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Paxton Architecture House in Prahran

House in Prahran

This small renovation project involved rebuilding most of the house from the ground up. On a typical block in Prahran, the site access was tight, with a narrow street to the front and a narrower laneway to the rear. The site orientation is north-south, with the position of the living areas being in the south. This wasn't great for the energy efficiency objectives of the project, but we designed a solution that functions well and looks good. The project reconfigured the many iterations of small additions and reconfigurations by demolishing them and starting fresh.

Paxton Architecture House in Prahran
Paxton Architecture House in Prahran

The rear façade is designed as a vaulted wall that leans in towards the living room. The rear wall is 900mm thick and allows for cabinetry and storage. It is clad in standing seam copper, with the design intention of allowing it to develop a green patina as it weathers over the years. The conjunction of a leaning wall and a material that will change over time is an interesting exploration in this project, taking the materiality of the project and moving it to something that will hopefully embrace time-honoured material change.

To light the house, we split the roof using operable skylights on the rear section. The front has existing windows to a side passage that brings light and air.

The project's success is in the rear wall and how it performs visually and functionally. Activating the façade to become the artwork to look at will be interesting to watch over time.

Paxton Architecture House in Prahran
Paxton Architecture House in Prahran
Paxton Architecture House in Prahran
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