Bespoke Revival – Evelyn by Myers Ellyett Architects
Embodying the bespoke revival of a 1911 cottage, Evelyn is a built response to its clients’ lifestyles. Crafted by Myers Ellyett Architects, the nuanced family home is designed to emphasise a centrally-positioned garden.
Situated in the Brisbane suburb of Paddington – an area renowned for its character houses – Evelyn offers a tranquil retreat from the hectic nature of inner-city life. As both Jade Myers and William Ellyett have children of the same age as their clients Ian and Laura, the architectural firm was well-positioned to understand the demands of a family-focused brief. Detailed was a decoratively subtle dwelling, with understated colours and materiality that enabled the backyard to form the focal point of family life. The front door of Evelyn sets the pared-back tone of the house; comprised of a vertical, fence-like timber screen, the feature introduces the idea of indoor and outdoor living within an unobtrusive architectural framework.
Myers Ellyett Architects takes care to respectfully reimagine the heritage property, using its design legacy to inform new additions, which elegantly reflect the clients’ taste. Following Ian and Laura’s request, the practice crafts a single-level home – the spatial solution sees the cottage lifted with a series of new gable roofs that match the pre-existing building. Furthering the smooth integration of old and new, the treatment of the ceilings inside the house mirrors the old vertical joint boards etched into the concrete arch of the façade. In terms of materiality, timber is consistently featured as a continuation of past design, with the original worker’s section of the house embraced as a particularly thorough display of handcrafted woodwork. Pure and detailed, the use of timber throughout the home pays homage to the history of the building, imbues the house with a sense of rhythm and contributes to the growing narrative of the home.
Architecturally, the design of Evelyn highlights the garden as the centre of family life. “As you peel inside, you arrive underneath an olive tree on a lawn in an outdoor room,” says William Ellyett, Co-Director of Myers Ellyett Architects. “There’s no celebration of a big grand entrance or big void – the big void is the yard, it’s the lungs and heart of the entire house so we deliberately downplay every other aspect around it.” The passion underpinning the project is palpable. “Every circulation path, every room, every moment and every aspect of this house responds back to the lawn, the pool and the garden that it’s nestled within,” he explains. The walls of Evelyn feature glassless shutters that promote the merging of indoors and out whilst effortlessly catching the breeze. To William, the restrained, settled and open nature of the building clearly expresses “what it means to be a Queenslander”.
Internally, Evelyn includes serene bedrooms and bathrooms to the rear, delineated by a system of inserted arches. In the bedrooms, the windows predominantly face south, enabling cool air to penetrate the space in summer while large fins located to the north orientation open the spaces to beaming winter sunlight. Each room sees sliding glass panels soften the boundary between the interior and nearby greenery. In the bathrooms, green terrazzo is used as a more decorative exploration of the surrounding vistas, wrapping the spaces and creating a sense of being immersed in the garden. Myers Ellyett Architects promotes a feeling of relaxation by means of simple and refined design – the limited material palette of Evelyn draws attention to fine and modest detail, establishing a remarkably peaceful home environment.
An open and sophisticated home, Evelyn testifies to the vision of a family residence shared by both the architects and clients. The completed project is defined not only by its ability to reflect a lifestyle but also by the bonds formed during its creation. “To spend time with Ian and Laura and have a much longer lasting friendship at the end of this project is rare,” says William, “but it’s the one thing that makes doing what we do so special.”
