Featured in MBA Annual Excellence in Housing

16 December 2013

This month Chateau also featured in the MBA publication as the award winner for Design & Construct - House $1 - $2 Million.

 A Place to Call Home

Chateau Architects + Builders' winning home was the result of the client's request for a house that reflected European modernist architecture while using natural materials. It had to accommodate a family of foue children, the eldest of whom was at the point of moving out of the family home. It therefore needed to be a residence that could become an inclusive and inviting hub for the increasingly independant young adults when they did return home with their friends or new partners.

The site was complicated and constrained by the location of a very large pine tree in the front third of the property.

The home is therefore set well back from the street front and is dwafted by the pine towering over it.

The metaphorical spine of the home is a substantian 700mm-thick masonry wall that runs front to back along the western side boundary. Large screened openings are punched through this wall along its length to create a fully glazed entry vestibule, and to provide views from theliving spaces to the lap pool, which is discreetly and efficiently slotted between the house and the western boundary.

The majority of the remainder of the home is clad in unfinished western red cedar boards fixed vertically. The intention is that these will grey off over time and allow the house to soften into the surrounding landscape.

The large-format window joinery was specified in a clear anodised aluminium finish, its silvery-white colour sitting comfortably with the raw cedar boards as they grey off.

Internally the seamless open-plan layout to the family living spaces invited the surrounding landscape into the home through a 22m run of the 3m-high north and east facing sliding glass doors.

When these doors are opened up, the 3m-high ceiling runs through to the soffit of the cantilevered bedroom wing above, completely dissolving any constraints of the walls. This impression is reinforced by the timber flooring finishing flush to the external timber decking.

The upper level simply hovers above these spaces, offering shelter and shade when desired.

The hub of the home is the central double-height void dominated by the 5.4m high piece of joinery projecting from the ground through the void. This space is lit frm above by four large 1.2 x 1.2 Velus skylights arranged in a cross, creating a striking geometric form in the ceiling above and adding to the dramatic plays of light space and form that this place offers its occupants.

Judges comments about the project:

The design of this entry is exceptional. The client required a home with a European modernist feel while utilising natural materials. The builder, with the help of an in-house designer, built the home perfectly. The client expressed their satisfaction with the completed project. Excellent work.