Ross Street Residence is a design for clients who wanted their home to be a reinterpretation of an Asian courtyard house that was suitable for an urban Australian context. The front and back are intentionally understated and austere to celebrate privacy created by the inward-facing design.
A pathway underneath a canopy of maple trees along the side of the building brings visitors directly into the heart of the house.
Inside, the open plan surrounds a central courtyard with a single Mount Fugi cherry tree. Climbing vines cover the walls so the overlooking living spaces each have lush, green outlooks, including upper level rooms with operable shades that open to the courtyard below.
Strongly grounded, the house has a unified use of concrete floors internally and externally with large sliding glass so the whole house opens to create a blurring of inside and outside. Pushing into the house, the pool intersects the rear glazing line to sit inside the living area. The natural render and stucco on the exterior provide an enduring materiality the gets better with the passage of time.