Twin Rail House
Twin Rail House revives a grand, historic home with connections to railway design and turns it into a fun and bountiful place to live for a growing family and their relatives.
Location: Gadigal Country - Woollahra, NSW
Site Size: 895m2
Structural: Cantilever
Landscape: Dangar Barin Smith
Interiors: Handlesmann + Khaw
Planner: GSA Planning
Visualisation: Place by paul
The project retains the historically significant portions of the manor house and couples a contemporary but sympathetic new addition to the back. Twin courtyards allow light to pour into the outdoor spaces and main living areas through large glass doors and a six-meter atrium over the dining area. Upstairs, brand new bedrooms and bathrooms provide generous and flexible private spaces for sleeping, working and playing.
Further down the site, a garage, office and guest house is connected to the mudroom and kitchen via an open, green-roofed walkway. The effect, encloses the yard and pool on three sides, giving it the feel of an oasis within a busy urban area.
Built in 1885, the original house is peppered with whimsical, decorative features like port-hole windows, stained glass and pressed-paper wainscotting. To tie the old and new together, we’ve continued that sense of playfulness and ornament throughout the new design with features like vaulted cross inlays at the external column junctions, the decorative curved bands in the slab edges and in the brick relief arches on the laneway that reference the preserved heritage windows.
By tying together, the old and the new via stories, details and materials, Twin Rail House feels like a unified family home where elements from the past and present harmoniously coexist.
Further down the site, a garage, office and guest house is connected to the mudroom and kitchen via an open, green-roofed walkway. The effect, encloses the yard and pool on three sides, giving it the feel of an oasis within a busy urban area.
Built in 1885, the original house is peppered with whimsical, decorative features like port-hole windows, stained glass and pressed-paper wainscotting. To tie the old and new together, we’ve continued that sense of playfulness and ornament throughout the new design with features like vaulted cross inlays at the external column junctions, the decorative curved bands in the slab edges and in the brick relief arches on the laneway that reference the preserved heritage windows.
By tying together, the old and the new via stories, details and materials, Twin Rail House feels like a unified family home where elements from the past and present harmoniously coexist.