Christopher Polly Carves Vaulted Ceilings and Light Wells into Sydney’s Cosgriff House

<a href="http://christopherpolly.com">Christopher Polly Architect</a> transformed Sydney's tiny Cosgriff House into a gorgeous, modern, light-filled home. The Australian designer added a room underneath and behind the existing structure and left much of the original masonry intact. In so doing he expanded the footprint by a meager 20 square meters but doubled the floor area. He then carved vaulted ceilings and <a href="http://inhabitat.com/tag/light-wells/">light wells</a> into the roof to illuminate the space naturally, and it looks like a whole new house.

The Cosgriff House used to be little more than a tiny bungalow

The client wanted an upgrade but not with undue environmental impact

The designer added a room below and behind the existing structure

The new addition only added 20 square meters to the overall footprint

Louvered shutters control solar gain and privacy

Light wells pump daylighting right to the bottom of the extended home

Several interventions promote natural ventilation

A wide open-plan living area spills out into the garden