Location: Camberwell, Victoria
Architect: Chadwick Architects
Original Era: (c. 1940)
Toorak Road, Camberwell | Renovation and Addition
This design for this project was for a sensitive renovation and substantial rear addition to an existing clinker brick residence on Toorak Road, Camberwell. The design approach sought to honour the integrity and character of the original dwelling while delivering a contemporary family home of exceptional liveability.
Exterior & Street Presence
To the street, the character of the original clinker brick form, existing pitched slate roof, brick chimneys, and traditional massing was intended to be kept original. A new single-storey addition extending horizontally across the frontage, clad in matching brick and anchored beneath a boldly cantilevered flat concrete soffit. This contemporary intervention is deliberately restrained, dark-framed steel and glass windows and a broad garage panel introduce modern precision without disrupting the neighbourhood streetscape. Formal gardens and low brick planter walls reinforce the civic quality of the front boundary.
Rear Addition & Garden Aspect
To the rear, the new addition opens expansively to the garden through a full-width glazed facade of floor-to-ceiling steel-framed windows and sliding doors. A louvred pergola structure extends the living space outward, providing a sheltered alfresco dining terrace that steps down to a generous lawn. Corten steel planter beds and curated garden borders frame the outdoor rooms with a refined softness. The rear elevation presents a seamless dialogue between architecture and landscape.
Interior
The interior of the new addition is designed as a singular, flowing open-plan living, dining, and kitchen volume of generous proportions. White oak timber flooring runs the full length of the space, grounding the interior in warmth. A dramatic full-height stone-clad splashback anchors the kitchen, complemented by integrated timber joinery and a waterfall island bench. The living zone is defined by a linear gas fireplace set within a textured plaster wall, flanked by bespoke timber shelving and cabinetry.