A professional couple with two young children decided that they no longer wanted to live in the past — well, at least in a certain bygone decade.
They loved the ornate Victorian exterior of their home in the leafy Melbourne, Australia suburb of Malvern, but the 1980s addition behind it had zero character. So when they hired Kathryn Robson and Chris Rak of Robson Rak, they asked for the team to build a modern extension that would complement the property's original architecture and better connect the spaces to the outdoors.
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To do that, the firm created an airy floor plan that hints at the front facade's color and detailing with brown brick and warm timber paneling. The extension's fireplace — which is visible from the front door — is designed to be a central axis of the new space, and its accompanying glass bi-fold doors open the kitchen to the terrace and pool area. Now the space represents the past and the present, all so that the family can see their future here.
