A Curving Addition Takes a Family’s Melbourne Home in a New Direction

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Project Details:

Location: Melbourne, Australia

Architect: Zen Architects

Footprint: 2,150 square feet

Builder: Genjusho

Structural Engineer: Keith Patrick & Associates

Landscape Design: Ben Harris Gardens

Cabinetry Design: Kitchens By Peter Gill

Photographer: Derek Swallwell / @derek_swalwell

From the Architect: "The clients raised their family in this home for more than 20 years before renovating. While they loved their property and garden, they didn’t enjoy the house. Its square floor plan—four rooms deep and four rooms wide—lacked light and connection to the outdoors. The center was dark and wasted space, and it was surrounded by emptiness; the clients had arranged their furniture around the periphery to be closer to their garden.

"Taking inspiration from the curvilinear roads and teardrop-shaped reserves in the picturesque Mount Eagle Estate, designed by Marion Mahoney and Walter Burley Griffin in 1914, we sculpted a curved glass void into the living area. It draws light and nature deep into the floor plan and brings the clients close to their garden from all the living spaces. We concealed these new works behind the heritage façade and within the boundaries of the existing house to minimize the impact on the established garden and streetscape.

"The family room is at the center of the home, and the kitchen and dining area wrap around the north side of the glass facade. Soft light filters through the reeded glass window backsplash in the kitchen, where rounded edges on the timber joinery and bench top open the kitchen to adjacent spaces. A high-level window in the dining area brings dappled northwest light in through tall pine trees. Deep eaves around the glass facade protect the interior from the high summer sun, while in winter, the sun sets in line with the center of the teardrop, offering a superb view as it descends behind the trees.

"On the other side of the curving glass, the sunken living room is bathed in sun as northern light radiates over the teardrop. While the floor steps down, the ceiling plane remains the same, creating a sense of coziness and verticality in comparison to the expansiveness and horizontality of the main living area. This change in volume offers a different perspective of the landscape, and a window frames a centuries-old pre-settlement mahogany gum tree. At the front of the house, the office and main bedroom, with walk-in robe and en suite, are in repurposed and modernized rooms. Two bedrooms, a bathroom, and a laundry are along the southern side of the house, in better proportioned rooms than the previous. The detailing and finishes of the kitchen continue through the wet areas.

"The terrace and deck that wrap around the outside of the living areas bring the house closer to the slope of the land, embedding it in the landscape. Eliminating all balustrades helps forge this closer connection and transition between house and garden.

"The material palette takes it cues from the subdivision. The off-white dry-pressed brick façade and dark stone floor complement the predominantly masonry and stone houses in the estate, and are softened with timber cladding, decking and ceilings to reflect the significant gum trees still present. These materials create a warm, natural, and cozy interior that is secondary to the landscape, and the palette highlights the vibrant greens outside, drawing you to the garden."