Australian architectural firm Studio Bright has completed an innovative residential project in Melbourne that uses metal mesh screens designed specifically for climbing plants. The home, called Hedge and Arbour House, features a unique shading system where deciduous vines grow over specially designed metal screens, creating natural seasonal adaptation that provides sun protection during summer months while allowing winter sunlight to penetrate the interior spaces.
Located in Melbourne's suburbs and concealed by a large hedge, the single-story structure was deliberately designed to blend harmoniously with its natural surroundings. Studio Bright worked in collaboration with landscape studio Bush Projects to create walled gardens that flank the home, establishing a seamless transition between the built environment and the surrounding bushland. The architectural approach emphasizes environmental integration rather than dominant structural presence.
"The architectural response is deliberately recessive and quiet, designed to defer to the landscape," explained Mel Bright, principal of Studio Bright. "Instead of a dominant built form, we focused on creating garden walls and thresholds that enhance the transition from suburban fabric to bushland." She further elaborated that "the exterior mesh doubles as a climbing frame for deciduous vines, forming an integrated shading system that admits winter sunlight deep into the interior while shielding occupants from harsh summer heat."
The home's layout centers around two large gardens separated by a central living, dining, and kitchen area. Large sliding glass doors open onto two covered porches that benefit from the shade provided by the plant-covered metal screens. The southern edge of the property features an elongated bedroom block, with the western portion wrapped by a sheltered walkway. This walkway is overlooked by multiple seating areas and work desks positioned beneath large windows along a connecting corridor.
The construction materials were carefully selected for both practical and aesthetic reasons. Behind the perforated metal screens, the structure incorporates pale, solid-face blockwork that remains exposed throughout the interior spaces and is clad with cement sheeting on the exterior surfaces. Studio Bright chose both the blockwork and perforated metal specifically for their durability and low-maintenance properties, while also considering how these materials would contrast with the changing seasonal colors of the surrounding vegetation.
"The house itself is clad in straightforward cement sheeting, keeping maintenance minimal and shifting the emphasis to the arbour, which is low maintenance, and with no applied finish," Bright told design publication Dezeen. "The changing nature of the deciduous creeper vine adds a varied quality across the seasons as the vines go from green to red in Autumn and then fall away completely in Winter."
The project has gained recognition in the architectural community, recently earning a spot on the longlist for the house urban category of Dezeen Awards 2025. This achievement aligns with Studio Bright's previous Melbourne projects that have consistently emphasized close relationships with nature, including a Cremorne residence featuring courtyards surrounded by perforated breeze block walls and a North Fitzroy home organized around eight separate gardens and terraces. The photography for the project was completed by Rory Gardiner, showcasing the successful integration of architecture and landscape design.
