Mansard House | Studio Bright
Not much suburban housing from Melbournes 70s has achieved streetscape heritage status as yet. Typically, houses such as these are demolished for the next big thing. While the original house is not a recognised piece of architecture, Mansard House is readily identifiable as a quintessential example from its time and deserving of retention for its timemarking contribution to a richly textured city that values its past.
Our clients intend aging at home and wish for the house to throw its arms out to extended family. Untangling the order of rooms and access to promote this desire required extensive internal remodelling.
Externally, wall alignments and their relationship to the mansard line are not changed. However, a new longer and finer horizontality transforms the proportioning system of the facade. The once heavy hat of the mansard gains elegance and a floating quality that redefines the way the mass sits in the landscape.
Armadale House | Neeson Murcutt Neille
