Bordering Collingwood and Abbotsford – two of Melbourne’s most sought-after neighbourhoods, is Habitat, 38 boutique residences designed by ITN Architects. We spoke to ITN’s Director Zvi Belling who shared some insight into the inspiration behind the design.
Urban.com.au: Where did you draw inspiration for Habitat Abbotsford from?
Zvi Belling: This architecture is an urban response to the rapidly changing fabric of Abbotsford. The streetscape has been consolidated with a threaded copper and concrete band of balconies, bringing activity back to the street and providing a crafted foreground to this historical skyline.
U: What were the top 5 features you decided had to be included in the development and why?
ZB: The entry is flanked by a quaint Abbotsford worker’s cottage and an iconic V-shaped column recalling the heroism of mid-century modernism. The journey through the entryway is punctuated by a series of circular skylights and dappled light filters through various patterned privacy screens. The stone paving is lined with lush greenery fed by a colonnade of old-fashioned watering chains.
U: What do you think buyers love most about Habitat Abbotsford?
ZB: All habitable rooms have access to natural light and passive airflow by means of an arrangement around a central courtyard and the bounding streets and laneways, providing light, breeze and community. Living areas are open plan flexible spaces that interface directly with kitchen and dining zones as well as extend out to the copper-lined balcony spaces, they allow a variety of furniture configurations that orientate to internal and external views and wall arrangements with considered art and technology possibilities. A communal resident gathering space claims the precious city views.
U: If you had to choose your favourite aspect of the building, what would it be?
ZB: The facade presents as a series of interlocking copper and concrete links each expressing residential components that combine to form a textured woven fabric greater than the sum of its parts. Materials are rich and unpolished. The concrete is patterned with a natural timber grain, the copper has patina and reflection and the paving is rough-hewn stone. The building elements exude permanence, feeling as though they have always been there complimenting the colourful and gritty character of Abbotsford.
U: What makes your project stand out from other properties on the market?
ZB: Materials have been selected for their durability and low maintenance properties and assembled in a stylish matrix of muted tones. they transmit a sense of light and calm while the weathered character of course-grained external copper linings and exposed patterned concrete seamlessly blend with expansive glass walls integrating into the grain of the Abbotsford street.