DECEMBER – FEBRUARY | 2019AUD$17.95 | NZ$17.95 | SGD$13.95

Architect Jeremy McLeod leads and learns from his team. A residence in Melbourne honours the past despite modern forms, and a Singaporean dwelling amidst a curated nature.

#42

TexT Rebecca GRoss | PhoTograPhy Luc RÉmond | STyling aLex bennett

THOSE Architects’ specific response to climate and

site challenges the Byron Bay vernacular.

Exploringclimate and context

3. on location # 171issue #42 habitusliving.com

OpEnEr | A SEcOnd-STOrEy AddiTiOn iS BArEly viSiBlE frOm THE STrEET, fiTTing THE ScAlE Of THE prEdOminAnTly SinglE-STOrEy STrEETScApE And minimiSing OvErSHAdOwing Of THE nEigHBOuring prOpErTy. OppOSiTE | An ExiSTing ArcH frAmES THE EnTrAncE And HAllwAy, wiTH cHildrEn'S BEdrOOmS AT THE frOnT Of THE HOuSE And THE living ArEA AT THE rEAr. ABOvE | ligHT And TExTurEd mATEriAlS viSuAlly SOfTEn THE OTHErwiSE cOOl, rOBuST pAlETTE.

ground, rather than sitting elevated, open and unconnected to the earth. “You don’t want to have spaces you can’t use at certain times of the year because it is too hot or cold. You need covered all-weather rooms, not just pretty balconies. And it’s okay to have walls,” says Simon.

The clients engaged Those Architects to renovate and extend their single-storey, non-descript 1980s brick house. “Its aesthetics, siting and layout were poor, showing no respect for location, site, geography or local micro-climates. However, it was well built, with double brick walls and an on-ground slab,” Ben explains.

The clients wanted a forever home that would withstand growing children and the coastal environment, and with six bedrooms, four bathrooms and a choice of outdoor spaces that could be used throughout the year. Simon and Ben designed an L-shaped house with a two-storey rear addition and north-facing garden and courtyard. All interior spaces are open and light with a direct connection outside, and considered, restrained openings help keep the house temperate year-round.

Architecture in Byron Bay is often designed with expansive glass doors that open interior spaces up to large balconies and decks, blurring the

boundaries between inside and out. But while it’s a popular solution, it’s not always a practical one. The coastal town in northern New South Wales contends with heat, humidity and harsh sunlight; winter chills and salt air; and high rainfall, winds and storms at the tail end of the cyclone season. Opening up a house means heat gets trapped inside in summer and lost through the windows in winter. Those Architects have therefore taken a distinctly different approach by restricting openings to keep their latest house cooler in summer and warmer in winter.

“Byron Bay is an idyllic place to live but climatic factors can be quite brutal. Closing the house down in parts greatly improves the way it functions,” says Simon Addinall, co-director of Those Architects. He and co-director Ben Mitchell liken their approach to a “cave” rather than a “nest”. Buildings have openings carved out of solid volumes that are anchored to the

The clients wanted a forever home that would withstand growing children

and the coastal environment.

3. on location # 173issue #42 habitusliving.com

OppOSiTE | plAnS. ABOvE lEfT | THE STAircASE TO THE mASTEr BEdrOOm rEcEivES nATurAl ligHT THrOugH A vOid ABOvE. ABOvE rigHT | BEdrOOmS HAvE SunligHT, crOSS vEnTilATiOn And AccESS TO THE gArdEn Or cOurTyArd. BElOw rigHT | THE ExpOSEd cEiling STrucTurE EnHAncES THE SEnSE Of HEigHT. BElOw lEfT | THE living ArEA OpEnS TO THE cOurTyArd TO THE nOrTH And Swimming pOOl TO THE wEST.

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ground floor firST floor

3. on location # 175issue #42 habitusliving.com

ABOvE | THE criSp wHiTE ExTEriOr AccEnTuATES THE SculpTurAl, cuBic fOrmS Of THE OnE And TwO-STOrEy vOlumES, wHilE SurfAcE TrEATmEnTS diffEr BETwEEn Old And nEw.

The single-storey house transitions into the new two-

storey volume with living, dining and kitchen downstairs and the

parents’ suite upstairs.

The new volume is barely visible from the street. Its pitch is derived from the front roof profile and council control setbacks to minimise overshadowing of the neighbouring property and fit the scale of the predominantly single-storey street. Its double-brick walls are in keeping with the original house and provide thermal mass and a robust, low-maintenance structure that endures corrosive salt air. The crisp white exterior accentuates the sculptural, cubic forms of the one and two-storey volumes, while surface treatments differ between old and new with rough, textured render on the original home and face brick painted white on the addition.

Three existing arches frame the garage entrances and front door. The children’s bedrooms are in the original house: two bedrooms, a bathroom and laundry to the right, and a garage, three bedrooms, two bathrooms and storage to the left. Operable skylights provide natural light and fresh air in the internal bathrooms, and sliding glass doors open the passageway to the garden, providing cross ventilation and direct access to the garden and courtyard. This outdoor space provides a sense of connection and separation between the front and rear of the house. “It means the kids and parents can be in separate parts of the house, allowing for independence and privacy, yet still be connected and close,” says Ben.

The single-storey house transitions into the new two-storey volume with living, dining and kitchen downstairs and the parents’ suite upstairs. Spaces are light and open with warmth and texture. The exposed ceiling structure enhances the sense of height over the dining and living areas, and sandy-coloured limestone paving both indoors and out references the beach and is soft underfoot. Birch timber joinery, linen curtains and neutral and natural-coloured furnishings visually soften the otherwise cool, robust palette.

3. on location # 177issue #42 habitusliving.com

ABOvE | "yOu nEEd cOvErEd All-wEATHEr rOOmS, nOT juST prETTy BAlcOniES, And iT’S OkAy TO HAvE wAllS,” SAyS SimOn.

All interior spaces are open and light with a direct connection outside, and

considered, restrained openings help keep the house temperate year-round.

The living area has sliding glass doors that open to the north and west, and recessed openings provide extended eaves to block the summer sun while allowing the low winter sun to filter deeper inside. The rear garden is protected from the western sun, while the swimming pool soaks up the morning sun and is shaded in the afternoon so the kids can use it throughout summer. “We created these various outdoor areas so the family can be outside in the sun or the shade at any time of the year,” says Ben.

A void over the staircase provides a light-filled entrance to the master bedroom with ensuite and walk-in robe. The windows are positioned for sunlight and ventilation and offer views of the surrounding trees. A fixed east-facing window receives morning light, and a series of north-facing casement windows can be opened as desired to capture and regulate the northeast sea breeze. “Summer gets strong northerly winds, so they can be closed or one opened to get the breeze through the house. On calmer days they can all be opened up for fresh air,” explains Simon.

Differing in form and function to much of the architecture in Byron Bay, this house is a specific response to the climate and site and provides the family with an efficient, comfortable and enjoyable home. “It’s an example of what else you can do in a sub-tropical coastal environment,” Simon says. “People only know what is possible when someone else does it and they see there are more solutions to the problem.”

Those Architects | thosearchitects.com.au

issue #42 habitusliving.com