Violetta

Conceived as a sculptural entity, Chimney House is as much a project for the client as it is a shared experience for the neighbourhood.

A vacant block adjacent a heritage-listed inner-city terrace offered the opportunity to extend the existing home and create a fluid, gallery-like interior for the client's extensive art collection. The jigsawing of two dwellings into one volume on a compact footprint enabled on-site parking with a self-contained apartment above, all concealed behind a custom perforated bronze façade.

This infill screen was designed as a flat graphic — admitting natural light whilst maintaining privacy within. Reading tonally as one consistent surface alongside the terrace's heritage façade, it was conceived to complement the street's terraced row, its sculptural roofline carefully modelled for a respectful and elegant connection. Upper level windows frame the clay chimneys of the original terrace and its neighbours, co-habiting with a new contemporary chimney above a central fireplace.

At the rear, the form retains and responds to the pigeon-paired elevations. Taking advantage of the double-width site, the intertwined planning disrupts the traditional linear sequencing of a terrace — introducing a generously wide courtyard that draws natural light through oversized glass pivot doors framing two paved areas.

Within, a curved central stair hall replaces an impractical steep stair, bringing unexpected scale and organic theatre to the interior. A bold diagonal floor graphic carried through several rooms unites them with a continuous pattern, granting the illusion of expanded space — a motif subtly echoed on the garage door. Compact in footprint, the house feels surprisingly generous.