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Terracotta tiles and reclaimed bricks clad the walls and roofs of this suburban Melbourne home that Austin Maynard Architects designed for an avid gardener.
The Terracotta House owner reached out to Austin Maynard Architects to help create independent homes on shared property for herself and her son’s family.
Above: The house consists of three volumes. Above: Access via an alley
The grounds in Melbourne’s Fitzroy district consisted of a cottage and garden large enough to accommodate a second property along with a shared library pavilion.
The project included renovating the existing street-side cottage where the son’s family now lives, as well as building a new home for the client with independent access to an alley at the rear of the property.
Terracotta tiles and recycled bricks were used for the facade
There is a shared, productive garden between the two buildings, which was a key element of the assignment. In this room there is also a library building that can be used as guest accommodation.
“Terracotta House is essentially a community living group of families – similar to a village square where the owner and her son’s family live individually in houses in a common block,” said Austin Maynard Architects.
“As an architecture firm, we always strive to maximize space, connect interiors with the garden, embrace the street and make the most of the alleys,” added the studio. “The side that [the client] Belinda bought the potential to make all of these ideas and more a reality. “
Two volumes are connected by a glass corridor
The existing timber-clad Victorian workers house has been renovated to retain its original character while making it more suitable for modern living.
The interior has been rearranged to bring the kitchen, living and dining areas to the front of the house so that they overlook the north-facing garden and street.
Recycled brick was used for the interior
Interior walls have been removed to improve circulation, with the new layout reinforcing the connection with the front yard and porch. A new kitchen and bathroom have been installed, and private areas – including the bedrooms – have been moved to the rear of the house.
The library pavilion is positioned on the western boundary of the property and overlooks the shared garden. It includes a washroom and toilet as well as a versatile space that is used as a library, guest room, writer’s studio, music room and social area.
Terracotta tiles cover an interior wall
The newly built terracotta house is located at the rear of the property and extends over the entire width of the property. It contains a kitchen, dining area, living room, bathroom and study on the ground floor, with the master bedroom and en-suite bathroom on the upper floor.
The house consists of compact and connected volumes designed to optimize the available outdoor space. The orientation and roof shape of the building maximize exposure and views.
Austin Maynard Architects wraps the summer house with its own power supply in white clapboards
The materiality of the house was determined by the owner’s love for gardening and the terracotta pots in which she had grown plants in her former home.
Terracotta tiles that are applied to the walls and roofs seem to take on different tones as the day progresses. Their color and texture compliment the reclaimed brick that is used for other sections of the exterior walls and garden planters.
Double doors lead from the library into the garden
Due to a limited budget, functional features such as watertight details that would normally be hidden are instead exposed and celebrated with an unusual treatment of the materials.
“Instead of hiding the lightning bolts and covers, we accentuated them,” explained the architects. “Like the thick outline of a comic book, each shape is captured in lines of black steel of varying thicknesses that frame and accentuate the tiles and recycled brick.”
The house has a large garden in the middle
The entrance from the alley connects to a paved corridor that leads directly into the garden. These hallways provide a line of sight through the building connecting it to the street and community.
The kitchen and dining area are on one side of the hallway and the living room is on the other. Both rooms have doors that can be opened to connect the interior with the garden.
A passage between the volumes leads to the gardens
Terracotta tiles and old bricks are also used inside the house, where they are part of a reduced range of materials that also includes wooden surfaces and concrete floors.
Wallpaper designed by local artists for local company Willie Weston is used in the kitchen and living room to create a refined and delicate contrast to the raw, exposed brickwork.
The existing house is at the rear of the site
Melbourne-based studio Austin Maynard Architects works on residential, retail and commercial projects – with a conceptual approach that responds to issues such as quality of life, culture, heritage and community.
The studio is located in the home of founder Andrew Maynard, which has been renovated to create an exceptionally bright space that promotes the mental wellbeing of its residents.
The firm’s previous projects include the addition of a residential terrace in Melbourne with a zigzag roof and a cylindrical wooden beach house in Victoria, Australia.
Photography is by Derek Swalwell.
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