Architecture firm Edition Office has recently completed the Naples Street House, a striking multi-generational residence in Melbourne, envisioned as a carved solid enveloped in bricks. Elevated on a sturdy concrete base, this geometric marvel is designed to house three generations of the client’s family, crowned with a roof that pitches in various directions, creating a series of peaks that add visual interest.
To achieve the effect of a sculpted volume, Edition Office enveloped the home’s walls and angular roof in a cohesive light-hued brick. “The uniform exterior material presents the house as a sculpted entity, echoing the low-slung pitched roofs of the original interwar homes in the area,” the studio remarked.
The design of Naples Street House is intentionally compact, emphasizing the importance of natural space, with a central garden integrated into the layout. “The central garden room invites northern sunlight to flood the living areas during winter, passively warming the thermal mass of the polished concrete floors, while providing natural shade and coolness in the summer months,” explains the studio.
The central courtyard, adorned with the same brick as the exterior, features gentle curves of greenery, creating a serene atmosphere. Inside, the layout wraps around this courtyard, with rooms and corridors that boast expansive floor-to-ceiling windows, seamlessly connecting the interior to the tranquil outdoor space.
Ascending a few steps, a slender doorway opens into one of the corridors of the house. To the right of this entrance lies a grandparent’s ensuite bedroom, while to the left, a cozy lounge area overlooks the courtyard. In a distant corner of the home, the second ensuite bedroom for the other set of grandparents is tucked away just past the living area.
“The twin principal suites for the two family elders are positioned in opposite corners of the house, mirrored by the alternating rooflines that rise and dip in contrasting corners,” the studio explained. “This creates a spatial experience of undulating forms, embodying cyclical change as residents move around the central courtyard.”
Further down the corridor from the main entrance, two more bedrooms await the rest of the family, one featuring its own ensuite bathroom.
Each bedroom exudes an airy ambiance, with expansive windows framing picturesque views of the gardens outside, complemented by white walls and furnishings that harmonize with the pale concrete flooring throughout.
“The bedrooms are enveloped in a soothing grey palette, transforming them into a canvas for the gentle shadows cast by the gardens, which dance across the softly illuminated surfaces,” the studio noted.
The remainder of Naples Street House is dedicated to family living spaces, including a spacious living room flanked on two sides by sliding glass doors. A generous kitchen occupies the final corner of the home, centered around a warm-toned plywood island. Built-in cabinets and walls throughout the kitchen and living areas are adorned with locally sourced plywood. To enhance the brightness of the home’s interior, the folding ceiling is painted in a light grey hue.
The gently rising ceiling surfaces, which elegantly shape the main communal areas for cooking, dining, and relaxing, are adorned in a delicate shade of grey. This choice accentuates the interplay of light and shadow that dances across the meticulously crafted folds, as noted by Edition Office.
“The undulating and intricately folded roofline frames the vistas, ensuring that only the sky and surrounding trees are visible from inside the home, fostering a close connection to the environment, light, sunlight, and the shifting seasons.”