Grasmere

by Bryant Alsop

Grasmere House is an early Victorian home, which is has been transformed into a bright and welcoming family home.

Located in Hawthorn, designers Bryant Alsop have maintained the heritage of the house throughout the new design.

By retaining some of the old architecture associated with this house, the new design celebrates the original Victorian character throughout.

From the restored front rooms, the new extension unfolds beyond, wrapped around a new centralised courtyard. This two-storey addition was carefully designed around a 100-year-old Mulberry tree, and directly connects to the rear garden with intermediate outdoor decks.

The owner’s interest in art and design drove the brief and called for a warm, textured palette with rich colour and pattern.

As part of an enduring selection of materials, a structural rammed earth wall in the Living room is a key element that will patina alongside its masonry Victorian counterpart for many years to come. A rear deck off the Living room includes an external fireplace, clad in stone, which ties together the lower living room form and two-storey form behind.

Raw finishes such as timber are celebrated throughout each space, with the exterior walls of the main bedroom clad in an undulating timber cladding, which wraps inside to clad the Living room wall.

The project includes a number of sustainable solutions and implemented passive design techniques to reduce the load on the building’s mechanical systems.

The combination of a central courtyard and wide eaves allowed for adequate solar access to all Living areas, whilst also blocking harsh sun.

There is minimal glazing to the west, and all northern glazing was set back under an eave. A large rammed earth blade wall runs north-south in plan, along the western boundary and coupled with the slab-on-ground construction, these elements provide thermal mass and climactic consistency. High-level operable windows also enable natural cross-ventilation and thermal purging.

Final result of this property is a well-construction design, which both provides plenty of natural light and open spaces for a family, whilst playing homage to the heritage of the house.

Photography by Rhiannon Slatter.

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Keep up to date with The Local Project’s latest interviews, project overviews, collections releases and more – view our TLP Articles & News.

Explore more design, interior & architecture archives in our TLP Archives Gallery.