This late modernist Malvern home featured a curved timber roof and a glorious wall of curved glass, bending around the rear living area. Architecture Architecture came in with a mission not only to retain these features, but to celebrate them.
The brief was to extend the home – sensitively. It was of utmost importance that the extension didn’t compromise the curve of the original roofline. ‘We’ve elevated the extension over the original house, creating a space between the two volumes,’ explains architect, Nick James. ‘It’s architectural social distancing.’
While the internal room sequence has been retained, the internal spaces have been gutted and opened up to reveal more of the glass curved wall, and the domed roof has been buttressed with timber supports to emphasise its eye-catching waves. ‘Clearing and simplifying the internal layout has brought this feature back to life, while enhancing the connections between the living areas and the outdoors,’ Nick says. Diagonal slopes in the extension contrast with the curvature of the modernist silhouette, demarcating the original design from it contemporary addition.
And don’t we love a colourful bathroom?! Blush pink tiles and warm wood joinery provide a soothing contrast to the slick monochrome interiors of the generous kitchen and living space, which has been pared back to highlight the sweeping curved lines of the original glazing and ceiling.
As the house faces the street at both the front and the rear of the property, Architecture Architecture took the opportunity to change street-face where previously no rear facade had been visible. Jagged isosceles glazing blends into the treetops, allowing the ingenuity of this contemporary design to have its moment in the sun.