Bush Ballad

This sensitively renovated mid-century home in Melbourne’s leafy outer suburbs is a fitting nest for a worldly couple with a love of the outdoors

- dan f. stapleton

WHEN ART DIRECTOR JESSICA LILLICO and photographer Sean Fennessy began searching for a home for their growing family, they were less concerned with extra bedrooms and more interested in places that had a certain je ne sais quoi. “We wanted to find a house that would be inspiring to live in,” says Jessica. “It didn’t need to be big or grand, but it did need to feel special.” Eventually, they identified an outer-Melbourne property with a stellar pedigree: it had been designed by the prolific architect Alistair Knox, whose interest in sustainable design and use of Australian materials and tones have recently won him much acclaim. Jessica, who refers to the style as “Bush Modernism”, says of Alistair: “There’s something about his priorities that feels timeless.”