The Balfour Residence is a 1970s Sydney townhouse that embraces its original spatial qualities in the contemporary renovation by Tom Mark Henry interior design.
Light-infused interiors
After adding a fourth level by excavating the cellar to create a laundry and entertainment room, the designers focused on the central staircase as a key element that allowed visual connection between the levels. Its lack of risers and glass balustrade allow light to penetrate the upper and lower spaces — maintaining an openness characteristic of 1970s architecture, and one of the most visible references to the home’s original design.
Contemporary identity
Contemporary materiality and detailing also speak to the new identity that Tom Mark Henry crafted for the home, and its residents — a growing family of five. Classic materials and textures (timber, stone, rendered walls and V-groove ceilings) were paired with textured marbles and ribbed glass in a mostly pared-back, neutral scheme against which a few bold elements serve as punctuation points.
Visual simplicity
The kitchen-dining area offers direct access to the garden, highlighting its role as the core of the home. This relationship is accentuated by new, full-height steel-framed doors, and a limestone floor that flows past the threshold and into the paved courtyard, essentially doubling the ground-floor entertaining space.
Kitchen appliances from Fisher & Paykel feature in this modern renovation of the Sydney townhouse.
Project details
Project: Balfour Residence
Project Type: Townhouse
Location: Sydney, Australia
Architect: Tom Mark Henry
Photographer: Pablo Veiga
