Kyneton House

Kyneton House is an addition to a seventies brick home located on an elevated acre site with established gardens and mature exotic trees.

Simply described the addition is a main bedroom suite with associated deck for entertaining with a cover carport and workshop under.

MRTN Architects’ ambition for the design however was more complex than merely the usable spaces created.

The owners were looking to adapt the existing home so that they could age in place, a strategy that would provide peace of mind as they continue their stewardship of the house and significant gardens for years to come.

They are deeply appreciative of the spatial and material characteristics of the original seventies house and sought to compliment rather than imitate the existing home.

As keen art collectors and artists in their own right they were also interested in approaching the design as an opportunity for a sculptural relationship of the addition and to reference both the existing house and also to the steeply sloping site and the surrounding mature trees.

Internally they desired natural materials and a rich material immersion that evoked a gallery experience to provide a dramatic backdrop to their art collection.

MRTN Architects’ response was to propose an elongated black rectangular form that cantilevers beyond the landscape and reaching out the surrounding tree canopies.

The simple black bar evoking the metal sculptures of Tony Smith and Anthony Caro, the black cladding providing a recessive backdrop to the surrounding greenery.

The cantilevered from creates a undercover carport that leads to a new entry into the home and an elevator that carries you up to the main living level of the existing house and also the new bedroom suite, eliminating the need to stairs.

Internally the new spaces have a rich material presence creating a connection from external to internal materiality while also satisfying the clients brief for a minimum of painted surfaces.

The separation of the new spaces and connection to the existing home is intentionally blurred with screened deck leading to bedroom leading to dressing room and gallery without clear delineation.

Kyneton House explores two design objectives that are seemingly opposite ends of the spectrum, an aging in place strategy for the owners and a request for sculptural response to landscape and garden.

The design responds to the context of the original home and significant gardens while ensuring that the owners can continue to enjoy them for many years to come.

MRTN Architects had two main aims with the design of this project: the first was to create an addition that complimented the original 1977 home that didn’t detract from it and without being mimetic.

The second was to create an extension that fit within the established landscaped garden and the very mature and beautiful tree specimens that date back to the early 1900’s.

In the design, the MRTN team referenced abstract expressionist sculptors to propose an elevated black box that contained the additional bedroom suite but also created a carport under the cantilevered section.

The resulting design seamlessly ties together the original home with the addition however this required a careful and nuanced response to the what was there and a re-imagining of the pathways through the home.

What was an elevated front door and porch becomes an art lined corridor that links old and new.

The finished home has a very satisfying relationship with the garden, the garden and built form read together beautifully and the black addition becomes a wonderful backdrop to the various foliage types.

The rich materiality of the interior, with the extensive use of timber panels creating a calming and dramatic space, is especially pleasing to the Kyneton House owners.

Project Details

Completion Date – 2020
Building Levels – 2

Project Team

Architecture

MRTN Architects

MRTN Architects is a design focused architecture and interior design studio located in Melbourne, Australia.

They have a reputation for new and renovated homes that are designed for the people who live there.

www.mrtn.com.au

Photography

Dave Kulesza

Dave is based in Richmond, Melbourne and is a recognized architecture, interiors, and lifestyle photographer. He recently published an interesting photo book that provides a visual perspective of architecture and design in North Korea’s capital city Pyongyang.

www.davekulesza.com