When Heritage Meets Hue in Fitzroy House
In Melbourne’s Fitzroy, a bold renovation brings new life to a heritage worker’s cottage, blending playful colour with timeless design and plenty of personality.
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A bright yellow door stands out against Fitzroy House’s weathered bluestone façade, hinting at what lies beyond: a vivid, contemporary transformation balancing playfulness with elegance.
Inside, colour, art and texture come together in surprising yet thoughtful ways, honouring the home’s 1800s origins.
This was no ordinary renovation. The client’s brief to interior architect Lee Dwyer of Leftfield Studio and designer Tamara Hannaford-Maizey of Hannaford Design, both based in Victoria, was clear: contemporary and inviting, but with playful twists and deep respect for the home’s history.
“We wanted to celebrate the original 1800s bluestone,” Lee says. “As the project evolved, we embraced a more natural palette, allowing the client’s impressive art collection to take centre stage.”
The result is a home where bold design meets quiet elegance. One standout piece is a neon sign reading “Turn me on”, which casts a vivid glow down the hallway and onto the street after dark.
The home plays with unexpected materials and moments from hidden bursts of Yves Klein blue in bedroom joinery to a mirrored chrome panelled ceiling in the moody ‘Stone Room’.
“In a room entirely bluestone, we felt the need to introduce a softer element,” says Dwyer. “The panels reflect like water and bring a sense of fluidity to the space.”
Dwyer explains that colour and texture are used throughout the home with purpose and restraint—never overwhelming, always intentional.
For Hannaford-Maizey, the balance of old and new was never a constraint — it was an opportunity.
“It was bold and full of rich history, which made the experience exciting and enabled us to think outside the box,” she says.
“The yellow door was a statement, and a little hint of what might be behind the door.”
And while the home feels distinctly fresh, it’s rooted in enduring design values. “It was important to us to create a space that reflected our clients, yet ensuring elements of timeless design throughout the home.”
While the front of the house maintains its 19th-century presence, a previously added rear extension created the opportunity for something entirely new.
Asked to sum up what Fitzroy House means to them, both were emphatic.
“We made some bold design choices that really paid off… It’s not only beautiful but also functional and purposeful,” says Hannaford-Maizey.
Fitzroy House isn’t just a home. It’s a love letter to art, design, and the power of creative trust — where a yellow door marks the start of a journey into something entirely unexpected.
This story appeared in the latest edition of Kanebridge Quarterly Magazine. To purchase a copy, please visit this link.
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The global architecture studio behind some of Sydney’s most recognisable towers unveils Civic Vision, its first Australian exhibition, celebrating more than five decades of design shaping cities worldwide.
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Foster + Partners has opened its first comprehensive exhibition in Australia, Civic Vision, showcasing more than five decades of the practice’s global architectural work.
Staged inside Parkline Place, the studio’s latest Sydney project developed by Investa on behalf of Oxford Properties Group and Mitsubishi Estate Asia, the exhibition highlights the firm’s contribution to civic architecture, urban environments and infrastructure.
Gerard Evenden, Head of Studio at Foster + Partners, said: “We are delighted to be putting on this first-of-its-kind exhibition in Sydney – a city we have been working in for more than 25 years. This is a fantastic opportunity to reflect on our holistic approach to civic architecture, which has underpinned our work since the 1960s, and continues to evolve to meet the challenges of today.”
Partner Muir Livingstone added: “It is a great privilege to showcase the practice’s work in Parkline Place – a project that we have been working on for the past six years – and the new home for our Sydney studio.
“Our projects in the city exemplify the civic and sustainable approach that the exhibition centres on. From our first Sydney project, Deutsche Bank Place, which features a four-storey public plaza at its base, to our work for Sydney Metro, which is transforming the way thousands of people travel across the city.”
The exhibition is organised around three themes – Community + Culture, Living + Working, and Planning + Mobility – and features Australian projects including Deutsche Bank Place, Salesforce Tower and Parkline Place, alongside international works such as the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank Headquarters, the Reichstag German Parliament, and the soon-to-open Zayed National Museum in Abu Dhabi.
Since the 1960s, Foster + Partners has expanded its approach beyond technological innovation to encompass social and environmental design, producing masterplans for carbon-neutral cities and civic infrastructure that prioritise light, clarity and connection.
Civic Vision runs until 21 December on Level 2 of Parkline Place, 252 Pitt Street, Sydney. Entry is free and forms part of the Sydney Open festival program.
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