AWARD WINNER | The Terrace House banner

This house is located on a narrow block in the inner west of Sydney, set beneath a row of a fig trees to the north that filter the light. The original house was cramped and dark, the low ridge line prohibited any light entering beyond the adjacent canopy.

The design brief was to create a light, open space that responded to the green character of the site and celebrated the filtered light. The narrow site dictated the restrained palette, materiality was kept to a minimum with moments of stark contrast highlighting the length of the site and creating a visual break. A light well and a partially obscured high window draw in light from above the parallel canopy to flood the space with natural light, stark white ceilings and walls disperse the light throughout.

The unconventional roof and ceiling forms produce different spatial arrangements within a single area; creating the sense of a larger, more dynamic space. The roof form is extruded beyond the building as a perforated screen, cut to mimic the light as it penetrates through the trees. The light dances across the room, responding to the sun, wind and trees to enhance the relationship between inside and out.

Nathalie Scipioni Architects
Double Bay, New South Wales
AWARD WINNER | The Terrace House
AWARD WINNER | The Terrace House
AWARD WINNER | The Terrace House
AWARD WINNER | The Terrace House
AWARD WINNER | The Terrace House
AWARD WINNER | The Terrace House
AWARD WINNER | The Terrace House
AWARD WINNER | The Terrace House
AWARD WINNER | The Terrace House
AWARD WINNER | The Terrace House
AWARD WINNER | The Terrace House
AWARD WINNER | The Terrace House
AWARD WINNER | The Terrace House
AWARD WINNER | The Terrace House
AWARD WINNER | The Terrace House
AWARD WINNER | The Terrace House
AWARD WINNER | The Terrace House
AWARD WINNER | The Terrace House

Professionals used in
AWARD WINNER | The Terrace House

About the
Professional

Internationally trained and experienced in architecture, interior design and heritage restoration, we combine contemporary European influences with a restorer’s eye for detail, story, flow and possibility. You’ll be amazed by what we can do for light, space and living, delivering incredible results for every budget.

Nathalie has an internationally-honed understanding of structure, space and orientation that she brings to designing the exteriors and interiors of homes, restaurants, hotels or offices. She studied architecture for nine years, completing a Doctor of Architecture in Florence at Universita degli Studi di Firenze followed by post-graduate studies in heritage architecture at the specialist École de Chaillot in Paris.     

Over the last 20 years, she has worked on architecture and heritage restoration projects in France, Italy and Australia. In Paris, she was a heritage architect responsible for the completion of restoration projects, including site supervision and project management of listed Heritage monuments in the Nancy and Paris areas.

Nathalie relocated to Sydney and founded NSStudio in 2007. She maintains constant contact with developments in Europe, travelling annually to the world’s most forward-looking trade shows to bring back concepts, materials and products that ensure her designs continue to be far ahead of local trends.