Text description provided by the architects.
In an inner suburb of Melbourne, Australia, the owners had a beautiful solid brick Federation bungalow with an unfortunate and dark 1990’s rear extension that had no connection to its west-facing backyard.
In removing the old extension and siting the new contemporary addition on the south boundary, new light-filled north-facing kitchen, dining, and living areas were created with a more useful and pleasant side yard.
The floor levels of this new extension closely follow those of the site to enable easy access and relationship with the new yard.
This also creates a different floor to ceiling heights under a single ceiling level to create distinct yet interconnected spaces.
The timber battens to the ceiling above the Dining space further distinguish it from the adjacent Kitchen and Living spaces whilst still being connected to them.
All living spaces for the extension have a northerly aspect to maximise the possibility for winter solar gain. A custom-designed sunshade to the new long north elevation provides protection from harsh summer sun yet still allows maximum warming winter sun to permeate through and under to penetrate deep into the interior.
The concrete floor finish to the living area provides a thermal mass adjacent to the north-facing windows to maximise the benefits of this winter sun.
The extension was conceived as a single volume of efficient construction. It has a simple flat roof with interconnected spaces differentiated by changes in floor level that follow the gently sloping site.
