Refined Familiarity – Longueville House by Vanessa Wegner Architect
Longueville House sees Vanessa Wegner Architect craft a seamless interior transition between the original house and its extension. Featuring a wall of Bowral Bricks, the design has its basis in materiality and heritage.
Settled into the leafy suburb of Longueville, the home presents as a modest Californian bungalow. Yet, lying behind its unassuming frontage – past the bedrooms that line the hallway – is an expansive extension, entirely hidden from street view, spanning across two levels. Inside the home, Vanessa Wegner Architects negotiates the distinction between old and new, consequently telling the story of the home’s interior character.
Longueville House’s uncovered heritage guided the design of the new works. An unearthed long-expired covenant stipulated that any building on the site should only utilise bricks or roof tiling, suggesting a history of restrained materiality. Intent on continuing the tradition and expressing respect for the original house, Vanessa Wegner Architect looked to products by Bowral Bricks. With over 100 years of brickmaking experience, Bowral Bricks produces high-quality bricks efficiently and eco-consciously. The company’s manufacturing process is ever-evolving, employing the world’s best technology and environmental protection features.
Whilst the solid nature of the brick grounds Longueville House in a sense of structural strength, its light colour interacts with the warm undertone of the timber and the abundant natural light, creating a welcoming atmosphere through soft architectural detail.
In Longueville House, the wall of Bowral Bricks in ‘Chillingham White’ refer to the exterior materiality whilst gently defining the boundary between the original house and the extension. “The statement brickwork anchors the new design to the old,” says Vanessa. “The new design has a lighter feel about it, but also one of solidity in line with the old building. The light-coloured bricks create a glow that is warm yet gentle and creates interest with texture.”
The brick wall extends beyond its function as a boundary marker. Drawn together with concrete and timber, the bricks complement an experientially complex, tactile material palette. Whilst the solid nature of the brick grounds Longueville House in a sense of structural strength, its light colour interacts with the warm undertone of the timber and the abundant natural light, creating a welcoming atmosphere through soft architectural detail.
Carefully selecting complementary brickwork for the interior, Vanessa Wegner Architect carries a feeling of contemporary familiarity throughout the home whilst respectfully acknowledging the building’s past.
