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This is a modern extension to an existing federation style house in the heritage-controlled area of Brunswick, Melbourne.
The existing poorly constructed weatherboard extension was removed to create a north facing raked ceiling family/meals/kitchen area with a second storey bedroom contained as a loft within a steeply pitched roof.
The overall renovation and extension exercise has turned a relatively unliveable old and tired house into a light filled, energy-efficient modern home for a young couple.
Located in Ainslie, a vibrant inner suburb of Canberra, the Ainslie Modern Scandi house reflects a unique approach in creating a new urban vernacular for the suburb.
The clients have strong Scandinavian design sensibilities through birth and marriage, and these were reflected clearly in the design references provided and in the resolution of the building typology. The simple barn-like building elements have been dressed in modern clothes and present to the street in a scale-appropriate response to the Ainslie suburban context.
THE BRIEF
DESIGN FEATURES
THE BRIEF
The client’s budget for their expected outcome was reasonably modest, however they were content to trust the TT Architecture and MegaFlora Group (previously Architekt Grüne Hauser) team to create a solution which exceeded their expectations. The clients proved very fertile ground in a collaborative exercise in which innovative design responses could be explored. They were the oil in the machine.
The way the building has inserted itself into the residential context has generated many positive comments and it is hoped that the building will continue to be an exemplar of good design and a reference point for the suburb for many years to come.
DESIGN FEATURES
The origin of the design philosophy for this site arises directly out of the block geometry. This block has a long North/South rectangular axis and with East and West to the long side it was problematic to achieve good solar orientation. This constraint stimulated the creation of a series of parallel North facing pavilions consequently ensuring good solar gain to all living spaces.
Adopting this planning methodology allowed the elements that make up the building to capture outside spaces and turn them also into what are effectively functional, attractive and inviting outdoor rooms.
This house to the north-west of Canberra has won several significant design awards including the HIA House of the Year 2003. Its final form is both a tribute to the good taste and intimate involvement of the clients Zvoni Hodak and Phil Young.
The design reference harks back to the early 20th-century and the works of an American architect; Richard Neutra. The design elements that characterise the house are the strong overlapping horizontal roof forms punctuated by a dramatic and rich natural stone wall. Large areas of glass make best use of spectacular views from the hilltop location and allow for significant solar gain.
The minimalist approach to interior design stemmed from the clients own strong design sense and a close collaboration with the interior designer, Jayne Miller. The result is a dramatic yet understated interior fitout.
The Drake Brockman House is a green and sustainable home and is the epitome of an architect designed ‘forever home’.
Designed with an emphasis on entertaining, the property provides solutions to the many stages of family life. Through the use of self-sufficient segregated pavilions clustered around a central courtyard, residents have the flexibility to live independently within smaller areas of the home. With a focus on natural and recycled materials, this modern residence respectfully nods to the property’s semi-rural location.
This luxury palatial house in Holt has been named house of the year at both Master Builders ACT Building Excellence Awards and HIA Housing awards.
THE BRIEF
DESIGN FEATURES
SUSTAINABILITY
AWARDS
THE BRIEF
Of high importance in this project are the spectacular views of the Brindabella Ranges to the south. In addition, rectangular elements facing North on the long side are required to maximise energy efficiency and these key considerations were implemented in the overall conceptual design.
The use of pavilions also allows for easy zoning and the consequent ability to close off wings that are not being used and to form a central protected courtyard. The client wanted to make the property as self-sufficient as possible.
DESIGN FEATURES
The use of pavilions contributes to the overall sustainability credentials as it ensures that only the necessary areas are heated and cooled. The overall energy balance is moderated by a sophisticated climate control system.
The large property encourages entertaining of all kinds, featuring several zones that can be used in all seasons. The multi-layered pavilion style floor plan is designed around an exquisite inground pool that can be accessed via multiple living spaces. The internal views to the courtyard and pool are as important as the views to the hills. The courtyard space has been designed to be used as an outdoor room to cater for entertaining. It is protected from the wind and is a strong visual feature from many viewpoints within the dwelling.
The inside-outside aspect of modern living is emphasised by a seamless flow from living areas to courtyard spaces, using integrated flow through drain grates allowing on-grade thresholds from house access points.
Initial concept for the Clients Spring Range Road house which established the conceptual notion of a ‘pavilionised’ form enclosing a central courtyard. This concept was carried through into the subsequent developed design for the Drake Brockman site.
This above indicates the development of the pavilionised plan form which established the conceptual notion of a ‘pavilionised’ form enclosing a central courtyard.
Above are a series of early form-studies investigating how the brief could produce a group of building elements enclosing usable and protected outdoor space.
SUSTAINABILITY
Orientation The issue of aspect is of high importance in this particular project; there are spectacular views to the Brindabella Range mountains to the south requiring address. In addition, rectangular elements facing North on the long side have been developed to maximise energy efficiency. These key considerations were implemented in the overall conceptual design. The use of pavilions further permits easy zoning and the consequent ability to close off wings that are not being used. This contributes to the overall sustainability credentials as it ensures that only the necessary areas are heated and cooled. The overall energy balance is moderated by a sophisticated climate control system.
The inside-outside aspect of modern living is emphasised by a seamless flow from living areas to courtyard spaces. The use of integrated flow through drain grates allowing on-grade thresholds from house access points.
Autonomous Living The home embraces a wide variety of energy efficient technology, designed with autonomy in mind. Solar technology has been installed on the property’s nearby sheds to leverage their roof space and supplement power to the residence. It also has it’s own water infrastructure allowing it to be completely autonomous.
Enegery-Efficient Heating Steibel heat pumps used to heat water for plumbing fixtures and for hydronic in-slab heating system. This was a fully integrated system that was installed before the slab was finished. This solution runs hot water and heats the entire house, including the pool.
ThermalHEART broken aluminium architectural windows and doors maximise efficiency and comfort within the home. This system offers substantially improved insulation properties for the building, as well as greater resistance to solar heat gain.
Located on the border of Kosciuszko National Park, Lake Crackenback community is a natural and well-conceived development clustered around a scenic lake. It is nestled in the Thredbo Valley surrounded by the spectacular snowy Mountains.
Sydney-based clients sought a retreat and wished to see a house that responded sensitively to the natural environment. This entailed organising the main living areas to take best advantage of great views whilst optimising the solar gain potential; an important factor in an alpine environment. Easy flow from inside to outside is catered for by a large entertaining deck making a strong aesthetic statement. Judicious use of stone, timber and steel elements combine to make up a soft and regionally appropriate palate which when combined with cantilevered structural components provide both drama and architectural merit.
The steep site slope provided both a constraint and an opportunity, the resolution of which resulted in a home that shows both respect to its neighbours and good manners to the street.
This project followed along from a previous project in Canberra with the same design literate adventurous clients. The site is located south of Malua Bay NSW with views over the spectacular surf Beach.
The beach house project involved the resolution of a many competing imperatives including significant bushfire issues, scenic coastal dictates, flora and fauna sensitivity, effluent disposal and multi-jurisdictional planning restraints.
These were overcome retaining the core aspects of the design which related to responding to the spectacular views and optimising solar orientation. .
The form of a house can be read as a series of simple pavilions formed part of horizontal planes cantilevered over a narrow base. The intention was to express a feeling as if the dwelling were floating in the site and treading lightly.
The spectacular interiors were borne out of a collaboration and combination of the clients significant input, an overlay of innovative input from Rob Foster of Fink Design and TT’s Interior designer Deb Cook
This was an exciting project as it’s not often that architects get the opportunity to design a second house for a client. This project followed on from an iconic mid-century modern design built on a rural hilltop on Nanima Road just outside Canberra.
The clients had re-located to the NSW Southern Highlands and wanted to build a new house that would have off-grid energy supply and comply with the bushfire code. The result is a black modern barn house that sits quietly in its environment. Tony Trobe designed a house with pavilions facing north to capture the winter sun and windows to frame the stunning rural and lake views. design utilises the northern sun.
THE BRIEF
THE BRIEF
The clients knew exactly what they wanted included in their new home and decided to return to Tony Trobe to pull these ideas into a design to suit their new lifestyle. The house was to have an open plan living area, private master bedroom suite and guest rooms that could be closed off from the main living area.
This new home was designed for an empty plot of land facing the foreshore at Malua Bay on the south coast of New South Wales. The main considerations for the design of the dwelling relate to streetscape, views of the ocean and foreshore reserve, the inside/outside relationship, privacy, solar orientation and slope.
Effort was made to ensure that this infill development had an appropriate scale to reflect the existing streetscape and retain some views for neighbours on the adjacent side of the street. The building adopts a single-storey approach with an articulated building form which demonstrates good manners in plugging a ‘long-time’ empty gap in the street. The building is appropriate in form and scale to its context.
This project is all about the resolution of the plan in the context of a difficult site. The client expressed a desire to create a residence with timeless themes unpolluted by idioms that often characterise contemporary greenfield development. In this case the design references relate back to the good manners of the Prairie Style, quintessentially epitomised in the past by the work of such architects as Frank Lloyd Wright. This Prairie Style is characterised by low pitched roofs with spreading eaves, the articulation of the various horizontal elements of the building into bands of differing and contrasting materials, the use of timber, simple building forms, the obvious expression the plan elements and close connections of inside spaces to the adjacent ones outside.
To some, Mugga Way is one of the dress circle addresses of Canberra where scale, context and street elevation all play an important part in informing its character. This building expresses three simple understated and balanced pavilion structures as its public face. Despite the extreme slope of the block that imposes strictures on the site (and to a large tip extent determines the overall response of the building form) the front elevation nestles into the street in a simple low-key linear fashion. This is a relatively sophisticated yet understated presentation of what is essentially a residence of significant scale.
Despite showing a face the street which has a problematic western orientation the main axis of the building is set up to relate to the solar aspects crucial for good sustainable design. In this case significant viewing corridors across the centre of Canberra serendipitously come together with an optimal solar aspect; this is a bonus. The main casual living areas are organised onto the carefully contrived long east-west axis and flow out onto private, protected and cantilevered external patios
This is the design that harks back to the bucolic past, it is unashamedly not modern. It is quintessentially a beach house with the client’s firm thumbprint evident throughout. The brief was clear and precise; the house was to be a home, an easy care, low maintenance, inviting and family-friendly place to hang your hat. The clients themselves took on the role of interior designer and using not inconsiderable past experience realised a bold and vibrant concept in colour and style.
The articulation of the plan form allows private spaces to flow outside from key living areas whilst providing good solar access to intimate protected spaces that in turn allow for a window on the street.
The builder has taken great pains to deliver a product that pays careful attention to all the important details and as a result of his work, the client/architect synergy the house stands as a beautiful echo of a simpler past.
Initial concept for the Clients Spring Range Road house which established the conceptual notion of a ‘pavilionised’ form enclosing a central courtyard. This concept was carried through into the subsequent developed design for the Drake Brockman site.
