An Arts and Crafts Villa - Essendon
This impressive Reformist (Arts and Crafts) style villa with its original brick fence may be found in the inner northern Melbourne suburb of Essendon.
Built between Federation (1901) and the Great War (1914), the choice of red brick to construct the villa with is very in keeping with the Arts and Crafts Movement, as is the shingling of the bargeboard underneath the gable. What makes this villa stand out from its neighbours is its unusual hipped roof, picked out geometric brick patterns and its sloping sides. The leadlight glass windows featuring a geometric pattern are also Arts and Crafts influenced.
Arts and Crafts houses challenged the formality of the mid and high Victorian styles that preceded it, and were often designed with uniquely angular floor plans. This house appears to be no exception to the rule as it has a side entry and an enclosed balcony that overlooks the street, which suggest a less traditional layout.
Essendon was etablished in the 1860s and became an area of affluence and therefore only had middle-class, upper middle-class and some very wealthy citizens. Not as large as its neighbours, a villa like this built in one suggests that it was built for an aspiring middle-class family . This villa would have required a live in maid to help her mistress, and probably the assistance of a "daily" woman to do all the harder chores.
An Arts and Crafts Villa - Essendon
This impressive Reformist (Arts and Crafts) style villa with its original brick fence may be found in the inner northern Melbourne suburb of Essendon.
Built between Federation (1901) and the Great War (1914), the choice of red brick to construct the villa with is very in keeping with the Arts and Crafts Movement, as is the shingling of the bargeboard underneath the gable. What makes this villa stand out from its neighbours is its unusual hipped roof, picked out geometric brick patterns and its sloping sides. The leadlight glass windows featuring a geometric pattern are also Arts and Crafts influenced.
Arts and Crafts houses challenged the formality of the mid and high Victorian styles that preceded it, and were often designed with uniquely angular floor plans. This house appears to be no exception to the rule as it has a side entry and an enclosed balcony that overlooks the street, which suggest a less traditional layout.
Essendon was etablished in the 1860s and became an area of affluence and therefore only had middle-class, upper middle-class and some very wealthy citizens. Not as large as its neighbours, a villa like this built in one suggests that it was built for an aspiring middle-class family . This villa would have required a live in maid to help her mistress, and probably the assistance of a "daily" woman to do all the harder chores.