Chen Anselmi Units

With skill, imagination and discipline, the architects – who were their own clients – have placed two units on half a suburban lot, extracting the most from their budget and site.

The architecture is necessarily reductive, but never mean; the design delivers many clever solutions and unexpected moments. While tight physical and fiscal parameters put a premium on efficiency, the architects have managed to achieve spatial delight. They have deftly handled natural light and made good colour choices, and the sensitivity they have demonstrated towards their own living environment is matched by the consideration they have shown to their neighbours. This is an exemplary piece of work – a masterclass in achieving more within less.