2015
Commendation - Residential architecture award, Victorian Architecture awards 2015.
This small project in a Fitzroy warehouse included some minor interior fix-ups, a car port, and a redesign of the entry courtyard. The intervention is all about making the warehouse temperature stable, and using this pragmatic starting point as the catalyst to enrich the experience of the house.
The entry courtyard was the primary point of focus. The existing envelope to this courtyard was replaced with steel framed windows and bi-fold doors, with automated aluminium louvres at high level to shield the house from the harsh western sun. A white perforated steel balcony supported on slender white painted steel trusses offers covered outdoor space, and views to the city, and is accessed via an external spiral stair. Light and shadow, transparency and slenderness add to the character of this balcony and undercroft space, which along with the tree and pond create a beautiful outdoor space directly accessible from the living area.
New louvres in the arched openings to the courtyard control privacy, without shutting off the street. From the street, this Fitzroy warehouse appears mostly as it previously did. The perforated steel balcony reveals it balustrade above the wall, and hints at the small project that lies behind.
Completion date:
November 2014
Builder:
Sargant Construction
www.sargant,com.au
Photographers:
Fraser Marsden
Tess Kelly