Cummings House
The original house was designed by architect Robert Cummings as his family home and built by J.M.Finlayson in 1936. Arcke's renovation to “Cummings House” respects and draws cues from the refined simplicity of this Heritage listed building. Cummings established the UQ School of Architecture and is generally credited for bringing modernism to Queensland.
Our clients provided a brief idyllic for our design philosophy that included the reuse and sympathetic modification of interior spaces with the requirement for additional space. Arcke’s intervention has celebrated the original modernist features, leaving the original idiosyncrasies of the existing house relatively untouched.
The addition of a striking pavilion to the rear is a symbiotic yet distinct work designed for contemporary living. The roof form of the new pavilion references the original house, turning up to the north east and down to the harsh western sun. The pitch of the form rises to meet the angle of traditional tiled roof to allow both to comfortably coexist. The wide, sheltering brim of the canopy is an external space of its own, protecting the jewelled box that is a modest timber room within.
The street view of the house has remained, except to reinstate a slender stairwell pop-out to the southern elevation. Moving through the stairs one seemingly transitions from the inside to the outside at the half landing return where views within and beyond site are framed.
Awards
2021 AIA Brisbane Regional Commendation - Heritage
2021 Habitus House of the Year - Heritage