Colour and transparency define this Melbourne house by Krisna Cheung Architects
Krisna Cheung Architects designs a compact, playful and colourful home, Colour Shingle, in North Melbourne, using a semi-transparent facade made of Perspex tiles
![Colour Shingle house](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/KjbGkmiPKuhQoK6w46ecDJ-415-80.jpg)
Founded by Elisabet Krisna and Ray Cheung, Melbourne-based Krisna Cheung Architects is a young, boutique, husband-and-wife practice with big ideas for everyday designs. The pair have worked together since 2006 – first on their own home, and then on residential projects around town. The whimsically named Colour Shingle is the latest of its kind in their portfolio.
The house sits right next door to an earlier work by the pair – the award winning Studio Garage. ‘This new project [is] a result of a neighbour’s covetous glances, evidence of the viral power of an idea given form,' says Cheung. ‘Incidentally, the neighbour on the other side of the Studio Garage has also requested one.'
Colour Shingle is indeed the latest in a series of backyard, infill explorations for the architects, who have been developing this typology on narrow residential sites across North Melbourne – including with their own home office, Cubby office.
‘The challenge of this particular project then was how to evolve an already successful design so that you don’t simply create a carbon copy, while still coming up with something that complemented the adjacent original design,' says Cheung.
Colour Shingle is – just like Studio Garage – quite a compact piece of work. Spanning just two levels, it only contains a garage on the ground level, and an open plan, minimalist and beautifully detailed studio space above. Created as a fairly humble in size, backyard project, it demostrates the inventiveness and flair of this young studio; because, while it may be small, ordinary, this house, is not.
The project takes its name from its playfully colourful facade, which is made entirely out of non-structural, semi-transparent shingles. This gives the design its unique character and uplifting style that looks pleasantly multi-coloured during daytime, and glows like a lantern at night.
The architects find the use of the word ‘viral' interesting in the context of design. ‘This project represents an effort to scale up a typology through viral repetition, while maintaining architectural and design quality through imagination and playfulness,' explains Cheung. ‘It is somewhat unique in that it is not a standalone project, but an organic progression from a prior successful design, which is arguably more representative of real-world architectural practice.'
INFORMATION
krisnacheungarchitects.com.au
Wallpaper* Newsletter + Free Download
For a free digital copy of August Wallpaper*, celebrating Creative America, sign up today to receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories
Ellie Stathaki is the Architecture & Environment Director at Wallpaper*. She trained as an architect at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece and studied architectural history at the Bartlett in London. Now an established journalist, she has been a member of the Wallpaper* team since 2006, visiting buildings across the globe and interviewing leading architects such as Tadao Ando and Rem Koolhaas. Ellie has also taken part in judging panels, moderated events, curated shows and contributed in books, such as The Contemporary House (Thames & Hudson, 2018), Glenn Sestig Architecture Diary (2020) and House London (2022).
-
Feel at home at Auberge, Château La Coste's new inn for culture lovers
Auberge La Coste sits at the heart of the art-filled estate, minutes away from the joyful town of Aix-en-Provence
By Harriet Thorpe Published
-
This Nova Lima apartment is a Brazilian family oasis with striking Minas Gerais views
A Nova Lima apartment designed by Jacobsen Arquitetura celebrates its long, natural Minas Gerais vistas
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Commune’s sustainable personal care products look ‘quite unlike anything else’
Commune’s Somerset-made products stand out in the sustainable skincare crowd. Madeleine Rothery speaks with the brand’s co-founders Kate Neal and Rémi Paringaux
By Madeleine Rothery Published
-
Proclamation House is a hempcrete urban sculpture nestled under peppermint trees
Built from hempcrete and stone, Proclamation House, a sculpturally angular build in Perth, Western Australia, carves out an intriguing niche on a quiet suburban street
By Carli Philips Published
-
Remembering Alexandros Tombazis (1939-2024), and the Metabolist architecture of this 1970s eco-pioneer
Back in September 2010 (W*138), we explored the legacy and history of Greek architect Alexandros Tombazis, who this month celebrates his 80th birthday.
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Sun-drenched Los Angeles houses: modernism to minimalism
From modernist residences to riveting renovations and new-build contemporary homes, we tour some of the finest Los Angeles houses under the Californian sun
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Behind the timber façade of a Byron Bay house in Australia
Son Studio designed this Byron Bay house as an honest exterior for a light-filled Australian retreat
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
South Yarra House makes a sculptural statement in Melbourne
South Yarra House by Pandolfini Architects explores the interplay of compression and expansion through a series of surprising sculptural objects in Australia
By Grace Bernard Published
-
Burnt Earth Beach House is an experimental retreat crafted in terracotta
The experimental Australian Burnt Earth Beach House by John Wardle breaks new ground in material composition, using baked earth for warmth, texture and tonality
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Lavender Bay house opens towards the water, overlooking Sydney harbour
Lavender Bay house by Tobias Partners is an expansive family home overlooking Sydney harbour
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Mori House is an Australian beach escape fusing international design influences
Mornington Peninsula's Mori House by architect Manuel Aires Mateus is a striking fusion of Australian, Portuguese and Japanese design influences
By Stephen Crafti Published