Located in Artarmon on a 700m2 block, the Selwyn Residence is a single storey ‘Californian Bungalow’. The alterations sought to better engage the house with its site and to establish a distinct threshold between the old and new. The design maintains and restores the characteristics of the original house at the front of the site and creates a modern extension that encompasses the new heart of the home within open yet distinctly described living spaces.
Expand ContentSited behind the bulk of the existing pitched and tiled roof, the new work is imperceptible from the heritage-protected streetscape. It accommodates a private, first floor master bedroom suite connected by an open, sky-lit stair to the kitchen and the living and dining areas at garden level.
The two-storey addition presents as interlocking spaces of bold form and simple details. The languid horizontal frame of the ground floor, interposed by the upright vertical frame of the first storey, celebrates the new parts of the design. Colour is also used to heighten the definition of the two ‘hoop’ forms, with the interlocking elements contrasted in light and dark hues.
The materials and use of confident but non-traditional colours complement those of the existing house while clearly articulating the form to the new parts of the dwelling. The fibre cement sheeting of the exterior crisply defines the overlapping frame with infill timber claddings and timber louvres adding detail, scale, and clarity to the elevations of the extension. The fixed timber louvred screens angle upward to maintain privacy while bringing expansive skyscapes to the interior spaces.
Sharply detailed fixed joinery elements of lacquered and timber veneer assist in defining spaces and provide warmth and comfort to the interiors. The bold forms and refined details resonate with the building’s architecture and simultaneously create timeless, durable interiors.
