An Homage to The Past – Darling Point by Alexander and Co
Set within a richly woven landscape of heritage homes, Darling Point is the renovation and addition to a Victorian-era cottage. Alexander and Co pays due homage to the home’s past with an approach that combines the contemporary with an emphasis on contextual appropriateness.
With neighbours of a similar importance to the preservation of history in Darling Point, the renovation and addition works to the home of the same name were conceived from an understanding of heritage context. Noting the ornate detailing and craft woven into the Victorian house, the new works (while also contemporary in nature) are ultimately inspired by history. Every home has its story, of both the people who inhabit it for a period of time and the hands of those who made it. Honouring these stories, Alexander and Co has combined an approach that brings together open and connected internal planning with material and details that pay homage to the past.
At 230 square metres in size, the house is on the smaller size of the reflective era compared to the grand, opulent terraces and standalone homes of the same period. To combat the slightness of the Victorian cottage and make the home feel larger and connected, an overhaul of the floor plan was undertaken. The relocation of the internal stairs as a grand sculptural feature disassembles the vertical movement through the home and allows the central core to be a light-filled connecting element. For its family of five, the brief was to articulate additional bedrooms and a series of passive and active spaces. Through working closely with the client, elements of storage, privacy and connectedness were brought into the existing formality of the home, creating spaces for open gathering and play as well as those more intimate areas of retreat.
Alexander and Co pays due homage to the home’s past with an approach that combines the contemporary with an emphasis on contextual appropriateness.
Channelling the techniques and details of the past, Darling Point makes historical references through the use of traditional paved limestone floors in the kitchen and scullery, the grandeur of the connecting stairwell and fireplace and the detailed wall panelling throughout. The intricacy of the hand detailed elements is deliberate and by combining polished plaster and brass elements (intended to patina) with more contemporary textures, finishes and conveniences the past and the present are brought together. The emphasis on authenticity and quality can be seen throughout, and the resulting study of the contemporary heritage home unfolds with curious delicacy.
Darling Point beautifully captures the spirit of the past while also remaining relevant and supportive of contemporary life. Alexander and Co has crafted a home that creates a sense of continuity in the home between the importance of the past and outlook to the future.
