A Modest Reimagining – Malvern East House by Studio Esteta

Injecting a contemporary relevance, Malvern East House reconfigures an existing single-fronted heritage home into an open and connected series of volumes. Studio Esteta retains the charm of the existing in aligning the addition to the terrain below, expanding the home through a sensitive and crisply contemporary lens.

Set amongst the heritage-rich inner south of Melbourne, Malvern East House extends a Victorian cottage home as it follows the line of the sloping site, adding an additional level tucked below. Originally contained to one level, the opportunities of the site remained uncapitalised. In expanding the formally planned and separated home, Studio Esteta aims to retain as much of the original detail of the character home and for the new to sit as an equally timeless addition. Extending outward, the double story volume drops to add a level below the original dwelling and tuck in a connected and open living area that extends out toward the landscape. Studio Esteta continues a similar approach to detailing across the various eras, ensuring a combined focus on craft continues.

Studio Esteta continues a similar approach to detailing across the various eras, ensuring a combined focus on craft continues.

A softness flows from the original Victorian home into the new contemporary spaces. Translated in their own differing ways, the volumes come together at a junction point. A newly sculpted archway marks the transition, where the lowering of the additional level naturally follows the line of the landscape below. By more deeply ingraining the built form into the site itself, the engagement with the surrounding landscape comes more naturally and forms a key part of the brief for how the home was to be used. Built by Cobuild and surrounded by a curated setting by Amanda Oliver Gardens, Malvern East House is considered from both its visual connections internally and out toward the encasing greenery.

Aiming to capture a similar timelessness from the Victorian period of the home, the new becomes a celebration of time-wearing, quality materials and forms. Integrated joinery both conceals everyday amenity while adding a sleeve of warmth to the interior through its timber finish. Internally, travertine is used alongside handmade bricks, tiles and timber to continue the narrative of the handmade, while the exterior sees carries the same handmade bricks outward, creating a textural face to the form. Throughout, bringing light inward was a priority, and through openings in the ceiling and additional framed openings to the outside, light is brought in to alleviate the need for additional artificial lighting where possible.

A softness flows from the original Victorian home into the new contemporary spaces.

Wanting to work with the existing, both in form and landscape, Malvern East House is conceived as a considered addition, with a reduced impact from approach. Studio Esteta focuses on preserving and enhancing an integral beauty and charm in expanding the home for its coming chapters.