muwinina people of nipaluna
Tasmanian
The Patrick Street project involved a series of interventions in a c.1880 heritage listed terrace house in Hobart. The brief to contain the program within the existing envelope prompted a design approach of discrete ‘moves’ that sought to unlock the plan and provide broad functional amenity seemingly by doing as little as possible. These moves involved the reconciliation of routes and rooms, introducing new insertions designed as buildings in miniature, and functional double moves where a single design move responds to more than one functional requirement. Material selections were informed by the heritage response, with new and modified openings and thresholds constructed from steel serving as a contemporary language counterpoint to the existing masonry and timer fabric. The detailing of the new insertions was approached as an exercise in the use of plywood, standard timber sections and off-the-shelf mouldings as a method for developing a distinct language across the scheme.
When I purchased the terrace, I knew it needed a major renovation. The house had good bones and historic features, plus a large courtyard garden. However the best rooms in the place, with views over the garden and to kunyani, were dominated by a poky kitchen and inferior bathroom. The garden was overgrown and weed ridden. Georgina and Andrew proposed a sensitive renovation, with a design that took advantage of the best features and created a beautiful and functional living place, with the sunny living areas flowing into the garden. I could not be more pleased with the results.