Commendation Housing

A 1930s red brick residence in a heritage precinct of Canberra has been altered and extended to provide modern living areas and a home office which also serve as a domestic gallery for a notable collection of Australian contemporary art. These latest renovations follow early 1980s alterations which have been updated. The new scheme opens the rear of the house for casual living related to the back garden and north-western sun. Various passive solar and heat-efficiency treatments are included in the architectural concept and the practicality of the interior is enhanced by many purpose-designed cabinets.

Jury Verdict

The modest exterior of this Canberra box masks the sophisticated interplays of volume and light within. The attention to environmental considerations and detail, and the ability of the design to provide constant enjoyment for the owners, is clearly evident.

This house will always be a red brick bungalow and there has been no attempt to make it otherwise. The integrity of the original building has been retained and even enhanced. At the entrance, a seat incorporated into the front porch and a rice paper front door discreetly hint at internal changes. The drawing of light into the house is a key feature of the new renovations but is complicated by the nature of Canberra’s climate. The west-facing living areas at the back of the house have been insulated with double-glazed doors and a simple pergola frame in the garden can support a canvas shade. In the living room, black tiling segues into timber floors, linking the old and the new and both sides of the house.

Whilst the client’s art collection was a driving element in the design, strong domestic elements eliminate any sense that the house is merely a gallery. It is a supreme example of a building type which engages a large proportion of architects in this country.

Photography Ben Wrigley

Eagle/Gascoigne Alterations, Canberra
Architects and Interior Designers Townsend & Associates—project architects Bruce Townsend, Peter Booth. Structural Engineers Northrops Engineers. Lighting Consultant John Liston. Quantity Surveyors RAD. Tenant Department of Education. Builder RHG Constructions.

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