The Vader house began as an alteration to an existing Victorian terrace house in inner city Melbourne, Australia. The brief from the client, a professional couple, was for a large flexible area suitable for entertaining and viewing the city. The design accommodates three separate elements: the existing house, and a new central courtyard, followed by an extra entertaining area, which now both occupy the former backyard.
Openness and adaptability were central to the project. Open or closed, multifunctional zones allow the focus to be changed as and when needed, blurring the boundaries between inside and outside. The use of glass throughout provides a strong feeling of light. Glazed bi-fold doors allow spaces to peel back, joining the old to the new, melting the corridor into the courtyard, drawing the decking into the living room or allowing the kitchen to become part of the action.
But this isn’t just a glorified outpost. Lopez and Rivera designed the 22 rooms with clean lines and sleek, powder-coated steel to balance the rough world outside. The rooms center on what the architects call 'inhabitable windows:' big, glassed-in pop-outs where you can sit and contemplate the desert without getting sand in your espadrilles.
