Tempered Balance – Netherby by Neil Architecture and Megan Hounslow
Netherby brings a sense of clarity and resonance to its storied past, with Neil Architecture and Megan Hounslow combining to craft the foundations for the home’s coming chapters. Throughout the restoration and addition, the careful intertwining of history with contemporary relevance carves the ideal tempered balance between preservation and transformation.
Channelling some 140 years of history, Netherby sees the expansion and restoration of a stately Victorian home, imagined through a respectfully modern lens. Situated amongst similarly scaled grand homes of its era in Hawthorn, in Melbourne’s east, its current custodians are a young family whose own spatial and living intricacies shaped the brief. The Victorian period afforded many decorative and delicate ornamentation; integrating this layered charm amongst a contemporary and animated life called for a unique approach. Joining forces, Neil Architecture and Megan Hounslow carefully attuned both the architectural and interior responses, respectively.
“I felt a responsibility to preserve the home’s character by engaging traditional craft techniques and hand-honed trades.” (Megan Hounslow)
