Project Overview

Tate presents eight curated homes in Kew’s exclusive Sackville Ward, brought to you by ANGLE in collaboration with leading design firms Cera Stribley Architects and Eckersley Garden Architecture, along with market leading European appliances from Gaggenau and custom-designed wardrobes from furniture pioneer Poliform.

Townhome One is the flagship of the development, on the north-east corner of the site, with an individual entry directly off the street and the largest outdoor area. Cera Stribley designed this home to maximise these opportunities and also found ways to clearly individualise it so that it wasn’t recognised as being part of a multi-residential setting.

Tate is simply put as a project of flawless artistry, similar to the place of its namesake – the Tate Modern in London. Cera Stribley Architects was inspired not only by the gallery’s history and prominence in the international art scene, but also by the residences that surround it in London’s rich architectural landscape. Kew’s own Tate aligns with London’s distinctive style of residential design, known for elements of symmetry, traditional proportioning and strong masonry.

Organisation

Angle

Project Brief

ANGLE’s overall brief to Cera Stribley Architects was to be respectful of the neighbouring heritage homes while ensuring the townhomes were crafted with a modern, innovative twist. As such, the architects drew much of their inspiration from the Edwardian, angular roof forms prevalent throughout Kew. Tate’s architecture depicts a composition of angular formations, bringing a dynamic energy not only to the facade, but to the internal spaces within each home. These interior angles offer a strong sense of entry to each residence; really emphasising that feeling of ‘coming home’.

The theme of the angular forms was also carried through to the townhouse one glass skylight that is a unique feature from the street. Again this is a modern twist on the heritage homes in the immediate area. At night, the lights in these spaces create a ‘lantern’ effect – which is a distinctive and simply beautiful touch for this home.

Project Innovation/Need

With its striking angular form, Tate has pushed boundaries with its design, and is starkly unique compared to other recent townhouse developments. Townhouse one includes high-end design features that are rarely found in comparable townhouses.

Some of these features include Poliform Robes imported from Italy, Gaggenau appliances in the kitchen, Liebherr fridge and freezer from Germany, heated floors in the ensuite, air conditioning and heating that can be controlled remotely and a turntable for this dwelling’s car parking.

The brickwork and strong masonry that is synonymous with heritage homes in Kew is something that was important to capture. As opposed to other townhouses that generally specify brickwork to a minimal area of the design, Townhome One has hand made bricks throughout the entirety of the facade imported from Barcelona from a company called Piera Ecocerámica.

Design Challenge

The key challenge was sourcing the bricks and ascertaining the most functional manner in which to build the ’Tate Moderne’ inspired facade. Given this was the ‘hero’ element of the design, we initially spent a lot of time with the design team and builders. This included looking across the globe for the perfect bricks – ones with sufficient texture and a level of discrepancy - which were eventually sourced from Piera Ecocerámica in Barcelona. Because we decided we wanted to use bricks throughout the exterior, we also had the obvious challenge of using bricks as a roofing material on the pitched façade. The builders and design team spent a lot of time researching and consulting as a group to ensure this detail could be built efficiently, which allowed us to succeed with this in the long term.

For Townhouse One specifically, as the flagship home of the development, ANGLE gave Cera Stribley instructions to define this clearly as an individual home, and not part of the larger development. The difficulty and design challenge here is that townhouse two is adjoined to townhouse one and also mirrors the floorplan. Cera Stribley’s solution was the insertion of an angular glass skylight as well as a black steel strip contrasted against the lighter bricks to clearly define the extent of the home. Not only was this successful at distinguishing the homes, it also is a unique feature in the top floor of the dwelling and a huge talking point for guests.

Sustainability

Ensuring we met and exceeded sustainability requirements was at the forefront of our minds during Tate’s conception. Some of the measures we have incorporated include high performance thermal envelopes with concrete slabs, high efficiency LED artificial lighting throughout, motion detector controlled lighting in common areas and water efficient fixtures. All of the development’s living and bedroom areas are naturally cross ventilated with windows on opposite or adjacent facades. Water is also collected from the upper roof, and is directed to the 12kL rainwater tank connected to all townhouse toilets and landscape irrigation. Additionally, Tate has a walk Score of 72 and is a three minute walk from the 109 tram which travels from Port Melbourne to Box Hill.