Wurundjeri Woi-wurring people of the Eastern Kulin nation
Victoria
Hislop Hill House is a family home that balances openness and privacy within an evolving suburban context on a steep 4m slope from the street to Hislop Reserve at the rear.Â
Located under one roof, six levels are composed in section according to scale, privacy, and relationship to context. In plan, the programme is organised around several courtyards and connected by a singular elongated stair that acts as the home’s circulation spine. Spaces for gathering and retreat are oriented to proximate and distant landscape views, mediating between public and private, inward and outward, and family and individual use.
The project fosters flexible family life across teenage and adult stages, supporting privacy without compromising communal gathering, as well as offering adaptable spaces for evolving work-from-home and social patterns. The project critically reinterprets neighbourhood precedents to produce an enduring, materially rich home that is deeply attuned to its occupants and environment.Â
Every room in this house serves as its own retreat, offering either a beautiful connection to nature or a secluded place to hide away. High ceilings and expansive windows frame views of the sky, while perfectly angled eaves allow the right amount of light to enter the home. The connection to the park and garden gives the house a calm, expansive quality, and the use of natural materials creates a sense of warmth and timelessness. It’s truly special yet practical.