Opening up the first floor to the public to marvel at its warm, robust interior, Clinton Murray Architects have contrasted privacy and publicity within the one building, dubbed Levo’s House.
With a set of clients that approached the practice with an open mind, Clinton Murray set about devising a new way of living for a couple whose children had flown the coop. Approached by the couple through mutual friends, the practice set about looking to find an appropriate site to downsize from the family home. Settling upon a patch of land alongside a park in Hawthorn, the site was small and triangular. The practice used the unique site to its advantage, with the folded y roof of the home channelling the quasi-pyramid site shape.
The clients held a desire to live in the treetops through the day, but to retire to a more secluded area in the evening. The first floor, transparent in a sense, has been the subject of onlookers taking a peek inside. A rather welcoming contrast to many homes within the street, the house is deliberately open, showcasing the lives of the clients and the expertise of the practice.
The interior of the home features a number of straightforward contemporary elements that reinforce the modernist traits of the home. Timber is used for kitchen cabinetry and joinery, while concrete makes up much of the home’s structure and is utilised as the flooring material, with a number of concrete walls also left exposed. The client’s furniture pieces and artworks provide welcome flourishes of colour, with the restrained palette created by the practice allowing for a sleek, modern interior.
Effectively inviting those on the street to take a look inside and view the structure in all its glory, Clinton Murray Architects have devised a home that does away with concealment and invites onlookers to take note. The home itself, with its uniquely shaped roof and uncharacteristically shaped site results in a contemporary home that intersects private and public with a minimalistic palette that creates both a sense of elegance and practicality.
