When the present house owners bought artist Olivia Spencer-Bower’s former house, the Christchurch-style home remained in principally unique situation.
The home was initially designed in 1968 by D.A Cowey & McGregor with a second storey addition by Cowey & Mills in 1984 after Olivia’s demise, and later alterations by subsequent house owners.
Having been initially designed for only one particular person, the unique home had appropriately modest proportions, particularly within the dwelling and sleeping areas. It grew to become Johnstone Callaghan Architects’ job to retain the house’s character, whereas higher adapting it to swimsuit a younger household with interconnected dwelling areas and practical facilities. Referencing and recognising the mid-century particulars whereas offering a recent interpretation was the purpose.
Johnstone Callaghan Architects’ method targeted totally on inside reconfigurations to restrict works, permitting the shoppers to stay within the house for many of the undertaking.
‘We eliminated inside partitions and construction, and hid new structural components the place potential. If we couldn’t, we celebrated these and detailed these truthfully to reference present particulars,’ says Prue Johnstone, Johnstone Callaghan Architects co-founder.
As works unfolded, the undertaking scope expanded to incorporate earthquake remedial works.
Supplies had been chosen to match the unique mid-century and Christchurch-style structure – types that share various commonalities.
‘These ideas, together with well-proportioned areas and an honesty of supplies (and others) had been key concepts we aimed to proceed to hold into our design and choices,’ says Prue.
Hero supplies embrace painted concrete block, timber joinery, a terracotta Dekton-clad kitchen island, cork flooring, and Artedomus Antilia toilet tiles that reference unique mosaic detailing. A stainless-steel plate benchtop within the kitchen introduces a recent factor that’s each sturdy and practical.
A low Gib ceiling added within the ‘80s was aligned with the unique rooms utilizing reclaimed timber and color matching stains.
The architects resisted altering the exterior material of the house, however had been in a position to incorporate a brand new pool and deck space, which sensitively ties into present panorama components.
Prue says essentially the most rewarding factor of this undertaking has been seeing the household use and stay within the areas as envisaged.
She provides, ‘This can be a lovely and profitable undertaking as we’ve got retained an present house and improved it to swimsuit trendy household life – a testomony to the shoppers dedication to protect architectural historical past and carry it into the long run.’
