Winter Architecture together with ambitious clients and an inventive carpenter created a unique space for a family of four within an existing 60's era shophouse apartment, within an $18,000 budget. Located in central Torquay, the tiny 45sqm apartment recedes against a backdrop of aged shopfronts and new commercial developments. The apartment sensitively considers the family's distinctive living programme, dividing and arranging modified off the shelf joinery and soft furnishings to facilitate private and shared spaces. A light palette of birch ply, white paints and textiles have been incorporated as a means to enhance the infiltration of natural light, increasing perceptions of spatial volume and pairing with the existing timber floorboards. The kid's bunkroom incorporates neat storage solutions, with simple split-level bunks enabling individualised views outside and personalised spaces inside. Furthermore, light grey pinboard has been added to the walls of the bunkroom, providing further opportunity for the kids to personalise their spaces. The master bed platform offers neater tailored storage solutions, with a delicate curtain offering privacy whilst still allowing filtered light into the shared living area. The 2x4 kitchen has been maintained for its coastal charm, with the introduction of a folding table extending the kitchen workspace or serving as a dining table. The folding table operates on a piano hinge supported by a simple folding arm below and fixed above with humble yacht hardware, suggested by the carpenter; the epitome of the shared, modest design approach underpinning this project. The Torquay Compartment Apartment seeks to address the intensities of a family's domestic program within a tiny footprint. Winter Architecture sought to simplify these intensities through clever planning, storage and methods of enclosure. Moreover, whilst Torquay battles a myriad of unsympathetic development, the Compartment Apartment offers an exploration into the understated Australian coastal dwelling of years gone by, maintaining that it can, and perhaps should be done within a small footprint and modest budget.
