Type  Private/Residential
Location  Port Melbourne, VIC
Size  90m2
Year  2018

On a tight block of fewer than 100 square metres with a tricky orientation, this renovation and extension seek to optimally utilise the site. The project endeavours to provide sufficient light into the centre of the house through various methods.

The design evolved from the brief to create a retreat from the more industrial parts of Port Melbourne. This home acts in exactly that way with a dark protective exterior and a warm, light interior.

Comprising a two-storey extension, the first floor acts as a lightbox with large windows at either end. These windows, together with an open floor plan allow light to fill the first floor while the open stairwell helps feed this light into the ground floor. A carefully positioned skylight extends this thinking by adding more light to living areas. The materials of the soft interior have been carefully selected to both bounce light and help create a delineation between living and sleeping spaces.

This small home proves that constraints can often be inverted and work as parameters to help define a lovely project.