Ben Callery Architects

03/09/2026

Mud Brick House, Eltham
We love mud brick homes and their beautiful connection to place, built from the earth, embodying the ethos of natural building championed by Alistair Knox.

This house began life as an unremarkable 1970s brick veneer, before receiving a Knox extension in 1973. That addition introduced two beautiful mud brick walls among other beautiful defining elements of that era: a basket-weave recycled brick floor and exposed structural timbers

But alongside these qualities were some of the less successful hallmarks of the era including low ceilings, dark rooms, long corridors and poor thermal performance, leaving the house cold in winter and hot in summer.

Despite its strong visual and emotional connection to nature, the house didn’t perform well environmentally. And its small, dark, poky rooms didn’t meet the needs of a modern family.

50 years on, our renovation and extension retains and celebrates what was great about the original: the mud brick walls, brick floor and exposed timber posts. At the same time, the house has been opened up, with raised ceilings drawing in natural light and warming winter sun, while creating view lines to the surrounding trees.

The original Oregon floor joists were carefully retained and, through the huge efforts of our builders, reappropriated as exposed rafters within the new raised ceilings, giving the old timber a new life.

Thermal performance has been dramatically enhanced with new double-glazed composite windows and new insulation throughout.

New materiality reinforces the sense of natural tranquility, with with blackbutt cabinetry and silvertop ash ceilings sitting comfortably alongside the original palette, while being clearly legible as contemporary.

The result is a home that retains and enhances the spirit of the original and the ethos of Knox’s ‘Living in the Environment,’ while bringing it forward to meet the lifestyle and thermal expectations of today.

Builder Truewood Constructions
Photo Marnie Hawson
Photo styling H A N N A H N O W L A N
Project team Mat Westphal Jennifer Payette Tim Shallue

01/09/2026

Creating space and light in Carlton North for a family of four downsizing without empty-nesting, into a single-fronted heritage terrace house.
Roof deck, skylights and a stair void that doubles as a light court all combine to connect the house to the sky and natural light, creating an expansive sense of space within a compact footprint.

17/08/2026

14/08/2026

Mud brick House, Eltham
Truewood Constructions

10/08/2026

Serene and spacious bathroom at Trapeze Terrace.
In a 5m wide terrace house, spatial efficiency is everything, but that doesn’t mean rooms have to feel compact or tight.
This bathroom uses natural light, vistas to greenery and complimentary finishes, to create a sense of space, light and tranquility.
All while also providing a family sized euro-laundry behind the blackbutt veneer doors.

Great work FERNE BUILT
Marnie Hawson
H A N N A H N O W L A N

06/08/2026

We’re looking for a new team member!

We have a role for a Masters of Architecture graduate with knowledge of Revit, Enscape and Adobe.
Having had experience in the workplace would be ideal.

Being a deliberately small team, we employ enthusiastic, self-motivated all-rounders.

You’ll have the opportunity to experience all aspects of the architectural process from conception to completion.
All of our team members contribute to sketch design, detailed design, construction documentation and contract administration on-site during construction.
Perfect experience to prepare for your registration with the ARBV.

We’re a small, energetic but easy-going studio in Thornbury/Northcote. We’re passionate about design and sustainability and love working with like-minded people to create beautiful architecture; Buildings that interact with the elements to be naturally comfortable and delightful to occupy, while energy and resource efficient.
Using natural materials and natural light, we design buildings to lift people’s spirits and provide a warm embrace.

Email your CV and folio by Friday 14th August to [email protected]

Looking forward to hearing from you!

05/08/2026

A new extension we’re designing in Northcote’s Sumner estate.
Adjacent to Merri creek, the site is surrounded by established trees that provide habitat to wildlife.
The extension for a nature-loving couple provides tranquil cosy spaces to curl up immersed in the garden, bathed in natural light.
The deliberately compact footprint will leave abundant space for a garden by Emmaline Bowman | STEM Landscape Architecture to provide even more habitat for wildlife and enjoyable space for green-thumb humans. 🌱🌿🐝🪺🦜🦉😊

Great job Nada Khartabil - Architecture

04/08/2026

We’re looking for a new team member!

We have a role for a Masters of Architecture graduate with knowledge of Revit, Enscape and Adobe.
Having had experience in the workplace would be ideal.

Being a deliberately small team, we employ enthusiastic, self-motivated all-rounders.

You’ll have the opportunity to experience all aspects of the architectural process from conception to completion.
All of our team members contribute to sketch design, detailed design, construction documentation and contract administration on-site during construction.
Perfect experience to prepare for your registration with the ARBV.

We’re a small, energetic but easy-going studio in Thornbury/Northcote. We’re passionate about design and sustainability and love working with like-minded people to create beautiful architecture; Buildings that interact with the elements to be naturally comfortable and delightful to occupy, while energy and resource efficient.
Using natural materials and natural light, we design buildings to lift people’s spirits and provide a warm embrace.

Email your CV and folio by Friday 14th August to [email protected]

Looking forward to hearing from you!

📷 Marnie Hawson

29/07/2026

Trapeze Terrace, the owners wanted an intimate space connected to nature and surrounded by the warm embrace of natural materials… and a spot for their record collection🎶😊

Built by: FERNE BUILT ADB Carpentry Services
Photos: Marnie Hawson
Photo styling: Belle Hemming Bright

16/07/2026

An exciting new project coming soon in Brunswick, a high-performance home with Sanctum Homes and Platylobium Landscape Design

It’s a great site, adjacent to beautiful parkland, backing onto factories and warehouses, and fronting onto a bike thoroughfare (so Brunswick, love it! 🌳🏭🚴‍♀️❤️)

The house will connect the occupants with the elements and nature, while also engaging selectively with the community and passers-by, providing a beautiful, naturally comfortable inner city retreat for its family.

Mat Westphal