London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Wednesday, Sep 03, 2025

A Melbourne Bungalow’s Courtyard Extension Creates a Window to the Sky

A Melbourne Bungalow’s Courtyard Extension Creates a Window to the Sky

Inspired by the iconic home of Australian architect Sir Roy Grounds, the extension artfully blurs the boundaries between interior and exterior spaces.

After a family moved from the bushy region of Victoria’s Surf Coast to a California-style bungalow in the Melbourne suburb of Elwood, they wanted to maintain a close connection with the outdoors. California bungalows, however, aren’t known for their relationship to the outdoors, so the family approached Rob Kennon Architects to reimagine their home.



Kennon’s response was to introduce a "sun tracker and sky farmer"-in other words, an open, circular courtyard with a sizable garden at the center.

"The design revolves around this need for a connection to the outdoors-literally and figuratively-by orienting itself away from the suburban context and toward the centralized outdoor space," says Kennon. "The resulting form ensures the experience within the home is never absent of garden or sky."



Kennon’s design takes inspiration from renowned Australian architect Sir Roy Grounds’s own home, Hill House. One of the most celebrated works of modernist architecture in Australia, the home features a perfectly circular glass-walled courtyard within a square of solid brick walls.



Like Hill House, Elwood Bungalow relies on the idea of subtracting space as much as adding it. The single-story extension builds up to all three boundaries of the yard, enclosing a central, circular courtyard. "The renovation turns away from the neighboring blank boundary walls and overlooking windows, and instead favors an inward dial plan that infinitely looks onto itself," explains Kennon.



The extension is a marked improvement over the use of space at the rear of the home, which was previously a neglected garden. Now, the entire footprint is used; even the pathway that connects the front garden to the courtyard is carefully landscaped.

"The resulting home visually and functionally aligns with the family’s values of openness and connectedness," says Kennon. "The front yard can be used for a cricket match while someone is entertaining out the back."



Unsurprisingly, the renovation necessitated a sensitive relationship between the architecture and garden design to realize the vision. Rob Kennon Architects collaborated closely with Eckersley Garden Architecture to create the circular courtyard garden, where a single sculptural tree and artfully planted shrubbery create a synergy with the built form.



Throughout, the cost effective material palette-including walls of recycled masonry and a concrete ceiling and floors-takes inspiration from the original home while complementing it. The textural details, such as painted brick, timber joinery, and tiles, are a contemporary nod to the "noisy" elements of the original architecture, such as stucco and decorative wood.



"The architecture enhances the family’s communal lifestyle," says Kennon. "The absence of corners in the centralized garden facilitates a continuous fluctuation of views and lighting conditions into and across the space."



Concept sketch for Elwood Bungalow by Rob Kennon Architects



Ground floor plan of Elwood Bungalow by Rob Kennon Architects



First floor plan of Elwood Bungalow by Rob Kennon Architects



Section of Elwood Bungalow by Rob Kennon Architects

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Google Avoids Break-Up in U.S. Antitrust Case as Stocks Rise
Couple celebrates 80th wedding anniversary at assisted living facility in Lancaster
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
The White House on LinkedIn Has Changed Their Profile Picture to Donald Trump
"Insulted the Prophet Muhammad": Woman Burned Alive by Angry Mob in Niger State, Nigeria
Trump Responds to Death Rumors – Announces 'Missile City'
Court of Appeal Allows Asylum Seekers to Remain at Essex Hotel Amid Local Tax Boycott Threats
Germany in Turmoil: Ukrainian Teenage Girl Pushed to Death by Illegal Iraqi Migrant
United Krack down on human rights: Graham Linehan Arrested at Heathrow Over Three X Posts, Hospitalised, Released on Bail with Posting Ban
Asian and Middle Eastern Investors Avoid US Markets
Ray Dalio Warns of US Shift to Autocracy
Eurozone Inflation Rises to 2.1% in August
Russia and China Sign New Gas Pipeline Deal
China's Robotics Industry Fuels Export Surge
Suntory Chairman Resigns After Police Probe
Gold Price Hits New All-Time Record
Von der Leyen's Plane Hit by Suspected Russian GPS Interference in an Incident Believed to Be Caused by Russia or by Pro-Peace or by Anti-Corruption European Activists
UK Fintechs Explore Buying US Banks
Greece Suspends 5% of Schools as Birth Rate Drops
Apollo to Launch $5 Billion Sports Investment Vehicle
Bolsonaro Trial Nears Close Amid US-Brazil Tension
European Banks Push for Lower Cross-Border Barriers
Poland's Offshore Wind Sector Attracts Investors
Nvidia Reveals: Two Mystery Customers Account for About 40% of Revenue
Woody Allen: "I Would Be Happy to Direct Trump Again in a Film"
Pickles are the latest craze among Generation Z in the United States.
Deadline Day Delivers Record £125m Isak Move and Donnarumma to City
Nestlé Removes CEO Laurent Freixe Following Undisclosed Relationship with Subordinate
Giuliani Seriously Injured in Accident – Trump to Award Him the Presidential Medal of Freedom
EU is getting aggressive: Four AfD Candidates Die Unexpectedly Ahead of North Rhine-Westphalia Local Elections
Lula and Putin Hold Strategic BRICS Discussions Ahead of Trump–Putin Summit
WhatsApp is rolling out a feature that looks a lot like Telegram.
Investigations Reveal Rise in ‘Sex-for-Rent’ Listings Across Canada Exploiting Vulnerable Tenants
Chinese and Indian Leaders Pursue Amity Amid Global Shifts
European Union Plans for Ukraine Deployment
ECB Warns Against Inflation Complacency
Concerns Over North Cyprus Casino Development
Shipping Companies Look Beyond Chinese Finance
Rural Exodus Fueling European Wildfires
China Hosts Major Security Meeting
Chinese Police Successfully Recover Family's Savings from Livestream Purchases
Germany Marks a Decade Since Migrant Wave with Divisions, Success Stories, and Political Shifts
Liverpool Defeat Arsenal 1–0 with Szoboszlai Free-Kick to Stay Top of Premier League
Prince Harry and King Charles to Meet in First Reunion After 20 Months
Chinese Stock Market Rally Fueled by Domestic Investors
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
Ukrainian Nationalist Politician Andriy Parubiy Assassinated in Lviv
Corporate America Cuts Middle Management as Bosses Take On Triple the Workload
Parents Sue OpenAI After Teen’s Death, Alleging ChatGPT Encouraged Suicide
Amazon Faces Lawsuit Over 'Buy' Label on Digital Streaming Content
×