Situated in Melbourne, the Hill House is an interesting house re-planned & redesigned by the team of Andrew Maynard Architects. On the site, an existing structure had been built in the 90′s, but Maynard’s clients wanted to explore further to add on or fix their slightly problematic home. The architects’ first challenge was to capitalize on the sunlight. “The site faces north therefore relegating the backyard, the family’s primary outdoor space, to shadow throughout the year,” they noted. The team proposed the build of a cool new structure on the southern edge of the site. The new structure faces the sun, the pure cantilevered box above acts as the passive solar eave, cutting out summer sun, while letting winter sun flood in. With the addition of this new structure, the backyard became a central common space for the family. The grass slopes up into the side of the home and creates a grassy knoll on the second floor as well. The slope idea was originally meant to be stairs, but the concept evolved into a hill after concluding that it is nicer to enjoy the sun on a slope rather than stairs, thus giving birth to the Hill House.
