Clovelly House is like a liveable piece of art with bits of whimsy, dashes of quirky, and slivers of personal recollection. Madeleine Blanchfield Architects, together with their creative clients, have created a funhouse inspired by a 17th-century lithograph print called, “Marvels of Things Created and Miraculous Aspects of Things Existing”. The print contains five little fishes with human faces – a little odd, but an entirely interesting starting point for a project.
The project at hand? The refurbishment of an existing 1950s house in Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs for an art-loving family of five. The original dwelling lacked a couple of essential ingredients – natural lighting and design fluency. To solve this, the house was completely gutted and only the structural columns and beams were spared. Most walls have been removed. Those that face the external courtyards have been replaced with large windows to make way for the natural light to seep in.
The disadvantage of abolishing the walls is having little space left to hang art. This downside, however, grew into the force that pushed the architects to the design approach that they had — making the architecture the art.
Every spot in the house embodies the family’s deep and creative character. Each tells a story, a memory, an idea… And each continues to patiently wait for more meaning to be formed as new experiences arise. The entire house is the genius aftermath of a collaboration of the best and most beautiful minds — artists, metal workers, curators, textile designers, stone masons, and stylists. Even the little pieces like cushions and fabrics are art pieces themselves, each carefully handpicked. On top of that, each of the several courtyards were executed by different artists.
The new nest has made the clients blissful. “Madeleine Blanchfield transformed our house into a bright, airy jewel box. It really is so beautifully detailed and feels so calm, like being on a holiday. My favourite space is the kitchen because it is the heart of the home where the boys can sit at the bench and we can all be together. We wanted our home to feel serene so for inspiration we gave Madeleine an Indian lithograph. It’s quite whimsical and a bit quirky, which was our starting point for how we communicated what we wanted for the house. The end result is bright and airy, beachy and cosy.”
When the spaces are viewed separately, it seems that each spot of the house is a unique storybook character, fighting for the spotlight. However, because of the intense collaboration between the clients, artists, craftsmen, curators, and of course, the architect, the house has a cohesive and stitched eclectic feel to it. Clovelly House is indeed a standout house that personifies the wonder and inspirations of the people living in it.
Photography by Prue Ruscoe. Joinery by Madden Interiors.
