East Maddisons

A Rolleston family home organised around a double-height atrium

AO Architecture designed East Maddisons in Rolleston for a family of five who wanted generous shared spaces alongside places to retreat. We organised the two-storey house around a central atrium, with kitchen, dining, living and lounge spaces gathered around it below and a curved concrete stair and bridge connecting the bedrooms, study and second living area above.

One shared centre

Four living zones occupy the ground floor around the atrium. They remain visually connected, but each has enough definition to support a different activity.

Upstairs, the same void keeps the second living area and study connected to family life below. A bridge crosses the centre of the house between the parents’ and children’s bedroom areas, so moving between the private rooms repeatedly brings you back through the shared space.

That openness comes with less acoustic separation between the two levels than a closed hallway arrangement would provide. Here, the priority was maintaining visual and spatial connection through the centre of the house.

Following the light overhead

A sequence of rooflights runs along the central axis from the entrance towards the rear of the house. Above the bridge, the glazing follows the pitched roof between exposed black steel members.

Walking across the upper level, you look up through those rooflights and down into the living spaces at the same time. Black perforated-metal balustrades keep those views open while defining the edges of the bridge and stair.

Casting the stair in place

At the centre of it all is the curved concrete stair. We cast it in situ, with extensive formwork required to achieve its changing geometry and exposed underside.

The finished concrete remains visible from the kitchen and living areas. Its curve rises through the atrium beneath the straight black steel bridge, while the perforated-metal balustrade follows both elements.

Sunlight passing through the metal throws its pattern across the concrete treads.

East Maddisons upper landing beside the curved stair, with black mesh balustrades and large rooflights following the central atrium.
East Maddisons entrance view centred on the curved concrete stair beneath a black mesh bridge and skylight.
East Maddisons stair details showing the curved concrete flight and black mesh balustrade overlooking the living area below.
East Maddisons living area with curved concrete stair, black mesh balustrade, red brick wall and rooflights across the double-height space.
Curved concrete stair sweeping above the East Maddisons kitchen, with black mesh balustrade and polished floor below.
East Maddisons bathroom vanity beneath a sloping ceiling, with twin round mirrors, timber benchtop and rooflight above.
East Maddisons bathroom with freestanding bath and glass shower against large pale marble-patterned wall tiles.
East Maddisons dark kitchen and island framed beneath the sweeping underside of the curved concrete staircase.
Overhead detail of the East Maddisons curved concrete stair and black mesh balustrade casting patterned shadows across the floor.

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