Urban Family Living – Kerr by SSdH

Kerr orchestrates a conversation between old and new. Through the addition of key elements in an otherwise stripped-back warehouse apartment, emerging practice SSdH has created a home that offers a contemporary way to live as a family in the city.

In the design of the apartment, Directors Jean-Marie Spencer, Harrison Smart and Todd de Hoog were driven by the context of the building and its urban fabric. A Fitzroy landmark, the building was originally part of a group of factories that comprised the MacRobertson Chocolate complex throughout the late 19th and 20th centuries. Known as the Great White City of Fitzroy, the factories extended over eight blocks bounded by Smith, Napier, Johnston and Rose Streets. In the late 1990s, the factory on Kerr Street, like many others in the area, was divided into a series of apartments. Unusually, the apartments were sold to owners with minimal amenities, presenting the opportunity for occupants to undertake their own fit-out. This resulted in a variation of apartment styles, specifically tailored for the original purchasers.

“There was additional layered beauty in what was left behind in the demolition of the fit-out, and so it was not just the character of the warehouse that was retained but some kind of notion of the previous renovation as well.”

The previous interior of the apartment that SSdH was commissioned to remodel supressed traces of the past industrial use of the building. In response to this, the architects found themselves in a process of designing through unveiling. Jean-Marie notes that “the previous fit-out covered everything up,” and so a key part of the design process was connecting with the site of the existing building and understanding the design as a process of reveal. “There was additional layered beauty in what was left behind in the demolition of the fit-out, and so it was not just the character of the warehouse that was retained but some kind of notion of the previous renovation as well.”

During the construction process, layers of the apartment’s past, present and future were woven together. The pair of monolithic concrete columns were a feature that first drew the clients to the apartment and became a key starting point for SSdH when organising the design. However, other features from the past were discovered through the demolition process and became elements to be given prominence. Jean-Marie speaks of one of these moments of discovery in the ensuite. “During demo, a panel was taken off and there was this yellow paintwork that was exposed, which then influenced our selection of the bathroom tile colour and then that mark was left and highlighted with fresh paint.” There was a desire in the design to keep these traces without it seeming like it has been overdone. As Todd explains, the approach was about asking “how little can we do to make sure that all of this is still legible?”

Within the apartment, SSdH inserted a series of key elements that provide the amenity required for the clients and their young family but also set up a dialogue with the existing fabric of the building.

Within the apartment, SSdH inserted a series of key elements that provide the amenity required for the clients and their young family but also set up a dialogue with the existing fabric of the building. As Harrison explains, these key elements were about “leaving the character [of the apartment] as it was found and inserting these new pieces for living within it.” The first of these elements – the portal – defines the entry of the apartment. The spotted gum lined walls and floors create an immersive entry that both holds and guides you to the second living area at the base of the east-facing window and stair. Moving through the portal, layered polycarbonate and timber batten screen doors provide diffused light to the two downstairs bedrooms. Similarly, mirrored louvres give additional light to these rooms as well as offering a sense of connection to the other spaces. A threshold is marked at the end of the portal with a shift in material as you reach the stair.

The stair, located against the single window of the apartment, ascends to the first floor. The stairway also acts as a light well, illuminating the level below. Materially, the white-painted steel mesh balustrade is a nod to the industrial past of the building, but its transparency also enables a large amount of light to come through. This element acts as both a space of transition between the two levels and as an urban backyard. In replacing the existing frosted windows with double-glazed clear windows, a stronger connection has been created with the street and large tree outside. Likewise, the stone pavers suggest an outdoor space within an otherwise enclosed apartment. There is also a clothesline under the stairs and the same mesh was used to provide a platform for indoor gardening. This is a small amenity, but these playful additions create opportunities to expand the possibilities of apartment living.

This is a small amenity, but these playful additions create opportunities to expand the possibilities of apartment living.

The relationship between the vivid timber portal contrasted with the light steel stair visually increases the size of the apartment. Jean-Marie comments that in each space, the architects have set up a “view across the space that has a foreground, middle and background.” By designing a sequence of zones to move through, SSdH created an illusion of space in this otherwise compact apartment.

Throughout, there has been a careful attention paid to the detailing of the space. Moving upstairs, the final key insertion is the block, which sits on the first floor of the apartment containing the kitchen and main bedroom and ensuite. Rich tones of the spotted gum joinery tie together the two levels, whilst the brushed stainless steel bench top in the kitchen gives it a utilitarian but contemporary feel that complements the industrial past.

Despite the project focus being on the interior, the changes have been felt externally too. The subtle alteration from the frosted glass to clear has been noticed by neighbours of the area as they wander past the old factory. Through this act of public generosity – letting curious eyes glimpse into the building – there is a sense that the project reaffirms this building’s place within its urban context. Through thoughtful additions in this early project, SSdH has both refreshed ties with the past and set up a template for a contemporary domesticity. Internally, this building will collect more traces of life over time as the young family makes marks of their own.