A Family Home in Melbourne Gets an Extension With a Timber Brise-Soleil

Some might call it a shade structure. But the arbor-esque eave that Architecture Architecture included in the renovation of a family home in Brunswick West, an inner suburb of Melbourne, does more than just cast a shadow.

Because the home’s backyard faced north and west, the challenge for the firm was to devise a way to capture an abundance of sun in the winter, but guard the interiors from heat in the summer. The solution was to create a structure that acts like a brise-soleil. In cooler months, when the sun is lower, light filters through its wooden battens to warm the living spaces. In hotter months, when the sun is higher, the deep eave of structure guards the interiors from glare and heat.

Its metal framework creates a wedge shape that meets the home’s original gable at its peak, creating visual continuity between old and new.

But there’s another benefit: "My favorite aspect of the home is the internal interplay of light created by the arbor," says project architect Angus Hamilton. Over time, deciduous vines will grow around the timber frame, adding to this effect.

During the fall, a sliver of sunlight enters the living space. As winter approaches, it grows and grows until the entire living area is filled with light, warming the concrete and bricks throughout the day. "The cycle of seasonal comfort continues, thanks to a single, simple canopy," explains Hamilton. "Like all natural arbors, it provides a place to gather, to find comfort in shade, and delight in the filigree of sunlight at play."

As for the renovation of the existing home, the entry was retained and restored, and opens into a corridor that leads to kitchen and living spaces that have been opened up. The living space leads to the extension, which accommodates separate dining and living areas, as well as a bathroom, a laundry area, and a study. While the existing home features conventional flat ceilings, the extension’s are lofted and angled, increasing the sense of space.

"Architecture Architecture patiently crafted clever solutions from our design brief through to the end build," says the client. "We could never have imagined how the light would traverse the spaces in such a beautiful and uniquely different way each day of the year."

Related Reading:

A Melbourne Bungalow’s Courtyard Extension Creates a Window to the Sky

A Postwar Cottage in Melbourne Gets a Light-Filled Extension With a Central Courtyard

Project Credits:

Architect of Record: Architecture Architecture / @architecture_architecture

Builder: Appetite for Construction

Structural Engineer: Meyer Consulting

Civil Engineer: Meyer Consulting

Photographer: Tom Ross / @tomross.xyz