Skip To Main Content
Issue 59 - The Life Outside Issue

Issue 59

The Life Outside Issue

Introducing the Life Outside issue of Habitus magazine. With life increasingly being absorbed into a digital space, there is never a more important moment to hold something tangible. In this context, the power of nature to have a physiological impact on our sense of wellbeing has never been more important. So how can we cultivate the benefits of the our natural environment in the most intimate of places – our homes? This was the question that helped to bring this issue of Habitus to life.

A Product of

How to modernise a Surry Hills warehouse
HomesAndrew McDonald

How to modernise a Surry Hills warehouse

Australia

The refurbishing of a rundown warehouse into a new mixed development in the heart of Surry Hills presented a range of design options. Austin is the result.


Austin saw Smart Design Studio imbuing the existing warehouse building with a new lease of life, with a reorganizing of its interior spaces into an extended ground level commercial space, two levels of high quality residential apartments, and a lower ground floor car park.

The warehouse is located in the inner-city fringe of Surry Hills and features new, thoughtfully proportioned and articulated rectangular openings. To give a sense of scale, the new hand-painted steel windows span over two levels and present as double storey windows from the interior. Though they appear bold and simple on first glance, a closer inspection reveals a window within a window; each of the small window sections has a slightly different location relative to the grid of larger windows creating a subtle artistic façade.

The apartments themselves are light filled, contemporary spaces, designed within a wedge-shaped context resulting in each apartment varying slightly to its neighbour. The all-white interiors and grey floors are accented by full-gloss rust joinery.

The basement commercial area featured split-level floor design, with an abundance of light and while originally conceived as a restaurant space, is utilised as a successful retail store.

What was originally a warehouse for a timber yard and the manufacture of lathes is now a contemporary and location specific mixed-use residential and commercial space. The building has been designed with an environmentally sustainable focus and includes spaces naturally ventilated using a light well or roof skylights; performance glass, and external roller blinds; rain water collection and reuse for toilets and watering plants; energy and water efficient fixtures and solar hot water to all the apartments; and a through maximizing the reuse of the existing building.

Smart Design Studio
smartdesignstudio.com

SDS-0704-Austin-01-exterior-side-wide-view
SDS-0704-Austin-04-exterior-day
SDS-0704-Austin-06-lounge
SDS-0704-Austin-07-kitchen
SDS-0704-Austin-08-kitchen
SDS-0704-Austin-10-bedroom

 


About the Author

Andrew McDonald

Tags

Home ArchitectureHouse ArchitectureResidential Architecture


Related Projects
Issue 59 - The Life Outside Issue

Issue 59

The Life Outside Issue

Introducing the Life Outside issue of Habitus magazine. With life increasingly being absorbed into a digital space, there is never a more important moment to hold something tangible. In this context, the power of nature to have a physiological impact on our sense of wellbeing has never been more important. So how can we cultivate the benefits of the our natural environment in the most intimate of places – our homes? This was the question that helped to bring this issue of Habitus to life.

Order Issue