Cascade House

2022 National Architecture Awards: Residential Architecture – Houses (Alterations & Additions) – Shortlist

Cascade House | John Ellway

Traditional Land Owners: Turrbal and Yuggera nations

A 1900s timber cottage sits on a wide but shallow site with a small addition added to the side. The addition visually recedes, separated by courtyard and landscape, leaving the original cottage sitting proudly to the street.

The addition becomes the more public parts of the house. It is broken up into a series of split levels to mediate a large topography change across the site. A place to gather for meals and games opens onto on grass and across pool. A lounge and breezeway connect the extension to the cottage which now contains the private bedroom & bathroom spaces. The pitch of the verandah roof is extended over the cascading split levels below, protecting them from the afternoon western sun.

Moving across the linking breezeway, the new extension sits below eye level, editing out the foreground, and allowing an uninterrupted outlook to the sunset, valley, and hills.

Client perspective:
How does the design benefit the way you live/work/play/operate/educate/other?

The walls we call home are so much more than the beautiful images that lay before you. These walls hold space for a young family of 5 to connect and evolve with each other and our sub-tropical surroundings. Here we dream, play, work, create, entertain and relax. The modest footprint and clever use of levels that cascade down the hill, open around a central courtyard. This is the living heart of the home, bringing us together yet instilling a feeling of expansiveness and connection with nature. We’re forever grateful to make memories in such a lovely home, thank you.