This Victorian-era villa in Sydney has been renovated and extended to meet the requirements of a household with an extensive art collection, although a concrete plunge pool caters for its grown-up young children .
Designed by local Smart Layout Studio, the flat-roofed concrete extension sits to the rear of the previous house called Orama in Sydney’s eastern suburb of Woollahra. The clients wished to adapt the old constructing to suit the family’s way of life and artwork assortment.
Containing a double-height dining space, lounge and kitchen, the extension opens into the back yard where a plunge pool and garage have been additional to offer both utility and entertaining spaces for the loved ones and their visitors.
“The form of the new wing takes cues from the blocky pattern-guide varieties of the villa ensemble of which Orama is part,” explained Smart Layout Studio, which also recently worked on interiors for Jean Nouvel’s plant-covered One particular Central Park towers.
“This romantic relationship is uncovered only within the web site – largely hidden from the street the new architecture is discreet, doffing its cap to the historically significant villa that stands ahead of it,” mentioned the crew.
The raw-concrete end walls of the extension are used as a neutral backdrop for exhibiting big-scale paintings and sculptural performs, which are lit naturally by two glazed walls and narrow clerestory windows.
Relevant story: Concrete blocks frame a personal sculpture assortment at Balmoral Property in Sydney
The pair of floor-to-ceiling windows in turn frame a see via the extension to the historic residence past.
In contrast with the clean lines and pared-back aesthetic of the extension, the original 19th-century fireplaces, early paint schemes and decorative cornicing have been retained in the outdated residence.
New joinery and lighting was added to give it a “crisp, trim, and tailored” finish that melds the two elements of the property collectively.
“The project has two distinct halves, requiring distinct yet complementary approaches: the renovation of an historic villa, and the development of a new concrete and glass pavilion beyond,” stated the architects.
“The new addition was created to be minimum in type and detail, with textured raw concrete extending from the walls out into the garden, punctuated by swathes of water, vegetation, lawn, and pebbles,” they additional. “In which the outdated building is rich in detail, the new is spare. The striking double-height concrete walls, animated by sunlight, furnish the rooms with little want of embellishment.”
A guest suite positioned over the kitchen in the new extension delivers backyard views. It is linked to the upper floor of the original home by a balcony that seems more than the dining area under.
A marble sink, sideboard and a bath tub have been extra to the family bathroom, which also features a mirrored wall and an original fireplace that continues on the theme of pairing old fittings with new.
“Conceptually, the aim was to make a new wing of equivalent substance and quality to the 19th-century villa, but with all skill and detailing devoted to generating the construction spare and minimal, in contrast to the highly ornamented fabric of the unique,” said the architects.
“Separated by a century and a half, the two components of Orama stand as stunning expositions of the best building specifications of their day,” they extra.
Venture credits:
Architecture: Wise Layout
Project staff: William Wise, Lucy Bedbrook, Anita Panov
Surveyor: Geometra
Structural engineer: Istruct
Heritage architect: Tropman and Tropman
Planner: GSA Preparing
Quantity surveyor: QS Plus
Basix: Efficient Residing
Certifier: Creating Certificates Australia
Landscape architect: Will Dangar
Ground floor prepare 
Very first floor plan 
Area a single 
Segment two 
Area three Dezeen
