Bold Front

A 1930s Melbourne duplex is transformed into a richly layered contemporary home.

Pierre Chareau’s Maison de Verre in Paris is as far removed from Melbourne, Australia, as is Donato Bramante’s Tempietto in Rome. The buildings also straddle different time periods. Chareau’s from the early 1930s, and Bramante’s completed in the early 16th century. Yet both became an inspiration for the conversion of a 1930s Melbourne duplex, comprising two apartments, into a single, contemporary home – as it happens, the one I share with my partner, Naomi. 

When we purchased the simple, almost brutalist duplex in South Yarra in 2011, the idea of talking about either Chareau or Bramante would have been odd, given its lack of architectural pedigree. Yet when architect Robert Simeoni first inspected our simple abode, he saw something quite special. ‘There was a wonderful spirit in the existing home, even though it was two separate apartments,’ says Simeoni. He was also captivated by the muted light and the building’s heritage as working-class accommodation in the interwar period. ‘As soon as I stood in the rear courtyard, I could see Bramante’s edifice, something that could stand proud from the original brick structure,’ he adds.