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Architecture/Interiors
House 20
Jolson
28.06.11
Concrete buttresses extrude from sloping ground. These rhythmic elements form a continuous datum upon which the first floor rests; concrete blades in an east-west orientation, which cantilever and stagger beyond the precipice of the bronze wall below. This craning assemblage hovers over an organic knoll of delicately curling asparagus fern, and shelters the entry below.
The house is a sculptural object. The brutal exterior surfaces of the forms jostling concrete blades penetrate the interior, diffusing the interior/exterior threshold and creating a series of individual rooms. The interior unfolds as it is engaged with, rooms fold into each other and are defined by layers not walls.
The interior is dissected by a 3 story void; an empty vertical room within a room. The upper and lower floors are veiled by a knitted stainless steel mesh which allows textured shadow to dance within the interior.
The basement experience embraces dark tones, rich textures, and celebrates ambient natural light. There is a strong dialogue between surfaces and object; polished monolithic black stone, raw mild steel, black leather, knitted mesh, and ‘slick’ body of black water that embodies the indoor pool.
The first floor is the clients retreat with Master bedroom, dressing room and ensuite. The Study hovers above the landscape knoll and engages with the streets’ plane trees. The contrasting light and dark furniture pallet articulate ‘her’ study from ‘his’ amongst the blade walls.
The building faces north and draws in sunlight across its breadth. The void acts as a thermal chimney, drawing fresh air through and expelling above. At its base the pond has a cooling effect. The steel mesh veil reduces direct sunlight entry.
The design affronts the general fascination with mock architectural styles, or adorned boxes with inward looking spaces and a total lack of relationship with site and environment. It engages with the notion of grandness without drawing on imitation, decoration, porticos or columns. Anti-decorative, anti-column.
ARCHITECTURE/INTERIORS
Potts Point Apartment Sydney
Anthony Gill Architects
14.04.11
The project involved the redesign of an existing 38 sq m (400 sq feet)one bedroom apartment in a Harry Seidler Building in Potts Point. The aim was to create a space that would suit a couple with a young child. The existing joinery (not original) was demolished leaving only the masonry walls to the bathroom which remains untouched. A new joinery element was inserted to re-configure the space, addressing the issues of privacy, storage and a lack of living space inherent in an apartment of this size.
ARCHITECTURE/INTERIORS
Grace Darling House Melbourne
iredale pedersen hook
12.05.10
Conceived as a formal emulation of the hip roof of the existing heritage listed residence this substantial addition to a large home seeks to provide an alternative reading of its suburban context. Distinctive but complimentary materials: copper, recycled jarrah and calacatta marble, have been employed so that the addition both references and develops the life of the architecture. Concealed from the street, the new insertion transforms the nature of the historic domestic language into a dynamic and generous articulation of form and space, suitable for the life of its new family. All in it's a great set of alterations and additions to a Hawthorn mansion. The architects are iredale pedersen hook and the interior design is by Beatrix Rowe. Photographed for Vogue Living.
Architecture/Interiors
Cubby House Fitzroy
Edwards Moore
13.04.10
Edwards Moore's extension and renovation of an apartment overlooks Fitzroy's iconic public swimming pool. It's an absolute cracker! The French Bulldog's name is Jimmy.
Architecture/Interiors
Lyons studio
NMBW Architecture Studio
08.12.09
Lyons Architecture's new studio by NMBW is in an old department store in Melbourne's CBD. This masterful intervention leaves well enough alone while introducing fine detail and material concerns making for a dynamic and sustainable working environment for the whole Lyons crew.
Architecture/Interiors
Cardigan Street House
FMD
25.05.09
In this wonderful renovation of a labyrinthine Victorian terrace Architect Fiona Dunin has used mirrors and planes to transform the Victorian stair into a periscope where glimpses to rooms beyond reveal beautiful details and light-filled spaces. And while mirrors create prismatic intrigue - you try and photograph them! You can learn more about Fiona and FMD Architects here.
Architecture/Interiors
Fjäll Falls Creek
Hecker Phelan & Guthrie
10.09.08
Fjäll (pronounced "fe-yall") is Swedish for mountain. Designed by Salter Architects and interiors by Hecker Phelan & Guthrie, Fjäll is ski lodge that blends rustic traditions with a contemporary designer finish. I was mostly ably assisted by Lars who's quick with a coffee but cooked us overnight turning up the thermostat because he was cold - you'd think a Dane would know...
Architecture/Interiors
New Gold Mountain
Cassandra Complex
22.02.07
New Gold Mountain is a bar designed by the ever-intriguing Cassandra Complex that joyfully riffs on the opium den aesthetic of gold rush Melbourne.