Selected for its ability to transcend eras, the overall palette is subdued, tactile and familiar. Gentle beige brickwork draws inspiration from artful embellishments found in the original exterior, while slender vertical screens reference the fine fenestration of the front verandah. Inside, polished plaster surfaces lend a lived-in softness, enhanced by diffused daylight that traces the rounded contours of walls, balustrades, ceilings and archways. “By adding warmth with timbers, natural stones and aged brass, large spaces are further softened to help create personable and comfortable internal environments,” notes Kyzintas of Andrew McLeod’s carefully distilled assemblage.
Woven into the outdoor sphere, a collection of open-air moments explores ideas of compression and release. “A key driver of the landscape strategy was the way the architecture unfolds across the site,” explains Kyzintas. Steppers and floating planes carve a meandering ascent to the private backyard, with pockets for pause along the way. Below, a subterranean garage, gym and cinema tuck beneath a low-lying garden of sprawling ground cover, while more structured species sharpen the composition, complementing the rigour of the contemporary setting. “Movement, pause and transition – themes central to the architecture – are echoed in these natural elements, sitting comfortably across old and new without privileging one over the other,” says Kyzintas.
