A Contextual Sensibility – Thornbury Residence by Pierce Widera

Responding to the original character and inherent charm of the existing Edwardian-era home, Thornbury Residence is conceived from a contextual sensibility. Pierce Widera combines a muted approach with a contemporary relevance to create a home of anticipated longevity, extending the original house’s narrative.

Within the medium density of its mainly residential locale, Thornbury Residence respects the home’s original elements and celebrates its existing character and personality through curated intervention. Working within the original envelope of the home and with an extension to the rear, the new works aim to extend the house’s relevance as a family home by aligning with more familiar contemporary living conditions. Through the reconfiguring of the existing formality and offering an open communal space that connects with the garden, openings and intentional connections create an ease of flow between inside and out. Pierce Widera implements a muted and neutral approach to ensure a seamless transition between the old and the new, injecting a sense of cohesion into the home as a whole.

Through the reconfiguring of the existing formality and offering an open communal space that connects with the garden, openings and intentional connections create an ease of flow between inside and out.

Built by Connelly Builders, Thornbury Residence is a familiar story– the inheriting of previous heritage features reflective of another time, when the handmade and crafted were celebrated, and then combining these with a want to preserve and create a functional contemporary home. Through reconfiguring the interior and adjusting the formality and planning of the existing, additional support spaces were added as well as newly crafted joinery elements, allowing for a more efficient use within the same bounding volume. The rear addition then aligns and extends outward, subtly adding volume, while maintaining the exiting proportions and scale. Increasing natural light was a key focus, and the opening up volumetrically combined with the use of select materiality ensured this could be achieved, both emphasising each other.

Envisaged as a destination in itself, the rear addition unfolds as its own lofty space, with high ceilings and a sense of spatial generosity. Housing the open planned living, dining and kitchen spaces, key furniture, artwork and styling items add an expression of personality, while aligning with the same restraint seen throughout. A calming palette of neutral tones and greys are offset by light oak flooring that add a nuanced warmth and texture to the home. The extension of the same cohesive palette extending from the old through to the new allows the addition to feel deliberate and a natural evolution of the original home, bringing it together as one space. The bathrooms offer a soft and calming escape, detailed with a matched muted sensibility.

The extension of the same cohesive palette extending from the old through to the new allows the addition to feel deliberate and a natural evolution of the original home, bringing it together was one space.

Thornbury Residence offers a considered extension of the original home’s narrative through incorporating and highlighting the existing character and fusing it with contemporary elements. Pierce Widera brings a restrained rigour, conjuring a calm and reclusive family escape.