Remnant House

Low cobbled stone barricade and rich timber walls — contemporary new home — Ballarat Region — Moloney Architects

Black steel staircase in front of old red brick wall — contemporary new home — Ballarat Region — Moloney Architects

External view of rich timber walls and roofing — contemporary new home — Ballarat Region — Moloney Architects

Warm timber external walls, timber battens and light-grey brick — contemporary new home — Ballarat Region — Moloney Architects

Undercroft with warm timber walls and ceiling with circular void in ceiling's centre, looking out to outdoor living space — contemporary new home — Ballarat Region — Moloney Architects

Timber batten fence, backyard lawn and warm timber external walls — contemporary new home — Ballarat Region — Moloney Architects

Built-in timber shelving in living room with sheer white curtain — contemporary new home — Ballarat Region — Moloney Architects

Warm timber shelving and walls in kitchen with black benchtop — contemporary new home — Ballarat Region — Moloney Architects

Warm timber internal walls surround a bay window — contemporary new home — Ballarat Region — Moloney Architects

Warm timber wall at bedhead in bedroom, looking through to green tiled wall Ballarat Region — Moloney Architects

Light-green tiled bathroom and bench — contemporary new home — Ballarat Region — Moloney Architects

Architectural diagram of house — contemporary new home — Ballarat Region — Moloney Architects

Size

900sqm

Location

Ballarat Region

Completed

2022

Builder

Dome

Photography

Ben Hosking

Styling

Nat James

Landscape

Janine Bryne

Awards

Houses Magazine Australian House of the Year, Finalist

Remnant House is a new home built around the ruins of a homestead lost to bushfire. The new building creates three sides of a square courtyard that carves out a domestic-scaled garden space from the property’s much larger rural landscape. The house is comprised of three connected pavilions – the main home, guest accommodation, and an entertaining area. At the centre of the courtyard, a contemporary steel staircase provides access to the basement ruins which have been left in their fire-scarred condition. This former architectural space is now a sunken garden at the heart of the house that offers an opportunity to reflect on the history of the site and the remnants left behind. Rotated slightly from the original building’s alignment, the new house is orientated directly north to align with a view of the property’s ornamental lake. The building details play with the mismatched alignment of the ruins and new house via a series of angled blade walls that create deep ‘picture-frame’ structures on the north facade. Window seats and wide glazed areas in the new building connect the interior to intimate views of the courtyard and the wider landscape. The house is constructed from limestone, concrete, steel, and naturally fire-resistant blackbutt.