Bryant Alsop has renovated and extended a typical free-standing timber period home in Australia. The project keeps the original house at the front and adds a new open-plan wing at the back, linked by a glazed walkway.
From the front door to the garden
From the front door, a hallway runs through the old house towards the extension. It then becomes a walkway lined with sliding glass doors that open to outdoor spaces on both sides: a sitting area with a curved lawn on one side and a timber deck for outdoor dining on the other.
One large room under a cathedral ceiling
The extension is a single open-plan room with the living area at one end. A cathedral ceiling with exposed timber beams rises above it, and clerestory windows draw the eye up and over the roof of the original house.
A custom bar with a wine fridge, open shelving and a cabinet sits next to the living and dining areas. The dining table divides the living room from the kitchen, which has a neutral palette, an island and a sliding door to the outdoor dining deck. Behind the kitchen is a walk-through laundry and pantry. Another sliding door off the deck leads to a second living room.
Bedrooms and bathroom
One bedroom looks onto the garden and uses warm neutral colours. Another, at the front of the house, has a textured feature wall. In the ensuite, a shelving niche runs the full width of the shower wall.
As a general point, high-level windows are a useful way to bring daylight deep into an extension while keeping wall space free and protecting privacy from neighbours.
Project credits
- Architecture: Bryant Alsop
- Project director: Sarah Bryant
- Project architect: Stephanie Reed Marshall
- Photography: Dylan James
- Source: Contemporist