Project: Light Saw House
Architects: Zen Architects
Builder: Philip Building Group
Landscape Architect: Eckersley Garden Architecture
Location: Fitzroy North, Victoria, Australia
Project Year 2018
Photographer: Derek Swalwell
Text by Zen Architects
Our Light Saw House represents a contemporary, design-based solution to sustainable architecture. Built upon an existing double fronted Edwardian weatherboard, our clients sought a local architectural response to a property they had owned for some time, but not lived in for 15 years whilst overseas.
To accomplish the project requirements, the original house was retained, but retro-fit in such a way as to exceed current building standards. A compact extension to the rear addresses the need to bring light and warmth over the top of the existing house.
The volumes created allow the compact floor plan to feel generous and in proportion to the original house without overshadowing the south facing backyard. All new rooms are connected to the environment through views to the sky and adjacent landscaped gardens.
Recycled or recyclable materials have been utilised throughout. Existing external brick paving, paths and garden beds were salvaged and re-imagined internally to connect the garden to the wet areas. Key trees, retained and protected during construction, now thrive within a newly landscaped environment.
