A Striking Black Residence Energizes a Neglected Lot and Its Neighborhood in Melbourne - Dwell

Houses We Love: Every day we feature a remarkable space submitted by our community of architects, designers, builders, and homeowners.

Project Details:

Location: Melbourne, Australia
Architect: Melbourne Design Studios / @melbourne.design.studios
Builder: Owner-builder in cooperation with Home by Hütt
Contractor / CLT Install: G-Lux Builders
Structural Engineer: Global Consulting Engineers
Landscape Designer: Eckersley Garden Architecture
Lighting: Mint Lighting
Cabinetry Designer: Jensen & Row
Cross Laminated Timber: Hütt Sustainable Building Supplies
Photographer: Marnie Hawson / @marniehawson
From the Architect: “The Hütt 01 Passive House regenerates a forgotten piece of land in the middle of Melbourne’s ‘urban jungle,’ creating a ‘wedge of calm.’ It is a building that not only provides a healthy home for the people living in it, but a building that is also good for the planet. It creates more energy than it uses and doesn’t require heating or cooling for most of the year. The architects call it TMRW by Hütt: A Beacon of Hope for the Future.
“The 250-square-meter, wedge-shaped site has an industrial feel, accessed off an unnamed bluestone back lane. The four-bedroom home, with two living spaces, three bathrooms and a roof garden, occupies a footprint of only 78 square meters. The two-and-a-half level plan connects with its garden to create a relaxing inner-urban oasis. The design also responds to the adjacent train line, referencing dynamics of the passing carriages in design and materiality, with the metal facade and roof appearing to be a single story volume floating above the fence line from certain angles.
“The raw materials—recycled bricks, charred timber, and black metal cladding—sit well within the context. The bricks were all salvaged from demolition sites throughout Melbourne, many of them disassembled, mapped, and hand-cleaned by the owners and their children.
“Utilizing cross-laminated timber (CLT) prefab methodology and material for the construction not only meant substantial reductions in its carbon footprint and construction time but also a reliance on fewer finishing materials and trades like plastering. This prefab method also made an owner-builder contract much more achievable, thus providing further project savings.”
Related Reading:
Inspired by Tom and Jerry, This Net-Filled Vacation Home Is a Kid’s Paradise
Two DIYers Erect an Off-Grid Cabin in the Canadian Rockies for Next to Nothing
Published
Topics
What’s new in the design world? Stay up to date with our essential dispatches for design professionals.
© 2022 Dwell Life, Inc. All rights reserved.