find affordable places to rent close to their work, school and community. Melbourne does have one trick up its sleeve that many parents are increasingly exploring. Melbourne is strewn with under-utilised laneways and many home owners are creating a second residence in their backyard with frontage to the laneway, where their adult children can live during university and early employment. These second residences are becoming fully independent studio homes for adult children, allowing them to save and plan, whilst continuing to contribute to the essence of Melbourne’s most vibrant and cultural suburbs.

Changing transport needs.

While Brickface offers the security of a permanent, independent home for the owner’s daughter in years to come, it has also been designed to adapt to changing transport needs. With the rapid onset of driverless cars we will see home owners searching for new uses for their garage spaces. The ground level at Brickface has been deliberately designed with high ceilings, so it can easily be adapted into a generous living space. The garage door can be removed and replaced, to create a generous entry into a lounge, or alternatively the owners daughter may choose to start a business on the ground floor and simply replace the garage door with a glazed shop front. There is a swath of potential for this space that, at the moment, is only a temporary storage zone for vehicles. Yet, in the future, it can be so much more.

The laneway

Brickface sits hard up to the laneway on two sides, in a corner position. The building terminates a row of garage doors and newer outbuildings that tumble down the hill. Built from recycled brick, the structure is a solid and secure bookend that presents a character that looks to have existed well before the other buildings along the lane.

Architect
Austin Maynard Architects

www.maynardarchitects.com

Design Architect
Mark Austin

Builder
TCM BuIlding Group

Photographer
Tess Kelly

My-House

(the mental health house)

2017

My-House is No.2 in Dwell’s Top 10 Offices of 2017.

————————————————————————
Words by Andrew Maynard

Most clients ask for more natural light. In my own home I decided to have far too much natural light. “Let’s wear sunglasses inside”. Let’s bathe in sunlight and drench ourselves in vitamin D.

Prelude : Masochists, in the boring way.

Some architects are readily self-destructive, not in a fun adventurous way, but in a very boring “I’m over-worked, exploited and unfulfilled” way. As research emerges, it appears working conditions is leading to significant mental health issues within the architectural profession.

Many of the issues surrounding working conditions are spelled out in my surprisingly popular essay Work/Life/Work Balance published on Parlour, Archdaily and the AMA website. In many ways the essay was not just a rant about working conditions, as much as it was a catharsis.

My home

My-House is my own home. It is also the office of Austin Maynard Architects. I live upstairs, whilst Austin Maynard Architects occupies the shopfront downstairs. The kitchen, dining and garden are shared between myself and the AMA team between 9am and 5pm.

My-House is an experiment that I live in. It is a home that I dare not impose on my clients. It breaks many important rules, often not in a good way. My-House lets in sunlight where a house should not. Whilst it is a very sustainable home, My-House is not as thermally efficient as the homes I design for others. Issues of privacy and personal comfort are often challenged in My-House. It is for these reasons that I also love it.

Vitamin D is good for your brain.

Doctors experience a sharp spike in patients seeking help with mental health issues during the late-winter/early-spring months. I have discussed this phenomena with my own doctor. One of his questions to me was particularly intriguing. He asked me what my house was like. I informed him that it was a typical unrenovated terrace with small windows and internalised living spaces disconnected from the rear yard. I would turn the lights on at 4pm during winter and some rooms needed artificial lighting even on the brightest summer days. My doctor suggested that a common contributing factor to his increase in mental health patients during late-winter/early-spring may be the lack of access to sunlight and vitamin D. Further research into vitamin D revealed numerous links with mental health, and significant deficiencies in Australians despite our climate.

Wearing sunglasses inside

I took vitamin D deficiency into account when renovating my home. I would use my skill set to maximise my mental health. I knew that there were strong links between Vitamin D and mental health. I also knew that the sun’s ultraviolet rays produce most of the vitamin D our bodies needs. I was living in a dark terrace and I decided that I didn't just want to get more light, I decided to create the complete antithesis of the original terraces spaces. I aimed to create a dichotomous home. The original terrace remains with all of its problems and charms, yet the new extension is a bright, elaborate greenhouse. The terrace has high ceilings and small windows. The extension has a clear Thermoclick roof and I sometimes wear sunglasses inside to deal with the sunlight, which is a wonderful problem to have in a Victorian terrace. A large glass wall opens the kitchen/dining area out onto the sun drenched garden. On the hottest of days a large blue external blind covers the clear Thermoclick roof to create a cool shaded interior. There is a box in the centre of the house that has a bathroom, kitchen and a utility area for Austin Maynard Architects. Above is an open platform, full of plants, that my cats lounge around on.

Work/Life balance

Not only is My-House my home, it is also the home of Austin Maynard Architects. My-House is a hybrid that tests many ideas that AMA are adopting into our projects as the need for home offices increases.

The way that Australians work is becoming more complex, and where we work is changing rapidly. Many companies are utilising “hot-desking” or encouraging employees to work outside the office. The Australian Bureau of Statistics recently revealed that one in three Australians now regularly work from home.

My-House is an evolution of the way that I and the Austin Maynard team work. Like many other architects starting a practice, my home was my office for the first year of AMA. We then upgraded to a shop-front, that I lived above. Once the office had momentum we moved to a large work space in the city. This was the moment that the easy-going foundation of AMA shifted. The costs were high and the pressure to increase the scale and number of projects quickly built. It was stressful. It soon dawned on me that we had moved AMA to a big city office by default, rather than asking the big questions of Why, and How will this alter the way that we work?

My-House optimises usage, forcing spaces to have multiple functions far beyond the simple binary of domestic and office. It creates a focused yet relaxed place, radically reducing the environmental footprint of Austin Maynard Architects and myself (and the commute isn't bad either).

Sustainability

Glass has the worst thermal performance of any material in any home. Even a standard stud wall will drastically outperform the best double glazing. Hence a transparent roof was going to be a challenge. The performance of My-House exceeds expectation in the colder months. The hydronic heated slab provides an ideal thermal mass to stabilise internal temperatures. The clear Thermoclick roof consists of 2 x 40mm layers with a 140mm air gap. The winter performance of this roof far exceeds calculations (which is a relief). With the windows and the skylight closed, the clear roof creates an ideal greenhouse effect which heats the house during the day. The exposed concrete floor and concrete block walls store this build up of heat and keeps the temperature stable at night time.

Things are a bit trickier in summer, however we are again pleasantly surprised by the stable internal temperatures. A skylight high in the ceiling passively vents any excess heat, which travels up the skillion roof and naturally exits without need for mechanical ventilation. A stack effect can be created to quickly ventilate the house by opening up the garden doors to draw cool air in whilst venting hot air out of the skylight.

Most importantly this is a small house with a very small footprint. We have created spaces that are constantly in use. Australian homes are the biggest in the world, and most of them are empty during the work day. My-House has maximum usage with minimum space. We have not spread our footprint. We have kept things small, simple and sustainable.

Why yellow?

There is some interesting data regarding the emotional effects colour has on human mind. Was this the reason that we chose yellow? No, I simply found some colourful taps and this infected me with the need to add the same colour everywhere. I asked my instagram followers what colour we should use and yellow was the absolute winner.

Has it worked?

Yes, it has worked for us. It’s not for everyone, but my strange home, with far too much sunlight, has transformed the way we feel. I love that I have at least two extra hours of daylight each evening after the neighbouring terraces have turned on their lights. I feel liberated from the dark isolation of terrace house living and I feel connected with my climate and my environment.

PHOTOGRAPHER
Tess Kelly

Cut Paw Paw

2015

Winner -- The HOUSES Awards, Outdoor architecture 2015

The What?

Cut Paw Paw is a renovation and extension to a double fronted weatherboard home in Seddon, Victoria, Australia. The owners, Derek and Michelle, (a professional couple, one of whom worked from home) wanted to extend their home to accomodate a dedicated backyard studio and a new kitchen/living area. The wanted to have a true connection to the garden. They asked for “something radical.”

Cut Paw Paw is a structure that is deliberately incomplete. The owners asked that the house be “ridiculously inside-out”. To accomplish this we not only employed tested and successful ideas such as sliding walls, bifold doors and decks, we also left the building incomplete. The central space, between the dining area and the studio, is an unclad frame within and surrounded by garden. It is both inside and outside. It is both a new building and an old ruin. It is both garden and home.

Name?
Cut Paw Paw is the name of the parish in which the house presides, and a name that the owners liked very much. It’s weird, hence we like it too.

The why?
Construction sites are fascinating and often very beautiful. When wandering the street and stumbling upon an anonymous house in construction we all get excited by the possibilities. We all imagine what the finished building could be like. The site holds so much promise when there is nothing more than a timber or steel frame. It is a jungle gym, a relic, and a skeleton full of play and imagination. Often it is when a building is at its most beautiful.

All too soon the excitement, the imagination and the potential comes crashing down as the reality of the finished building becomes apparent. When the anonymous house is roofed, clad and finished it is often a disappointment as the banality of the McMansion emerges. The beautiful skeleton that held such potential and required such imagination has been buried beneath the ordinary, the obvious and the banal. The home will not again be interesting until it eventually begins to crumble and decay.

It’s all in the detail.
While the original four front rooms were retained (two either side of a central passage), the new wing has a warehouse feel, pivoting around the internal courtyard garden (with exposed free standing bath, for exposed bathing!). Broken into a delicate structural rhythm, the exposed steel framework flows from the original timber cottage, deep into the backyard and linking to the rear studio.

Where once stood a series of ad-hoc and badly weathered lean-tos, there is now a generous open plan kitchen, living and dining room. The pitched ceiling carries through to the lightly covered courtyard, clad in steel and featuring a series of steel portals. Like sitting beneath a tree, a number of steel ‘branches’ provide shade from the northern sun.

The extension sits over a smooth concrete slab with underfloor heating, while the flooring in the existing building now comprises planks of kiln-dried Victorian ash and spotted gum wood. Two angular concrete steps mark the transition between the original building and the extension, while sliding wooden walls and bi-fold doors separate the older rooms from the new living space.

Recycled red brickwork runs along one side of this open-plan space, while metal-clad awnings can be battened down on the other to protect against inclement weather. A narrow water trough skirts this boundary providing natural evaporative cooling. A free-standing sink unit divides the kitchen and living spaces. One side of the island doubles as a backrest for bench seating that aligns with a dining table.

The building was intentional left incomplete to retain a skeletal incompleteness that blurs at the edges and dissolves into its backyard setting. Off-site pre-fabrication involved workshop welding and bolting of various steel frames and components together, before dismantling them in the workshop and erecting them again onsite on a concrete slab and footings. In the future this process can be reversed and the entire structure removed and reused.

Sustainable?
Like all of our building, sustainability is at the core of Cut Paw Paw. The entire structure was designed to reduce energy costs. Rather than simply extruding the existing structure we have run the new form along the southern boundary so that it is soaked with sunlight. The openings and windows have been designed to optimise passive solar gain, thereby drastically reducing demands on mechanical heating and cooling. All windows are double glazed. White roofs drastically reduce urban heat sink and demands on air conditioning. We have a pond on the face of the largest north facing opening. While providing a home for fish and plants, the pond also serves as a mechanism to passively cool the house through natural evaporative cooling. Water tanks and solar panels have their place as they do on all of our projects. High performance insulation is everywhere, even in the walls of the original house. If the structure were ever to be removed it could be disassembled and reused rather than being demolished.

Please contact Austin Maynard Architects if you have any questions about Cut Paw Paw. info@maynardarchitects.com

Architect:
Austin Maynard Architects

Directors:
Mark Austin and Andrew Maynard

Design Architect:
Andrew Maynard

Project Architect:
Mark Austin

Site area 506m2
Floor area: 149m2
(Old part of house: 69m2.
New addition : 80m2 - main addition (56m2) + studio (26m2)

Completion date:
March 2014

Builder:
Marcus Hamilton - Mark Projects
www.markprojects.com.au

Engineer:
Maurice Farrugia and Associates

And some words from ARCHITECTURE AND DESIGN

http://www.architectureanddesign.com.au/news/victoria-home-deliberately-left-incomplete-by-andr

Forging ‘seamless links’ between the indoors and outdoors is a phrase that gets thrown around a lot when residential projects are being described, but there is probably no studio that takes this aim more seriously than Andrew Maynard Architects – a practice that deliberately left one of its houses incomplete.

“When a client tells us that they want a strong connection between inside and outside we take it seriously and push the concept until it is almost impossible to distinguish the line between internal space and external space,” the team explains quite matter-of-factly.

The delivery – a literal translation of the owners’ request for something that is “ridiculously inside-out” – was on point. For Cut Paw Paw, a renovation and extension to a double fronted weatherboard home in Seddon, Victoria, the team took a galvanised steel shed construction and peeled back the layers of sheeting until the frame was exposed.

They then located the living, kitchen and dining areas on one end of this annex, and a music studio on the other. In between, within the unclad structure, a deck lives with the garden, some paving, and a bathtub.

The result is fascinating. Although sliding walls, bifold doors and decks separate some of the spaces, overlaps were welcomed. Parts of the garden creep into the living spaces, and parts of the floor spill into the garden. Reflecting the mystery and grandeur surrounding buildings that are crumbling and in decay, the bare structure speaks volumes of potential and imagination.

Winner -- The HOUSES Awards, Outdoor architecture 2015

Setting aside the simple domestic-variety binary of inside and outside, Cut Paw Paw challenges typical notions of how we might use our outdoor spaces in an inventive and playful way.

A key element in unlocking the potential of the project brief is the straightforward row of steel portal frames behind the freestanding weatherboard home. Deliberately flirting with notions of the incomplete and the partially demolished, this project has a dynamism that lets the user take advantage of the best the climate offers, while also offering shelter when it needs to.

While the new industrial arbour utilizes a good amount of the available site, this project also shows that the architects know when to leave things well alone – the generous strip of less-defined open space grants all the living areas, both indoor and outdoor, year-round access to summer sun.

Cut Paw Paw is an intriguing and discerning surmise at what our outdoor spaces can be.

Houses Awards jury.

Hill House

2012

Winner -- Residential Architecture Award, Victorian Architecture Awards.

The problem/opportunity

Design is complex. There is little that is more complex to design than a home, however fundamental issues offer an architect a starting point; where is the sun? How do we capture it in winter, how do we exclude it in summer?

The thin allotments that dominate Melbourne's northern suburbs often provide indomitable constraints to solar access and therefore require the production of unorthodox ideas to overcome these constraints and convert them into opportunities.

Original conditions

The site faces north therefore relegating the backyard, the family’s primary outdoor space, to shadow throughout the year. In the 90s a two storey extension was added reducing solar access even further while creating deep dark space within the house. A family of five wished to create a long-term home, which could meet the requirements of three small children and their slow transformation into young adults over the years.

Response

Rather than repeating past mistakes and extending from the rear in a new configuration, the proposal was to build a new structure on the rear boundary, the southern edge of the block, upon the footprint of what had been, until now, the back yard. The new structure faces the sun employing passive solar gain. Saturating itself with sunlight. The new structure faces the original house. The backyard is now the centre of the house activated by the built form around it. The old house is converted into "the kids’ house". The old house is as it once was. The rear of the simple masonry structure, though spatially connected, is not reoriented, a face is deliberately not applied. It is left honest and robust. With a restrained piece of “street art” to be applied.

The new front door

Thomson street no longer provides the main entry to the home. Family now enters via the lane from Stanley Street. The original house, now private dormitory spaces, no longer has a typical relationship to the Thomson Street’s “front” door. The original house, as with most narrow blocks throughout Melbourne, demanded that visitors walked a long corridor past bedrooms to the living area. Stolen quick glances into dark private spaces always occurred along the journey. At the Hill House the entry is reorientated. The kitchen, the nerve centre, the hub of the house, is the new greeting point. Beyond is the park. Adjacent is the living space, the yard and the "kids’ house" beyond.

Densification & the suburban backyard

In the past decade Melbourne has fallen victim to urban sprawl - its population is growing at an average of 1,500 people per week, faster than any other major city in Australia. Population growth has then lead to the other issue of densification within residential areas, at the expense of reducing public and private open space.

“A problem is that high rise and infill spells the death of the suburban backyard ... There is something intangible but important about the personal space of a backyard.” - Kelvin Thomson, Federal Labor Member for Wills, October 2010.

A hill in the backyard?

Following the decision to build at the rear of the block a ubiquitous modern box was first imagined. Soon it seemed necessary to pursue the opportunity to activate this new, once shaded, now sunny facade. A seat along the new northern facade? Perhaps a series of steps like the Scalinata della Trinità dei Monti? But how does one lounge in the sun on steps. Perhaps a slope instead .... And the hill house evolved/emerged.

Houses in the Victorian suburbs carry the stereotypical suburban house “type”. What you would typically see from the street is a homogeneous wall of repeated facades, protected by strict heritage overlays common across the state. The backyards to these seemingly indifferent housing lots, however, hide a world of architectural delights and disasters - this is where the adventure and eclecticism happens, where the forms start to leave their similarities behind, where they cannot be judged from outside. A different kind of beauty lies here, where the front mask is lifted. And this is where the unconventionality of the Hill House blossoms.

Architect
Austin Maynard Architects

www.maynardarchitects.com

Project Team
Andrew Maynard, Mark Austin, Michael Ong

Builder
Ficus Constructions

Engineer
Robin Bliem Associates

Building Surveyor
Metro Building Surveying

Landscaping
Bonnie Grant (Bush Designs)

PHOTOGRAPHER
Nic Granleese

HOUSE House

2013

Winner -- Residential Architecture Award, Victorian Architecture Awards.
High Commendation -- World House of the Year, World Architecture Festival.

The what

These neighbouring terrace homes are owned by two generations of one family. Both houses were in need of repair and update. HOUSE House is a single building that extends both homes. They are separate homes within one architecture. The new structure runs north/south while the original houses run east/west. The fence between each terrace slides away to create one large backyard.

Australia has the largest houses in the world. Melbourne is flat, with very low density. There are few topographical constraints to force homes to have a small footprint. This is unfortunate as many of the best homes around the world are modest in size and maximise what precious outdoor space there is. In Australia we go wide and low. We pancake our homes. We eat up our outdoor space. Often people move to the suburbs under the false logic that they will have an abundance of open space and room for kids to play; however the enormous size of houses now makes this a convenient myth rather than a true outcome. This results in car dependence and children’s isolation from a rich and diverse urban community (as kids don’t tend to drive that much).

Onwards and upwards

With HOUSE House we deliberately went vertical. We stacked spaces 3 levels high. We maximised the backyard on a small site. In cities like Tokyo, London, Amsterdam and many more, living vertically is a way of life that generates unique housing while also making the most of a densely packed urban condition. It creates a vibrant way of life that sprawl and car dependence could never achieve. But what if we introduce a footprint restriction beyond what is required? What if we build a tall thin structure that maximises the modest backyard? We produce spaces that, though familiar in many parts of the world, are unfamiliar in Australia; tall, cavernous spaces with light cascading from above. Each space different in personality and function so that the modest home can adapt to the various complex moods of its occupants.

Andrew Maynard Architects generally attempt to avoid crashing new structures into old. With HOUSE House we deliberately created two separate forms. We respect the twin Victorian terraces. We repair and restore them. We do not extrude or copy the original as this only ends in an odd tumor. The new structure is built across the rear of the terraces. A clear gap remains between the two. Weather is kept out of this cavernous space by glass infills. This is where you rise and spin up the spiral stair, interacting with both the aged brick of the terrace and the cedar of the new. We’ve avoided using new synthetic, shiny or plastic materials. The materials have had a past life. The new form is clad entirely in cedar. Raw steel plate and detailing describes the openings between structures and the threshold between old and new. Dark plywood paneling rises through the light-filled void between the structures. We strategically use mirror on the cabinetry in the dining area to make the space feel large while giving the illusion that light is coming from both sides and that we are surrounded by garden.

The key to making a modest-sized home flourish is to provide a number of spaces with various personalities. The active family/living spaces don’t need to be large, yet they must have loose boundaries. The original front sitting room is retained. After this the living spaces can open from the dining room to the rear fence. The side fences can both be opened to let outdoor activity spill beyond the living area. The kitchen bench continues through the rear glass wall. The inbuilt barbecue sits on the end of the bench. The levels above the living areas provide quiet contemplative spaces. Each space is connected with both the rear yard and the internal lightwell.

Sustainability

Like all of our buildings sustainability is not the narrative, it is a core responsibility in the same way that lighting and plumbing are. All new windows are double glazed. Glass roofs can be thermally challenging therefore we have used high performance glass with automated louvres over so that sunlight stops before it hits the glass, not after. There’s no green house effect here. The owners can adjust the louvres at anytime between full sunlight and complete block out. Louvres to the south of the lightwell are automated to allow the space to quickly vent should heat build up. High performance insulation has been used in the new walls and roof. The existing terrace roofs have also had an insulation upgrade. Solar panels cover the roof.

On the cedar boundary wall we’ve painted a graphic. Melbourne has some of the best street artists in the world and thankfully they donate their work to the city within its numerous laneways. Though street art is welcome throughout Melbourne tagging is also prevalent and it tends to be more destructive. Tagging is to be expected on almost any exposed wall. Most tagging is drawn with black spray paint. To combat this we introduced a black graphic to the facade that either makes the tag invisible or alternatively can be quickly painted over to discourage additional tagging. Will this tactic work or will it simply offer a greater incentive? We don’t know? Most importantly we engage with tagging, one of the ubiquitous parts of the city, rather than fortifying ourselves from it. The graphic used is the child-like image of a suburban home. Here we see the overlap of two distinct approaches to the single family house; the stereotypical home overlaid on the import. If you look closely elsewhere in the house you will find numerous “Easter Eggs” following the same theme.

Architect
Austin Maynard Architects (formerly Andrew Maynard Architects)

www.maynardarchitects.com

Project Team
Andrew Maynard, Mark Austin, Michael Ong

Builder
Sargant Constructions

Engineer
Coulthard Shim P/L

Building Surveyor
Anthony Middling & Associates

PHOTOGRAPHER
Peter Bennetts

Zero Waste Table

"... I like an Arch"

“To express is to drive. And when you want to give something presence, you have to consult nature. And there is where Design comes in.

If you think of brick, for instance, you say to brick, "What do you want, brick?" And brick says to you, "I like an arch." And if you say to brick, "Look, arches are expensive, and I can use a concrete lintel over you. What do you think of that, brick?"

Brick says, "I like an arch.””

Louis Kahn

CNC technology
Computer Numerical Control (CNC) Machining - a manufacturing process which uses computers to control machine tools.

Louis Kahn once wrote about material logic of the humble brick. The brick has an inherent logic that cannot be argued with. Like the brick, the CNC router technology that we see today has an obvious and undeniable material logic. At the moment we see CNC used in a singular way;

1. Design a product

2. Program the designs into the CNC

3. The CNC organises components to minimise waste

4. Cut the designed components

5. Retrieve the designed parts and dispose of the waste (the waste is often the most beautiful part)

This process is clever and quick. It gives access to designers who cannot afford typical methods of mass production while also making craftsmen/women out of those of us who have never picked up a hammer before. However this process avoids the necessary question for our resource of scarce time; what is the CNC router’s logic? And by its extension, what is the material logic of the sheet material that passes through it?

The rules

ZW Table is the result of an exploration of this question. We defined ourselves two simple rules;

Waste nothing. The entire 2400x1200 sheet that is cut by the CNC will be used in the table.

Single cuts only. Typically a CNC routes around the edge of each component. Instead we aimed to have the release of 2 components with each cut. Time of production is halved. Wear and tear on the CNC is reduced to a minimum, drastically extending the life of the tool.

The result

One sheet of plywood measuring 2400mm by 1200mm is cut into a set of unique shapes symmetrical along a central axis, and every single piece can be used to assemble a table. All you are left with is a bag of sawdust, inescapable from the CNC process. Sawdust is inevitable, but it is not waste. The consumer is obliged to take the entire sheet with them and therefore the consumer takes the sawdust, which they can use as garden mulch, cat litter, etc....

It’s not really a table anymore

It’s a table, but it is also a building unit. A brick all of its own. One can be added to another - side by side, they make a bigger table; but if stacked, a bunk. And it doesn’t just stop there, because you are only limited by your imagination. The mirrored sections of a single template, though simple in form, produce a great complexity in fixing locations - there is no one way of assembling the ZW Table, so the genetics of the table are different every time, much like the way our DNA makes us all unique.

Most importantly the ZW Table values the use of bolts over chemical adhesives. Glueing the components together results in an unchangeable object, with the benefits of being strong and long-lasting. By using bolts only, this table becomes impermanent - there is constant freedom to rearrange, extend or repair it. So if you’ve decided 20 years later that you don’t want a table anymore, all you have to do is get your wrench and take it apart, and make a shelf. Dismantle, reuse, recycle.

The design is a result of the process

The most exciting thing about the ZW table (for me) is that there was no applied aesthetic. The table emerged from the process, from a material logic, without the imposition of decoration.

“A lot of what we seem to be doing in a product like that is actually getting design out of the way, and I think when forms develop with that sort of reason, and they’re not just arbitrary shapes, it feels almost inevitable, it feels almost un-designed, it feels almost like “course it’s that way, I mean, why wouldn’t it be any other way?” - Jonathan Ive

Moor

2014

Fitzroy, VIC, Australia

How do you create a home in 4.5m? It’s tricky, but a lot of fun.

A family of four had lived in this modest, ageing house for almost eight years. As the children neared their teenage years something had to be done. Abandoning their home and moving elsewhere was not an option as the family was an important part of a thriving community.

Within this pocket of Fitzroy is a dense mix of workers’ cottages and small terraces. All are modest in size, many are dark and cold. Many of the cottages and terraces are in original condition, with a simple facade hiding an assemblage of brick and weatherboard lean-tos in the rear yard looking onto bluestone laneways. These lean-tos create a mesh of detailed and varying volumes, in stark contrast to the simplicity of the street front. When building in the rear of a property in this context, facing onto the laneway, one is acutely aware of the smallness and texture of the existing built form. Within this context the burden is on the designer is to respond to the assemblage of small volumes while also maximising the potentials of the owners’ brief.

As Fitzroy has gentrified we have seen renewal take place in unsympathetic ways. There are numerous examples of this assemblage of dark brick and weatherboard being replaced with large contemporary objects that dominate its context. The tactic at Moor Street was to maximise the interior functions and available space, while also responding to the context by creating a single building out of three small objects rather than a single contemporary monolith. The tired lean-to which housedthe kitchen, bathroom, dining and laundry was removed. These functions were relocated and updated along with the addition of a master bedroom over. The original brick terrace was retained, tidied and brought back to life.

In the centre of the original house was a small light well containing a beautiful, yet constrained, Japanese maple tree. The family often found themselves conversing through this lightwell. Conversations took place, through the maple, from upstairs bedroom to kitchen opposite, to study space and even the bathroom. The maple was retained and the lightwell expanded and surrounded in glass, bringing the tree into the living spaces. The conversations between spaces and levels, through the maple, are better and easier than ever.

The separate boxes on the upper level contain the master bedroom. This space is surrounded by the canopy of the maple to the south and the canopy of a large gum tree to the north, making the master bedroom feel much like a treehouse. Through the gum’s canopy are views over Fitzroy, revealing the detailed assemblage of the brick and weatherboard lean-tos of the surrounding workers’ cottages and small terraces.

Anglesea

2009

Anglesea, VIC

More frequently holiday homes are becoming little more than transplanted suburban ugliness; the great Australian tradition of the ‘shack’ is in danger of being superseded by bloated mansions with four bathrooms and all the trappings of modern life.

With this project we set out to celebrate the holiday shack without adopting shack typology and as such we have kept close to the original building’s footprint to avoid taking over the rugged coastal block.

Our clientsapproached us with a brief for ‘much more room’ for their ‘aging’ family holiday home. The design response was a series of finely-crafted timber boxes nestled around the existing house.

The Northern addition replaces an old timber deck that previously divided the two storeys and radically reduced sunlight to the living area on the lower level, making the space beneath damp, dark and disconnected from the rest of the house. The trafficable roof of this addition is now extruded down to the earth, creating a 3 metre thick deck and grounding the entire house to the site, while extending the top floor living spaces out into the treetops.

This ”thick deck” was then carved out to allow the space within to become habitable play spaces. What could have been a simple suspended deck structure now becomes a multi-dimensioned element, also serving as a roof for the new living/space area below.

The spaces within this timber box to the North can be opened up entirely to the surrounding bush block. Sliding windows above the daybed are concealed within the structure when open & full height glazed doors to the North & West allow sun to penetrate deep into the interior. These extensive openings allow maximum physical and visual interaction between this internal environment and the surrounding bush land, whether views externally from within the space or from the block looking back into the boldly colour filled internal spaces.

The bright red and green finishes at ground level enliven the interior & combined with the outdoor shower, the green mesh walkways and the tennis netting throughout the house allow the dwelling to possess a playful, leisurely and carefree characteristic that a beach/holiday house should embody.

The glazing to the new Northern box addition has been located in such a way as to allow winter sun to penetrate deep within its interior, warming the concrete slab provided for thermal mass & block out the high summer sun.

Other, carefully located, timber boxes appear on the Southern and Eastern edges of the existing structure. The former is a glass roofed & walled shower. Its transparent material, pushing the privacy boundary to create a shower experience immersed in gum trees and sky - something that cannot be easily achieved in the city - reminding the user of the natural beauty of their coastal environment.

To the Eastern side of the house other newly introduced structures nestle under the existing carport providing much needed external storage space and a children’s bunk retreat.

A spotted gum deck surrounds the new footprint. The grainy and soft brown tone of this hardwood (also used on the cladding of the structures) allow the additions to melt into the surrounding eucalypts and tussock grass. It appears as if these additions are reaching out into the landscape, connecting the house to its site. The language of the extension has a distinctive diurnal cycle. Throughout the day, the timber allows the additions to have an appearance that is harmonious with its surroundings, whilst at night the internal lights amplify the bold colour scheme, giving the structure an almost synthetic and rendered image.

Consistent with AMA principles the design demonstrates a necessity for elements to have the ability to perform multiple functions. The day bed serves as a recreational seat, a play platform for the kids, a jungle gym access point out to the trampoline and sandpit, a storage space & (when the large black curtain is extended dividing the area) a private bed.

This flexibility in program is also explored in the joinery design on the landing between the two levels. This plywood element wraps itself along the landing and up the dividing wall, performing as a study table, storage cupboards on the lower level and as a seat and handrail on the higher level.

This multiplicity in function, allows the spaces to have increased versatility, and allows the plan to respond to many different demands simultaneously reducing the overall footprint of the design.

Overall the design produces a multi-generational holiday house. The versatility of the spaces allows them to be inhabited simultaneously by all members of the extended family. The larger open spaces suited to adult entertaining also contain small nooks and areas attractive to younger generations. The design is rigorously addressed at different scales, allowing there to be a certain level of connection and interaction throughout whilst also providing smaller zones, or havens, where solace can be found.

Tattoo

2006

Tattoo house is a small extension to an existing 3 bedroom house in Fitzroy North, Victoria.

The client’s brief was delightfully loose; provide new living and kitchen space for a growing young family and create an open plan with plenty of natural light and high ceilings. A kitchen and a flexible work space incorporated into the extension rounded out the brief.

By balancing these desires against the various restrictions of budget, town planning requirements and available space, tactics were employed to make everything within the space perform multiple tasks, both functionally and conceptually.

The tight budget generated many of the design decisions. The form is a simple box- the strongest form an architect can achieve at a bargain basement price. From the starting point of the simple box we began to express the addition as a covered external space. The original house is very internalised. The extension was to be as open as possible so that when one crosses the threshold between the original and new structures they felt as though they were entering a covered deck rather than additional internalised space.

Generally we try to avoid having separate ideas performing different functions. We try to be economic with our concepts and make a couple of key ideas achieve multiple and varied tasks. Every element within the Tattoo House needed to perform multiple functions for maximum return- hence the kitchen bench becomes part of the stair, and the screening required by council reflects heat and glare away from the expansive windows.

Despite these challenges a double story, non-domestic scale space was achieved with a basic palette of materials.

wrapping

The new architecture was approached as no more than a deck. Through bringing the external decking up to the original back wall of the home, then turning and folding it where existing structures were encountered, a covered open backyard was effectively created. The detailing of the decking timbers reveals the wrapping pattern further.

Bi-fold doors retreat to reveal a completely open corner, framed by the box while allowing uninterrupted flow between the extension and the backyard underneath, merging these spaces while retaining the edge of each. The folding doors and post-less corner make the form of the structure appear precarious. The structure playfully feels as though it defies gravity and may topple.

screening

The stickers became a multi-purpose solution to the dual requirements of council overlooking regulations and glare reduction.Legislation which dictates a 75% opacity to second-storey windows was resolved with UV stable stickers rather than expensive and elaborate screening. The tree supergraphic creates playful and ever-changing shadows across the interior spaces and is composed of images taken in the local park.

tattoo

The tattoo was conceived as a continuation of the tree graphic around the simple white box- to soften the impact of this modern addition to a resolutely 19th-century neighbourhood.

Furthermore the design was a neighbourly gesture. The household to the west has a manicured garden which is very important to the resident. A stencil of vegetation was created in-house and applied by the AMA team in a covet operation to give the neighbour an additional, though less than manicured, layer of garden.

Green issues

The house isn't as "green" as most of our other projects as it was not an issue that the client was keen to pursue. The client wanted the south facade to be completely glass so that there is a very strong connection with the yard and views to the city from the 2nd level. Regardless we made the design as green as you can make glass box. A few of the key tactics were :

1. control the northern glazing. The horizontal slot windows on the northern facade bring direct winter sunlight from over the existing roof into the extension, while cutting out the high summer sun. [Note : as we are in the southern hemisphere the sun is coming from the north ("obviously" I can hear you say .... haha)].

2. thermally protect the southern facade as much as possible. A large glass southern facade is always going to loose a lot of heat in winter. Therefore we double glazed the entire facade and specified extremely efficient seals for all the doors and windows.

3. we also installed a water tank between the extg house and the extension which is connected to toilets and the garden.

4. Venting - we have small windows on the upper north west corner of the extension and very large openings on the bottom of the south east corner. This creates a surprisingly effective chimney effect to drag heat thru the voids and out of the extension. Once the garden becomes established with lush indigenous planting we hope to get a natural evaporative cooling effect to optimise the through breezes.

5. insulation - the roof and walls are clad in an extremely efficient foam product that has been rendered. This, combined with the high R value insulation within the walls and roof protect the extension from the hard morning and arvo sun in summer, while reducing heat loss in winter.

Colour in Design

Colour was used to define a narrative of volume and form. Houses are often defined by only one volume type that is low and wide. The Tattoo House provided the opportunity to create a double story, seemingly non-residential volume. To achieve this we used a bright colour to define the kitchen and mezzanine as an object which is separate to, and smaller than, the overall platonic white form of the house. The red object has been conceptually slid into the larger form to define the upper and lower levels while minimising their separation. The use of strong, bold colour has created this volumetric definition with relatively economic means.

Monument text .... some of it is good.

FIRST IMAGE - The "tattoo" was conceived as a continuation of the tree graphic around the simple white box- to soften the impact of this modern addition to a resolutely 19th-century neighbourhood. Photos were taken of trees within Edinburgh Gardens, which this facade faces. These images were then manipulated to create a graphic that achieved privacy, defined a tall, non-domestic scale object, and [arguably most importantly] allowed the design to sail trough planning as the tree canopy complied with the recode over looking legislation while leaving the undercroft open to create strong links between the internal and external spaces.

BACKGROUND (BEHIND FIRST IMAGE) - The graphic that became the sticker over the 2 storey glass wall. Rather than relying on standard, costly screens to prevent overlooking the stickers were a cheap and playful way to comply with planning legislation. We saw numerous shopfronts with large, cheap, short term graphics and advertising. We decided to bring this readily available commercial technology to a residential scenario. The graphic is vectorised and then sent to a printer who cnc cuts coloured film and applies it to a sheet of sticky-back. In a matter of just a couple of hours 2 people and a hoist rolled the sticker onto the glass and trimmed it to suit the frames. The stickers have a 5 year guarantee and a 7 year expected life span. We like their potential impermanence. Due to their cheap cost we imagine that the client will be able to use the glass facade almost as a canvas where they can peel off and replace the graphic as their mood or aesthetics desires. Much in the same way that one can apply a temporary tattoo or henna to their skin.

IMAGE 03 - The stairs are simple folded steel plate painted white. In the hierarchy of form the stairs are imagined has an deliberate after-thought. Propped against the kitchen cabinets to make the mezzanine useable. They appear as though they could be removed at anytime.

DESIGN ILLUSTRATION BELOW IMAGE 03 - An early design image presented to the client. Colour was used to define a narrative of volume and form. Houses are often defined by only one volume type that is low and wide. The Tattoo House provided the opportunity to create a double story, seemingly non-residential volume. To achieve this we used a bright colour to define the kitchen and mezzanine as an object which is separate to, and smaller than, the overall platonic white form of the house. The red object has been conceptually slid into the larger form to define the upper and lower levels while minimising their separation. The use of strong, bold colour has created this volumetric definition with relatively economic means.

IMAGE 04 - View of the kitchen. The folded steel plate stairs are tacked to the kitchen cabinets. The kitchen bench becomes the landing between the 2 flights.

IMAGE 05 - Night shot of the new family space with the mezzanine over. This is the view one gets when they move from the existing house into the new spaces. The folding doors in front and to the left slide away to reveal a post-less corner and deck beyond.

IMAGE 06 - View from the top of the stairs. Afternoon light splashes through the tree graphic onto the mezzanine and the new living space below.

IMAGE 07 - Elevation of the extension. The barren yard will be planted out with robust, water efficient indigenous grasses, bushes and trees over the coming weeks. The white graphic will become a synthetic backdrop to the new green space. The folding doors on the bottom right open to allow the internal living space to flow onto the deck.

IMAGE 09 - The folding doors disappear to make the living space and the deck become one. the junction between the internal floor and the deck has been detailed to ensure that they are on the same level. This makes couches, tables and the TV easy to pull in and out of the spaces.

IMAGE 10 - View from a near by park. AMA sprayed a stencil to the side facade. We started calling this the Tattoo as it reminded us of an arm tattoo partially concealed by a t-shirt sleeve. There is more just under the sleeve and in this case there is more just around the corner.

MIDDLE IMAGE ABOVE THE PLAN - The design was a neighbourly gesture. The household to the west has a manicured garden which is very important to the resident. A stencil of vegetation was created in-house and applied by the AMA team in a covet operation to give the neighbour an additional, though less than manicured, layer of garden.

Essex

2004

Essex Street, Brunswick, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Residential alteration and extension to an existing double fronted weatherboard house. The brief required 2 bathrooms, a bedroom, living area, kitchen and increased connection with outside areas.

Relationship of the project to its site and context

The context is typical of inner suburban Melbourne. The site is double fronted with a deeper than usual block running east west. The initial brief asked for an extension along the full width of the existing house. The response to the brief was that any addition should run along a southern boundary to maximise solar access to new and existing spaces while bringing external space into the middle of the lounge spaces.

Architectural expression of the concept

Our practice is interested in the possibility of malleable and mobile space, especially in residential design. We want buildings to respond to the emerging social conditions created by mobile technology such as mobile phones, laptops, PDAs, cars, planes etc. Though we have numerous conceptual designs, the Essex Street house, with its removable walls, is our first small step towards building our numerous experiments.

The original house has been restored to its simple four room square plan. The new structure sits lightly beside it like a loyal companion. Rather than build a hard-edged or strongly defined object, the new structure has a blurred or vague edge. The recycled grey iron bark portal frames are of a larger, non-domestic scale. They were envisaged as an old relic of a pre-industrial age, an old, wise element to a new and vibrant addition. Within the robust portals is the delicate layered box. The use of screening and the glazed garage doors create a soft edge that allows the internal spaces to spill into the outdoor spaces. Within this structure are the small, colourful boxes of the bedroom and kitchen. These objects separate functions and act as a bridge between the original house and the extension.

The long block has always been rugged, overgrown and wild. Our response to this site condition was to have the large, robust portals connected to the ground delicately rather than conquering or damaging the current ground plane. Hopefully the wild yard will reinstate itself around the base of the structure and make it appear to delicately hang over the ground plain.

By running the extension along the southern boundary solar access is achieved in the original lounge, the new internal spaces and the outdoor space shared between them. Along with the protected and sheltered yard the glazed garage doors allow internal activities to spill into the outdoor areas without the need for premeditation or separation throughout the year.

Rather than hiding the bathroom function we have opened it up into the yard so that these relaxing and leisurely activities can spill into the yard.

Environmental / energy efficiency

Insulation, a sheltering context and well-designed sunshading makes the design an efficient home without the use of elaborate tactics or expensive equipment. The sunshading spacing was designed to minimize solar gain during summer and maximize solar gain during winter. As the seasons shift forest-like dappled sunlight plays throughout the internal spaces.

Organisation of spaces inside and out

The internal plan is a simple linear organisation, however the overall design is not a linear one. The layering between internal and external spaces creates an organic series of connections, both visual and actual, between original, new and external spaces. The kitchen ‘box’ acts as the bridge between the old and new, acting as a negotiator between the two languages.

Structure, construction, materials, services

The primary structure is a series of recycled grey iron bark portal frames with 12mm steel connectors at each junction. Within the portal structure is a simple stud frame. The glazed garage doors have a steel surround that fixes directly to the stud work. Western Red Cedar battens shade the structure.

Black House

Hindsight

I had arranged to meet with Bill and Tracey on Tuesday evening. I was keen to show them my design for their apartment renovation. I had put together a package of sketches. On the cover I wrote the words “Hindsight; all the things I would have done as a new parent.

The siren call of the suburbs

A new baby often pushes us to conservatism and conformity. Bill and Tracey had lived in their two level Fitzroy apartment for almost six years when we first met. Their apartment was on the top floor of a beautiful MacRobertson factory where it commanded an expansive view over Edinburgh Gardens and the northern suburbs. Their’s was the location that we all dreamed of as young adults. However apartments like this are often abandoned if kids come into our lives. Increased space, an extra bathroom and a backyard are factors that often dictate a move to the suburbs. Yet Bill and Tracey loved their Fitzroy home. They did not want to leave. They wanted clever ideas that would allow them to have a child in their much loved home.

Existing

The apartment needed a radical rethink. The stair was tight. So tight that it was, in fact, illegal. Carrying groceries upstairs was a nightmare. Carrying a child downstairs could even be dangerous. The lower level was dark, much of it internalised. The entry, on the lower level, was confined, dark and awkward. Prams and the bulky baby paraphernalia had no place in the apartment. They would inevitably occupy hallway space, forever tripped over by frustrated parents and visitors. Bill’s office, the centre of the lower level, had no natural light nor view outside. The upper level had ample space, however much of it was unused or wasted. With clever rearrangement an extra living area could be added.

It’s a lot more complicated than you think

For Bill and Tracey the biggest issue was space. How would they fit a baby into their home? For me the fundamental issue was much more than just increasing space. Armed with the hindsight of raising my own child, my concern was the radical day-to-day changes a baby brings. The endless management of ‘stuff’ was the key. The trick is to work with the chaos a child brings rather than naively hoping that your child will choose to be neat.

Parents, gravity conspires against you
Gravity is colluding with your child. Gravity conspires in your child's favour. Their target is your sanity. Parents constantly pick things up, while kid throws them down. Children love dropping things on the ground. We have all seen the torturous game of a baby sitting in a high chair throwing a toy to the ground the moment it is placed on their table. It’s cute the first three times. It’s a nightmare the next 200 times. While gravity amuses the child, it punishes the parent. At Black house we have made gravity the parents’ ally rather than the child’s. What if the floor could eat all the mess up?

The toy box floor
Let’s design a floor that swallows the mess. Rather than picking toys up to put back in the toy box, let’s make the floor one big toy box. Let’s get a broom and sweep all the lego in from the top and sides. It becomes a game for the child as well as a new hiding place for her to play.

Sliding wall
Your child wants to be with you, always, regardless of how wonderful their bedroom may be. Along with them they bring their toys, clothes and chaos. If we provide a bedroom that, at times, can feel like an extension of the shared family space, then it is likely that a child will play in their space and

keep all of their stuff there. All you need to provide for your child is a line of sight and the ability to speak with you without leaving their room. To accomplish this we have added heavy sliding walls rather than a fixed wall with standard door. If the child and/or you want to occupy one large space, the wall slides away so that the child’s room is an extension of the living spaces. If the child needs to sleep, study or wants privacy the heavy walls slide closed and lock in position.

Pram park

Beneath the stair is often lost space. Its the little things that make a house work well. Entering a house with a pram and a couple of bags can be surprisingly stressful. Here we have a small shelf to the left of the entry to drop bags and keys. A hidden hatch to the right to slide in the pram under the stairs. Its the perfect size for a pram, which is now hidden until it is needed next.

Winch

Try moving a fridge or a couch in an apartment. It sucks. It sucks a lot. ‘Stuff’ is always on the move in any house, especially a house with a baby in it. Groceries go up, garbage comes down. Clean nappies go up. Dirty nappies go down. Groceries go up. Recycling goes down. And toys just go everywhere. The new mesh floor, directly over the front door can be unlatched and a winch lowered to haul items of almost any size. It’s a small idea that makes a huge difference to your sanity.

Mesh is the best
Stairs are tricky. Especially in tight spaces. We have tried to create a stair that feels light like lace, which is difficult considering the constant live loads it is under. Steel mesh is folded allowing light to be shared while also enabling conversations to take place from one level to the other, without requiring you to be in the same space. This was previously impossible. The stair is also part desk, part laundry and part furniture. One can lounge on the steps and chat with both someone at the study and upstairs. Furthermore, as apartments at the top of old warehouses don't typically have playgrounds for kids, the stair becomes a jungle gym for play and exploration. Give a child a handful of colourful magnets and a handful of pegs and that stair will keep them amused for days.
The command centre
Bill’s office was previously relegated to a dark corner under the stairs. He now has the ‘command centre’. The centre of the house, where he sees all and hears all. The child’s bedroom wall can be slid away so that father and daughter can see each other without the need to drag toys into the office. The mesh stairs wrap around the office allowing someone to sit and chat or quietly play or read on the stairs, in the same space as Bill. Utility, bathroom, bedroom, laundry, living, dining and kitchen are all directly linked with the office so that Bill can run the house with ease.

1 bathroom = 2
The original bathroom was large. Arguably too large for an apartment. Bill and Tracey wanted an ensuite for themselves and a second bathroom for both the child and guests. To squeeze out maximum functional space we sliced the existing bathroom at an angle with each shower back to back. This rationalised the plumbing while also making use of every millimetre of space available.
Black House
Retreating to the suburbs shouldn’t be the default decision. ‘More space’ is often not the answer. The answer is more complex, and can lead to great spaces that do just what you want. All you have to do is challenge your preconceptions.

Ilma Grove

2010

The Ilma Grove house is one of our greenest houses. Its planning and orientation is based solidly around passive solar efficiency. All roof captured rain water is harvested. It has solar panels, high performance insulation, recycled materials, LowE coated double glazing, low VOC materials and, most importantly, it is small.

Ilma Grove house is an extension to a heritage home in Northcote, Victoria. The extension provides a lot more than just additional space to the current home for 3, it provides the environment for a sustainable lifestyle. The idea of a sustainable home was part of the brief from the beginning of the design process,. The client wanted a place which could be practical and could help the family reduce their ecological footprint.

Brick lean-tos at the rear of the original house were demolished, limiting the adaptation of old part of the house and containing it within the hipped roof. This allowed the extension to sit next to the original structure rather than invading the rear of the existing building, avoiding extra costs in demolition and reducing construction waste. Adhering to the principal of “small is green” (less waste, less electricity consumption, less materials, less cost) the result is a functional open plan, where maximizing passive solar gain becomes indispensable. A master bedroom has been included on the first floor with a roof terrace above that overlooks the city to the south and the Dandenong ranges to the east.

We took advantage of the north facing backyard, and developed an exploration of mass where segments were carved out in order to maximize sun penetration. This generated a geometrical structure where the internal flesh of the box is revealed with rich timber surfaces, contrasting the raw recycled brickwork.

The interaction between levels and the idea of blurring lines between new and old, inside and out, introduced the idea of integrating the backyard into the interior of the house - carving the garden inside, which currently is being used to grow tomatoes.

The internal flooring is locally sourced bluestone with the intention that using locally produced materials shortens transport distances, thus reducing CO2. The dark, dense nature of bluestone acts as a thermal mass soaking up the low winter sun & passively heating the house. In summer the high sun does not come into contact with the bluestone allowing the floor to act as a cooling mass in the hotter months. LowE coated double glazed throughout the house ensures that heat is retained in winter and reduces the penetration of heat in summer. These design features completely remove the need for air-conditioning and drastically reduce the necessity of heating throughout the colder months.

The choice of materials was a vital step in order to create a sustainable structure. It was decided to re-use/re-assemble the existing bricks from the demolished areas of the old part of the house to form the new addition; blurring the line between what is new and what is old. Using recycled materials is a sustainable choice, however there is still a carbon debt accrued by the transport and reworking of materials. The Ilma Grove house avoids this by reusing the bricks of the demolished lean-to on site; what was demolished has been rebuilt in a new configuration. This not only avoids waste, landfill and transportation of materials, furthermore it ties the material language of the new structure back into the original house. Face brick masonry is also a durable and a low maintenance material which can potentially be recycled again. Reinforcing the thermal performance of the recycled brick is high performance insulation that has been installed throughout the home.

After lengthy discussions about the brief the client made a conscious choice not to have an en-suite upstairs. This helped to reduce the size of the addition while also reducing the embodied energy that comes with doubling up on functions and equipment within the home.

Solar panels have been added to make the house coal independent. Ample solar energy is harvested in winter, while a surplus of energy is fed back into the power grid in summer.

The temptation on a large block is to make a large home. This has been resisted. Maximizing the outdoor space and connecting with it, so that it has become a natural extension of the living space, was the key. A small house is a sustainable house.

And like our Tattoo House we decided to graffiti/tattoo/stencil our new creation before anyone else got a chance.

Architect:
Austin Maynard Architects
www.maynardarchitects.com

PROJECT TEAM:
Andrew Maynard, Mark Austin, Matthew McClurg, Cara Wiseman

COMPLETION DATE:
December 2010

BUILDER
TrimBuilt

BUILDING SURVEYOR
Building Strategies

ENGINEER:
R Bliem & Associates

LIGHTING DESIGNER
Volker Haug

PHOTOGRAPHER:
Kevin Hull

Mash

The approach taken for the Mash House is one which, despite first impressions, celebrates the backyard. Or perhaps less so the traditional notion of the backyard, and more so just plain, outdoor space. The original deep and dark, double-fronted Victorian house offered a plethora of challenges; not least of all, it’s lack of solar access. In predictable fashion, services had been attached to the rear of the dwelling over time, effectively dislocating the living areas from the backyard. A belt of space to the east of the dwelling laid bare where a driveway once existed. An old shed, stretching the width of site, sat idly to the rear. These elements combined, meant the overriding feel of the house was one of disconnection.

The young family yearned, above all, a functional living and kitchen space. Squeezing in an en-suite and walk in robe would be a bonus.

Instead of jamming further additions to the rear, a glass walkway pulled from the existing dwelling allows a distinct, spatial break between old and new. The residual space is framed as a courtyard, meaning the new living area has direct access to northern light and associated passive solar gain. In place of the old binary layout of external vs internal, the house is now articulated as three masses - the original dwelling, addition and garage, each punctuated by outside space. A blurred line exists not between old and new, but inside and out. The result is a collection of connected spaces, spoilt for light and air.

Internally, radiating from the kitchen, the layering of spaces affords great flexibility. With doors fully open, the living space is transformed into a deck between court and backyard. The flow between spaces is plain to see, but not without undulation. Walking from entry to exit, the procession is marked by altering moods. The existing hallway terminates in a fully-operable glass link, allowing light to drown the traditionally under-lit corridor. The bulkhead of the linking passage sits lower than the ceiling of the adjacent living space, augmenting the feel of spaciousness once traversed.

The kitchen, whilst prominent, is strategically modest. The clients, both caterers, were adamant that work need not be brought home. Conversely, having resigned to the fact kitchens get messy, the walk in pantry is relatively large in desire of keeping any mess out of sight. Beyond providing plenty of workspace, a lengthy island bench, breaching both original and new spaces, offers a linking element.

The main addition sits as though it was dropped from the sky; whereby the new sits detached from the old, allowing a conversation between masses. The aim is to compliment, not dominate. With three of the four inhabitants female, the form of the building abstractly reflects this. The softened, bevelled edges of the box lend it a softer, more feminine feel. Further to this, the spotted gum cladding of the new placates the robust masonry of the existing. Internally, snippets of primary colour and shapes lend the spaces a subtle yet conscious playfulness.

Flanking the master bedroom, and making good use of the defunct driveway, are en-suite and walk in robe, plugged to the side of the original building. Mimicking the form of the main addition, simply scaled down, these lusciously green pods provide a hint from street level of what lies behind. Inside, the white walls of en-suite and bathroom are splattered with a pattern of blood-red tiles, providing an another unexpected focal point.

Overall, the design offers a sound, albeit simple solution to a rather challenging suburban site. The concept was driven by obtaining passive efficiency, via shrewd siting and orientation. Quality insulation, ample double-glazing and in-slab heating all combine to make this home a sustainable exercise in modern house renovation.

Nebula

2011

“Nebula is a revolution in inclusive design. As Australia’s first portable arts space created with the needs of artists with a disability at the centre of its design, the Nebula studio adapts to the art and the artists. By placing the needs and intentions of the artists at the centre of its function, Nebula can be transformed into a gallery, workshop / seminar space or performing arts venue. In each capacity, Nebula accommodates any type of creative work produced by artists with a disability, offers opportunities for creating site-specific work, and can be used as a communal meeting place. Through this space, artists with a disability can inject their work into the mainstream arts community.” - Arts Access Victoria

Project description

>Brief

An old school room in outer-suburban Dingley was the studio of the Art Day South artists. 12 artists, each with an intellectual disability, and 4 art mentors were producing wonderful art in banal surroundings, isolated from other art groups and organisations. For artists like Howard Arkaley and Jeffrey Smart the suburbs are their muse; for the Art Day South artists their singular suburban spot isolated and marginalised them. Like so many people with disabilities the Art Day South artists were relegated to the fringe of our culture. They desired to be part of the active and thriving art scene in Melbourne, but above all they wanted to be active participants in mainstream life. To do this Art Day South needed a space. A space where they could work. A space where they could perform. A space where they could explore. Explore not only their work, but also the broader landscape. How do we put on a performance in a park or go drawing in the bush? A flexible, adaptable, safe and inclusive space was needed. Out of this need, this desire, this vision, Nebula was born.

>Design

16 wonderful designs were received from the Art Day South artists. All remarkable in their own way. All powerfully colourful. One in particular evoked an unexpected emotive response. Bob's design illustrated a simple grey rectangular form on wheels with a person holding a small door open for us to peak into. Within the banal grey box was colour, light and energy. Inside was the sun and life. From the outside you wouldn’t guess such beauty lied within and only by invitation do we get to see a small part of the wonder that modest grey box contained.

Nebula is a modest, almost banal grey box. When the artists find a place to work, or a setting where they wish to engage, the grey box opens and flowers. Walls become floors. Colourful awnings descend from overhead to contain the space fully or partially. The level of openness to the outside and the way Nebula engages with its context is dictated by the whim of the artists. This is a territory that is controlled by the artists, controlled by persons with disabilities. We want to explore Nebula and interact with its artists, yet it is the artists who choose our level of engagement. Our inclusion is dictated by those that, all too often, are left out. The artists are now at the centre and are now in control of this rich and fertile territory.

Though unspoken, ACCESS FOR ALL can be viewed by some as a limiting factor or compromise in the pursuit of creative and adventurous design. We (client, manufacturer, users, architect) have taken any perceived limitation and turned it on its head. Access and inclusion are not only celebrated, they form the catalyst of the project.

>Sustainability

Nebula is constructed from aluminum, the most easily recycled of metals. It is also extremely lightweight which means that this surprisingly large space can be transported by a standard vehicle. No heavy machines needed. No fuel guzzling vehicles required.

The structure and materials are deliberately replaceable. This is a creative environment and can therefore be energetic. Fabric can be torn; the timber floor will get significantly damaged; aluminum panels will get dented. All of these materials are panelised and easily replaceable. No great effort or resource is required to mend or repair. Nebula is designed to be resource efficient and by that logic highly sustainable for a road vehicle.

On the roof is a solar panel, within the floor is a battery store. Nebula can collect its own power and run for over 4 hours at night with projectors and lighting working at full.

Nebula was never going to be made out of recycled timber, nor was the vehicle that towed it going to be hydrogen powered, however Nebula is a highly efficient structure built for a long adaptable life, thereby making it a highly sustainable road vehicle.

Barrow

2009

Winner -- Timber Design Awards, Australian Certified Timber Award

The Barrow extension appears as an arrangement of timber boxes, each independently rotated and subjected to varying amounts of extruding and manipulating forces.

These separate actions result in a variety of shapes, which united, create an interior of differing volumes and organizations, providing an interesting double story addition to this weatherboard house.

The extension challenges the traditional nature of timber construction. Normally lightweight and fragile, added wall thickness to different areas results in a structure with a fluctuating sense of mass. The dynamic and varying nature of these environments is further enhanced by differing window arrangements and framing techniques. Frequently the windows are setback within the frame of the wall, sometimes flush and occasionally extruding beyond the timber frame.

This unconventional approach to massing and window design subverts the conservative planar nature of a ‘box’. The irregular puncturing of these boxes and the warping of their flat characteristics provides Barrow with a undefined and chameleon like facade. The movement of the shadows created by these extruding or intruding elements are tracked on the external facade and internal environment, creating varying patterns and giving the extension an undefined geometry.

The external timber cladding wraps itself inside and fuses the extension into the original house, where the old living space now is occupied as a bathroom. Here, there is no evidence ofconventional bathroom materiality, the room still maintaining its appearance as a living/dining space. The only defining feature a free standing cast iron bath (re-used from the original demolished bathroom) at the centre of the room, demonstrating the capability of a single element to alter the program of a space.

The strategic placement of a separate living space at the western end of the site, reflects the focus of the site internally, frames the large open area & increases privacy levels.

Both this new addition and the extension to the old part of the house, at the western end of the site, openly embrace this central garden space. Definition between indoor and outdoor is blurred by the transparent divisions of bifold doors and large windows; visual interaction is constant. This central outdoor spaces becomes part of the living circulation space as the diurnal patterns of the occupants see them traverse the yard to the rear living quarters.

The brighter, larger extension nurtures the dynamic, more numerous, day time activities, whilst the low key, more relaxed, activities of the afternoon are enjoyed in the sunroom at the western end of the site reflecting back on the outdoor yard and pool, watching the cinematic shadows play across the irregular face of the Barrow’s extension.

The extensive openable window and bifold door arrangement accompanied by Barrow’sorientation allows for abundant natural light and ventilation to infiltrate the spaces, decreasing reliance on electrical and heating/cooling systems.

The entirety of the design also employs materials reused from the parts of the previous house as well as recycled or found elements, decreasing the carbon footprint of the design and also adding character to the spaces.

Melbourne Royal Botanic Gardens info shack

Project location

Melbourne Royal Botanic Gardens, VIC, Australia

Project description

>Brief

The Botanic Gardens approached AMA after seeing our proposed Styx Valley Protest Shelter and BOB (mobile home). They wished to have a mobile visitors pod for their “Garden Ambassadors” (volunteers) to use. The pod was to be taken to different parts of the garden coinciding with annual events such as flowering of specific plants where the ambassadors could share their knowledge with visitors about a wealth of history and ecology at the gardens. The client had images of a simple car trailer and asked if something more could be done on a tight budget.

>Proposal

Proposed was a simple timber cube with a green roof, a large planter box when not in use. The box unfolds to reveal information about the gardens, a space to teach potting of differing species of plants, explore seed types and discuss the history of the gardens. A fold down bench and seating for chats with visitors or a casual cup of tea between ambassadors. Most importantly was to resist a display wall that opens in a single direction. The pod folds out to define differing spaces while connecting each. The visitor can wander around it to discover info on their own or interact with ambassadors directly, chatting through the pod rather than from it out into an onlooking audience.

>Innovation

The “visitors centre” is reimagined. BotPod is a micro-visitors centre that travels to the inquisitive visitor, instead of the opposite. A democratic response to the needs of the garden’s patrons. With a budget nowhere near that of a technology-driven information centre - as is the expectation of a technology-fuelled generation - this simple box is a mobile educational book that comes right to you as you wander around the garden, providing you with everything a computer screen can - and more. Through its subtle hints at spatial division, BotPod encourages social interaction amongst visitors and ambassadors, creating meaningful spaces out of any space.

The BotPod was conceived by doing more for less, and less for more. The intention was specific and generous; the budget was limited; the execution was informed simplicity. The concept of the overly engineered trailer - stripped-down and simplified in form, whilst maintaining sophistication in its means of spatial division. When closed it is a simple beautiful timber box with a green roof. A huge pot plant perhaps. When opened however it reveals an internal skeleton that is not overly curated and can be used at the will of the ambassadors, whether it is to hang, display or attach objects. Three walls swing open to realise the ability for this unassuming box to engage with the public.

>Sustainability

Simplicity and mobility drive the BotPod’s sustainable credentials. Its modular nature allows it to be repaired easily by replacing discrete components, without the risk of having the entire unit become redundant. By being a mobile, self-supporting structure it consciously avoids damaging the site it sits in; harnessing nothing, emitting nothing.

The BotPod communicates sustainability in itself by being a vehicle - literally - for education in ecology, carrying information such as the planting process and indigenous species. The turf roof acts as a layer of thermal insulation to the box to prevent overheating when it is used in summer. It also means that even when it is not being used to educate the public, it is just another giant pot plant in the garden.

Tomihiro Museum of Shi-Ga, Japan

Catalyst
Tomihiro Hoshino’s paints are extraordinary in their ability to express the most metaphysical of emotions within a structure, rigidity, and rhythm which is expressive in itself. Hoshino’s work is a dichotomy. His complex layering of colour, space, movement, texture and light is well restrained within the bounds of the canvas. The canvas itself becomes a tool of the story being express through Hoshino’s use of the negative, white space. Like Hoshino’s work the New Tomihiro museum of Shi-Ga is an emotive and expressive mixture of natural, earthy, textured material within ordered and restrained structure.

Pussy Willow
The catalyst for the New Tomihiro museum of Shi-Ga was Hoshino’s restrained yet powerful Pussy Willow.

I tried opening
one of them
because I thought
that inside
I would find a jewel

Through its axial structure and suggestive poetry the Pussy Willow implies a physical, tactile, textured and spac…ial relationship between the colour, pattern and the text as both pattern and meaning. The text itself, beyond offering poignant poetry, also provides us with a graphical relationship between meaning and space.

Architectural Language
The architectural objects of New Tomihiro museum of Shi-Ga acts as do the branches of the Pussy Willow, giving structure, circulation, form and foundation. Along the branches of the New Tomihiro museum of Shi-Ga are the “jewels”, the internal objects that we navigate around and through. Furthermore the “jewels” give the spacial experience of the museum a unique quality of exploration and inclusiveness.

Site
The site for the New Tomihiro Museum of Shi-Ga is an extraordinary part of an amazing landscape. Through modern times that landscape has gained many scars such as poor building placement, car parks, roads, dams and retaining walls. The New Tomihiro museum of Shi-Ga repairs the scars of past development. The PedeÕstrian circulation path provides stronger connectivity throughout the site, while also providing a safe and peaceful space for pedestrian activity protected from the existing road. Car parks are removed from the direct vicinity of the museum. This aids in the creation of a peaceful and harmonious site.

All exposed green areas are replanted with indigenous vegetation. This creates a density and intimacy throughout the site while also repairing scarrted areas. Also this increases the experience of open external spaces such as the pedestrian pathway and the outdoor display space.

Stageability
The New Tomihiro museum of Shi-Ga is expected to be constructed in stages. All gallery spaces and administration areas will be completed while the existing museum remains in use. Following the completion and opening of the gallery and administration areas the existing museum will be demolished, allowing the research, reading, cafe and meeting room to be completed.

Brunswick Street house

Fitzroy, VIC

The unfolding of a dark internal Federation Terrace into a bright, open living area was the main consideration for this growing family.

The original plan produced an environment of dislocated cells coming off a long dark corridor with the kitchen far at the end. These segregated rooms discouraged communal social areas, producing fragmented social planning, in an environment devoid of natural light.

The opening of these spaces was done in a gentle manner, with minimal demolition ensuring that the main Terrace structure is maintained and celebrated.

This shifting and unfolding of elevation and plan revitalizes the terrace, appearing as if it is awakening and stretching. Walls are partially removed and carpets pulled back, openings expand allowing sun to infiltrate deep into the old terrace.

The newly created environment is further revived by a coat of white paint, uplifting this previously dark space.

Within these bright open space we inserted dark curved forms. These inserts read separate and impermanent against the static heavier presence of the Terrace. Their seemingly temporary and lithe nature do not encroach on these newly opened spaces, allowing them to maintain their flexibility. The kitchen bench and the island bench demonstrate the capacity of smaller singular element’s ability to help define a space, without needing a physical barrier.

The renovation is not simply about ‘gutting’ a space and replacing it with an updated/modern transplant, but rather it is about harmoniously working with the existing, and ensuring that the presence and memory of the terrace does not become secondary.

The entirety is completed in a modest, durable materials palette. The removal of the old carpet, exposes beautiful timber flooring, the joinery is finished with stainless steel plates, and the kitchen/living and sunroom flooring is finished in a concrete screed, for durability, cleaning purposes and also adding thermal mass to the home.

The new bathroom is completed in a homogenous soft green vinyl making it perfect for the wear and tear of the growing family. This green vinyl extends up the walls, and falls short of ceiling height, where glass allows secondary light from the adjoining pantry and circulation area to fall into this hidden room, reassuring that the all these spaces are part of a larger space rather than a series of smaller spaces.

The depths of the Terrace are connected to the outside environment by new timber decking leading from the kitchen/living area out into the yard.

A timber bench also reaches out from the back sunroom deep into the external courtyard. This room, immersed in sunlight, is used by the children as a play space, however the timber bench can transform into a daybed converting the space into a guest bedroom.

This versatility of elements is also reflected in the custom designed kitchen island bench and cooking area. The island bench becomes the social hub of the house, its dual bench heights and orientation allow it to be simultaneously used as kitchen/preparation area and also sitting/dining area.

The old corridor space, now only defined by a study, is the transition zone between entry and the private spaces beyond. Beyond this threshold, formally segregated programs freely flow between the living/dining spaces.

The design allows the family to have flexibility and ease, increasing strategic links between spaces and producing a plan that looks outward and stretches embracing the large courtyard, absorbing the abundance of natural light and fresh air now accessible.