Red Hill House and Studio by Zuzana & Nicholas

Good design is honest, innovative and functional. This principle guides Zuzana & Nicholas in a reworking of a 1910 worker’s cottage in Red Hill, Queensland, combining simple design with moments of interest and intrigue.

The project skilfully balances work and home life, functioning as both a residence and an architecture studio for its creators. Zuzana Kovar and Nicholas Skepper of Zuzana & Nicholas draw inspiration from historic renovations and mixed-use developments to merge their family home with their workspace while retaining the unique charm of the existing cottage.

The project skilfully balances work and home life, functioning as both a residence and an architecture studio for its creators.

From the street, Red Hill House and Studio maintains the classic charm of the area’s worker’s cottages, with its panelled facade and simple landscaping. Once inside, the space reveals a transformation into a more contemporary and functional residence. The living, kitchen and dining areas form a seamless flow that captures northern light, each space offering views of the greenery beyond. At the southern end of the home, the atmosphere shifts to a more private and intimate setting, with bedrooms tucked away and the original bathroom modernised, including a relocated basin in the hallway. The studio occupies the lower level, accessible from the side street – a bustling urban intersection – while a steel mesh screen shields the verandah, providing security and some privacy.

The material palette is restrained and pared back, dominated by timber and concrete. In the bedroom and living areas, Tasmanian oak is used for the walls and cabinetry, complementing the original hoop pine floorboards and hoop pine plywood cabinets in the kitchen. The dining space continues the timber theme with painted plywood walls that go with the Sarelle limestone flooring. This combination creates a warm, cocoon-like environment – an inviting retreat from the studio below. The connection between the two levels is via a blackbutt staircase, which contrasts with the studio’s more refined feel, characterised by burnished concrete floors, raked cement render walls, hardwood sliding doors and off-form concrete downturns that double as seating.

From the street, Red Hill House and Studio maintains the classic charm of the area’s worker’s cottages, with its panelled facade and simple landscaping.

Zuzana & Nicholas also oversaw the landscape design, aiming to improve the connection between the home and its garden. The team transformed the rear of the existing cottage by inserting a retractable wall that creates large openings, merging indoor and outdoor spaces. With ample garden space already present, the studio was set 450 millimetres into the ground. This design choice allows the studio to extend directly into the garden and the street, providing natural shade and creating a comfortable, well-ventilated workspace.

The renovation of Red Hill House and Studio redefines an old worker’s cottage to suit contemporary living, offering a refreshing space where family life and work blend harmoniously.

Architecture and landscape design by Zuzana & Nicholas. Build by Thirdson Construction. Engineering by NGS Structural Engineers. Wall tiles by Eco Outdoor. Artwork by Keith Burt, Anna Varendorff, Michael Cusack, Hannah Smith, Freda Davies, David Quinn, Josef Tockstein, Jitka Valova, Evan Hecox, Kat Shapiro Wood and Susie Duggin.