Tightly Stacked – Richmond One by Heartly

Set behind a row of historic buildings along a main connecting road, Richmond One optimises its challenging site through the creation of a bold outer form focused on bringing natural light inward. Heartly pares back the interior experience, ensuring efficient planning, sustainable systems and a connection to nature are folded in among a dramatic outer silhouette.

Located within its namesake suburb in inner Melbourne, Richmond One certainly makes the most of its mere 142 square metre site. The darkened outer form gives little away as to what layered spaces lie within the home’s four levels. Although the outer gable roof reflects the many workers cottages that don the backstreets of Richmond, its elevation becomes a definitive point of difference whilst also referencing its past. Creating a sense of identity for the owners to personalise and contribute to the eclectic streetscape, the overall form is broken up through darkened timber on the upper two levels, with the main living space on the ground floor remaining more open and approachable. Heartly also excavates one level below ground to further capture valuable floor space.

Integrated joinery that becomes part of the architecture ensures the selected furniture also plays its part whilst being highly functional.

Adding both storage and amenities throughout, the open areas and sense of flow between zones emphasises a modern approach. Integrated joinery that becomes part of the architecture ensures the selected furniture also plays its part whilst being highly functional. Through a vertical stacking, natural light is brought into the spaces from both the front and rear façades, with the flanking sides being more private and inward facing. The introduction of lightwells within the central spaces also ensures the residence feels consistently lit and connected throughout.

Encased in a more robust outer shell, the ground level comprises both masonry and glazed openings, which both ground the property and provide opportunity for movement and visual connections between inside and out. Defining its own presence, the materiality and form creates a break in the mass of neighbouring cottages. Preparing for the coming chapters and reinforcing the considered nature of the home, systems that improve thermal efficiency, such as triple glazing, are combined with thermally broken window framing throughout, together mitigating unwanted heat loss and gain. Using the thermal mass of the concrete flooring in the living space and combined with renewable timber to add visual warmth and texture, the resulting home presents as an elevated offering in comparison to the site’s previous residence.

Through a vertical stacking, natural light is brought into the spaces from both the front and rear façades, with the flanking sides being more private and inward facing.

By engaging the natural elements and carefully planning the various levels, Richmond One comes together as an efficient and honest home of the time. Heartly ensures innovation is rightly combined with an aesthetic personality for the residents to call their own for many years to come.