A Classic Sensibility – Homage to Oscar by Luigi Rosselli Architects

Approaching the renovation of a classic modernist home, designed by George Reeves in 1963, with a light hand, Homage to Oscar sees Luigi Rosselli Architects celebrate the home’s original bones.

Located in Bellevue Hill, Homage to Oscar is just that – an homage to the work of famed Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer. His reverence and strong aesthetic style are expressed through the classic sensibility and approach that the new works bring to the home. As a celebration of its original framework and foundations, deliberative interventions bring the classic style of its original modernist aesthetic into a contemporary presence. Luigi Rosselli Architects bring a sense of consideration and intentionality to the new work and renovations of this existing beauty, connecting the inside to the outside.

Immersed in a Will Dangar’s garden design, Homage to Oscar sits as its own architectural ode to the classic modernist style. The new works both breathe new life into the building and act to highlight the original features of the home. Described as being applied with a light touch, the alterations are more celebrations then replacements. At the core of the minor works was the emphasis on engagement across the interior and exterior spaces, allowing a greater considered sense of flow and movement.

Located in Bellevue Hill, Homage to Oscar is just that – an homage to the work of famed Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer.

Luigi Rosselli Architects bring a sense of consideration and intentionality to the new work and renovations of this existing beauty, connecting the inside to the outside.

Creating and reinforcing a sense of symmetry, the addition of a hooded-chimney fireplace in the lounge area expresses the living spaces as the true heart of the home. Throughout, the combined effort to reinstate the interior spaces, and their overflow to the outdoor landscape areas, is key to the modernist style. The influence of Oscar Niemeyer can be seen throughout. In particular, the restoration of the curving concrete awning that welcomes entry and stands proud upon approach, the single stringer and cantilever switchback stair, and the ceiling bulkheads all gestures to the influence of the architect from whom the home takes its name.

The influence of Oscar Niemeyer can be seen throughout.

Through a clean and open series of volumes that capture the modernist style through sinuous curves and a clear connection between built and landscaped elements, Homage to Oscar pays due respects to the icon of modernism. Luigi Roselli has beautifully restored this classic with a sense of restraint, appreciation of context and an understanding of the style’s aesthetic. The resulting Sydney home has been given a new life, creating light-filled experiences and moments throughout the home’s intimate and open spaces.