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    Alexander & Co carves out spaces for calm and play inside Pacific House

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    Australian architecture practice Alexander & Co has overhauled this oceanside home in Sydney to make it more suitable for family life.

    Before its renovation, the five-bedroom house had a disjointed floor plan that was proving inefficient for its two young owners and their three children. Many of the rooms were also cut off from views of the garden and the ocean beyond.
    Pacific House’s kitchen is decked out with oakwood and different types of marble”[Pacific House] was substantial in structure but devoid of spirit and certainly absent of any operational utility,” said Alexander & Co’s principal architect Jeremy Bull.
    Tasked with making the home a “functional engineer of family life”, the practice decided to carve out areas for activity and play, alongside spaces with a calmer, more contemplative ambience for the adults.
    The cosy breakfast nook backs onto a curved windowAt the heart of the plan now sits an expansive kitchen. All of the cabinetry is made from warm-hued American oak, while panels of a paler European oak were laid across the ceiling.

    Jagged-edged pieces of Grigio Firma, Grigio Lana and Carrara marble were set into the kitchen floor.
    Arched doorways open onto the gardenInhabitants can eat at the central island or take a seat at the breakfast nook, which is tucked against a huge concave window.
    Its form nods to the architectural style of P&O – an offshoot of modernism that was popular in 1930s Sydney and drew on the streamlined curves of Pacific and Orient-line cruise ships.
    Neutral hues were applied throughout the formal dining areaTwo arched doors at the front of the kitchen grant access to the garden, where there’s an alfresco seating area.
    A new swimming pool was added in an excavation pit that had previously been created in the home’s driveway.

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    The rest of Pacific House’s ground floor includes a rumpus room for games, parties and recreation, plus a sophisticated dining area decked out in neutral hues.
    There’s also a spacious living area with Mario Bellini’s Camaleonda sofa for B&B Italia, which looks out across the ocean waves.
    An Afghan rug printed with abstract shapes and a couple of triangular marble coffee tables add to the more fun, graphic look that the practice sought to establish in this room.
    The living area is arranged to prioritise ocean vistasSpaces become slightly more muted on the floor above, which is accessed via an oakwood staircase.
    In the principal bedroom – which features another P&O-style curved window – walls are rendered in concrete.
    Grey terrazzo and marble was used to cover surfaces in the bathroom, clashing against the pattern of the grey mosaic flooring.
    The primary bedroom has a curved window and a greyscale en-suiteAlexander & Co has completed a number of other projects in Sydney including an Italian trattoria and most recently its own studio, which is housed in a converted Victorian-era residence.
    Formal workstations are built into the building’s basement, but the remaining residential-style floors accommodate a kitchen, living room and library where staff can brainstorm ideas.
    The photography is by Anson Smart.

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      Alexander & Co maintains residential feel inside self-designed Sydney office

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      Australian architecture practice Alexander & Co has created its own office inside a Victorian-era property in Sydney.

      Situated a stone’s throw from Bondi Beach, Alexander House acts as a “design laboratory” where Alexander & Co’s team can meet, collaborate and find space to work independently.
      Alexander & Co’s self-designed office has a double-height kitchenThe homely office occupies a semi-detached property that dates back to the Victorian period. Though the practice decided to preserve the building’s original facade, its interior was completely remodelled to function as a modern workspace.
      Staff enter the office via a ground-level vestibule with rammed-earth walls before climbing a flight of stairs to reach the open-plan living and dining area on the first floor.
      A “cafe-style” area provides seating for staffOne half of the space is dressed with an angular olive-green sofa, a glossy coffee table and a puffy grape-coloured armchair.

      The other half of the room is occupied by a double-height kitchen. At its centre is a chunky breakfast island crafted from pink-hued concrete, around which the team can congregate for meals, client catch-ups or company events.
      Construction waste was used to make furnishings in the courtyardAdditional seating is provided in a “cafe-style” area at the edge of the room, which features a custom leather seating banquette, cane chairs and a couple of tables.
      Concertina glass doors at the rear of the kitchen open up onto a courtyard. This houses a pool and an ice bath alongside a collection of mottled stools and side tables that were custom-made out of waste generated from the building’s renovation.
      A cosy library can be found on the building’s mezzanine level”Beauty can be found in the irregularities and developing patinas that have resulted from incorporating handmade and natural materials throughout our new space,” explained the practice.
      “Blemishes, cracks and connections – they are all magic and inform our storytelling through scale and detail.”

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      Directly above the ground floor is a generous mezzanine level that accommodates a cosy library space where Alexander & Co can host more intimate meetings.
      The room’s bookshelves and kidney-shaped table are crafted from walnut wood, while chocolatey leather curtains are suspended in front of the doorway.
      Visiting team members from other offices can stay over in the bedroom suiteThe narrower end of the mezzanine was turned into a quiet work area for up to five people, finished with a thickset concrete ledge for laptops.
      The upper floor of the building was made into a bright loft-esque space. Here there’s an events room and a bedroom suite, where visiting team members from other offices can stay.
      Down in the basement is the practice’s materials libraryTraditional workstations can be found down in the basement along with Alexander & Co’s materials library.
      From this level of the building, you can also access the landscaped back garden, which will be used during the summer for alfresco gatherings.
      A concrete staircase runs through all four levels of the buildingAll four levels of the building are connected by a concrete staircase with brass balustrading and a dramatic seven-metre-long pendant light dangling through its central void.
      Alexander House is one of six projects shortlisted in the small workspace interior category of this year’s Dezeen Awards.
      Others in the running include F.Forest Office by Atelier Boter, which sits within a glass-fronted building in a Tawainese fishing village, and Samsen Atelier by Note Design Studio, which also serves as a wine bar.
      The photography is by Anson Smart.

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      Timber and rattan add warmth to Glorietta eatery in Sydney

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      Australian studio Alexander & Co has added wooden furnishings and a caged rattan ceiling to the formerly austere interior of this Italian restaurant in Sydney. Glorietta occupies a ground-level unit of a recently completed tower in the bustling business district of North Sydney. The 220-cover restaurant has been designed by Alexander & Co to feature […] More