Marie Ave Alteration

Project Name: Marie Ave Alteration Designer: David Maurice, LTD Architectural Project Cost: $450,000 Project Description/Brief: This existing house was to be altered and re-clad in order to modernise it; to link indoor and outdoor spaces; and to provide more home office space. With the clients being in the media industry, the home needed clean aesthetics yet be able to withstand the rigors of their young family. Design Features and Creative Solutions: Assorted cladding panels are spaced rhythmically around the building with reference to timing and sound. The lower level monolithic panels are spaced regularly (keeping time) while the upper level vertical cedar boards expand and contract in width across the façade, providing movement and energy. The master bedroom overlooks the pool area and an expanded dining area with operable glazing that can be completely opened up on the lower level, which becomes pivotal in linking the internal and external spaces. Technically, the cedar panels form a true rainscreen system with both a primary and secondary cavity to manage moisture at the building envelope. This provides a cladding system superior to the previous direct fixed rendered polystyrene system and has added significant value to the property. All panels needed to be removable for the maintenance and cleaning of the substrate, and this provided a challenge in terms of setout and configuration. It was decided to make the panels off-site as exterior joinery items, demanding accurate architectural setout drawings and a high standard of workmanship.