Designed as an essentially single story, transparent pavilion engaging with the north-east garden, the house uses the tennis court and lower level garaging to adjust the site to suite this agenda. A house of robust, tactile materials, this home was the second we had done for these clients, affording the project a rare opportunity to push the envelope.
Project: The Nest
Architect: Shaun Lockyer Architects
Project Leader: Jen Negline, Associate at Shaun Lockyer Architects
Location: Bardon, QLD Australia
Project Team: Shaun Lockyer Architects
General Contractor: Kalka
Photographs: Cathy Schusler
Being a home on a large block, the response was to push the house to the very back of the block so that we could consolidate the garden to the north. The driveway enters via an easement to the entry that presents as three stories, deliberately creating a solid and private edge where it would have no impact on adjacent homes or light. The predominant experience of the house is as a single-story pavilion from the northern garden, maintaining a more modest scale. A main bedroom level perches at the top of the home, offering privacy, seclusion and enviable city views. A heavy focus on landscaping offers a soft edge to the built form.
Entry is at the lower ground floor of the 3-story pavilion on the eastern side of the house. This lower level accommodates the cars, storage, wine cellar, gym and courtyard. Above this is primary pavilion that houses a bedroom wing on the east and the main living spine which is transparent through its north-south axis. The main bedroom sits on top of the eastern wing. The house is about offering a large family their own spaces while celebrating the gathering in the common areas, lawn and pool area. At every point in the house, decisions have been made to connect the house to the outdoor as well as creating an experience of light, air and poetics which are reinforced by the selections of materials.
This was designed as a “forever house” and in so doing needed to respond to the needs of a young family where proximity is important, while needing to plan for a future where the children need more independent space. The choice of material also responded to the clients brief of a timeless language of architecture that could transcend the immediate fashions. The engagement of house to the landscape is the biggest success and appropriately so, as this was the reason why the land was purchased to begin with.
This is a robust, hardwearing home intended to gracefully age and limit maintenance. The timber rain screen offers shade, protection and security responding to the sub-tropical context. Deep eaves, excellent cross flow ventilation and a naturally lit home make for a very sustainable long-term proposition. Low E glass, LED lighting and FSC hardwood timbers complete our approach to making a more relevant and enduring home.