2020 Australian Interior Design Awards: Residential Design

Jury comment

Budge Over Dover is a beautiful project that displays a consistency between the interior design and styling that reveals complete unity of big picture ideas. The jury especially commended the designer for showing great skill in working with the existing building fabric, which resulted in a radical transformation that never battles against the original structure, but instead feels completely natural and effortless.

The exquisite palette of materials, colours, textures and accents uniquely responds to the client’s brief without relying on a conventional vernacular and the result is completely unexpected, while still being restrained and elegant. A sculptural aesthetic defines the overall scheme and there’s also a clear relationship to the exterior, resulting in a seamless integration between inside and out. This is a lovely way to treat the home’s spaces, highlighting the interior’s exceptional proportions in the process.

Design statement

A sculptural aesthetic defines this home with balanced proportions seamlessly integrating the outdoors with the indoors on both levels of this coastal dwelling. Swathes of soothing colour flow from textured walls into ceilings. What was previously a warren of dark rooms and hallways has been transformed into a family sanctuary. At the client’s request, angular, stark features were removed, including aluminium door and window frames and heavy veneer finishes. The central dining room’s walls were demolished and the ceiling raised in the kitchen and living area in order to link the oddly configured spaces. This enabled easy supervision of the couple’s youngest children (including a crawler) and natural light to flow throughout the spaces. Gently rounded edges were requested to soften features, including arched walkways and doors, banquette seating in the living area tracing a curved wall, and a hemp-rendered fireplace with an integrated seating perch and bookshelf.

Design practice — YSG

Project team — Yasmine Saleh Ghoniem

The Award for Residential Design supported by Sub-Zero Wolf. The Australian Interior Design Awards are presented by the Design Institute of Australia and Artichoke magazine. For more images of this project, see the Australian Interior Design Awards gallery.