JAST

This renovation takes a neoclassical rowhouse as its starting point, with a brief centred not on expansion but on unlocking the spatial potential already present in the existing footprint.

Like many older rowhouses, the property had accumulated a rear addition over time, typically the least considered part of the building. Its slight angle was retained rather than corrected, generating a quiet dynamism in the plan and articulating the relationship between living, dining and kitchen in a way a straight plan could not.

Full-height glazed façades replace the existing rear walls, dissolving the boundary between inside and outside and improving natural light throughout the ground floor. A steel structure of slender columns and a single spanning beam carries the rear volume, opening up the plan without adding floor area; rather than being concealed, the steel becomes the project's architectural highlight.

The original timber joist ceiling is retained and exposed, grounding the design in the building's history, while a palette of light, reflective surfaces compensates for its modest height. In the kitchen, the worktop is cut precisely around the columns and the cabinetry slides beneath the counter as mobile units. A continuous concrete floor runs from interior to exterior, anchoring the home to the garden.