A Melbourne architecture firm makes homes from impossible shapes. By Kerryn Ramsey
Architecture firm, McBride Charles Ryan (MCR), is renowned for its unique, visionary designs. Its projects are built utilising technical excellence and exacting construction techniques. With a portfolio ranging from gymnasiums and hospitals to public buildings and residential homes, the firm embraces innovation and daring design.
Along with a slew of other awards, MCR won the Victorian Architecture Medal—the highest state award—three times and received the World Architecture Festival award for ‘Best House’ category. Needless to say, this is a firm unafraid of taking chances.
“When creating a residential building, we always consider the surrounding environment very closely,” says Debbie Ryan, owner and co-founder of MCR. “The home should be an integral part of the landscape. We look at the history of the area and the natural environment. We take in things like arts, mathematics, materials, technology and sustainability.”
Here are three examples of MCR-designed homes that have changed the architectural landscape.
Cloud house
Located in the Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy, MCR’s Cloud House is a double- fronted Edwardian cottage that smoothly transitions into the 21st century. From the street, it seamlessly fits in with the streetscape and the surrounding environment. Walk through the house towards the backyard and you’re transported into a breathtaking living space that looks like, well, a cloud.
“The clients wanted to fit in with the neighbourhood and not offend anyone,” says Ryan. “Originally, they just wanted a box and we gave them a traditional extension design. We heard through a mutual friend that they were a bit disappointed so at the next meeting, we presented them with the cloud concept. They absolutely loved it.”
As the house sits on an elevated block, MCR could have designed it to step down like a wedding cake to meet the setback rules. Instead, they rolled it over gently and created a whimsical and inviting place to live.
Klein bottle house
A Klein bottle is a one-sided shape described in a branch of mathematics called topology. For MCR, it’s also the starting point for a striking house in the beachside suburb of Rye on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula. The shape of the house is based on a spiral coming around on itself.
“The Klein bottle house is located on a large block of land backing onto a national park,” says Ryan. “We asked the clients where they would camp on the block and that’s where we placed the house. It’s protected from the winds, has views over the treetops and you can hear the sea.”
The house is a symphony of angles and aspects, simultaneously leaping out at you and receding back. Cement sheeting is used for some of the walls, a nod to the old fibro beach shack.
“By considering the environment, there was very little cut-and-fill on the site,” says Ryan. “We worked with what was there to get the most out of the position.”
Dome house
Located in the Melbourne suburb of Hawthorn, the Dome house is based on the concept of a fragmented sphere. The radical design works beautifully in its suburban street setting.
“We wanted to interpret and update the level of detail that’s exhibited in the local historic houses,” says Ryan. “There was also a lovely old tree on the site we wanted to save. This is a layered, surprising home. Aspects reveal themselves as you move through the space. It’s not just a single idea.”
Sympathetic buildings
Responding to the environment is a vital part of the work that’s created by MCR. House and landscape must coexist as one.
“We take into account the natural and built environment of a location,” says Ryan. “We also consider the Indigenous and more recent history of a site. An understanding and knowledge of a particular area can lead to all sorts of interesting outcomes.”
