THE BUSINESS OF ARCHITECTURE

Transcription

1 THE BUSINESS OF ARCHITECTURE 44184_50-55_emerge project.indd 50 21/09/17 10:55 AM

2 EMERGING PROJECT 51 SUSSEX STREET BEN MOUNTFORD DISCUSSES SUSSEX STREET, A HOME INSPIRED BY THE AGEING FACTORIES THAT SURROUND IT AND THE GIANT TREE THAT SITS OUT FRONT. / SARA KIRBY Architect s statement. Sussex Street was designed and built for an owner who wanted a small two-bedroom home that made the most of light and space on a small 295-square metre, narrow suburban block. Importance was placed on ensuring comfort, amenity (visual and environmental quality), ease of use and maintenance, accessibility and long-term affordability. The design needed to be clever, easily organised, flexible, healthy, optimistic and enriching. The owner was well-informed on ecologically sustainable development (ESD) principles and sought for the design to make use of as many of the block s natural resources as possible and to consider ordinary materials imaginatively to deliver a low-impact, lowmaintenance and healthy home. The retention of existing mature deciduous trees and the need to maximise the area available for permaculture gardens were considered key considerations to achieving a responsive and responsible project outcome. The resulting modest 160-square metre home is sited among the existing trees, allowing solar penetration in winter and shade in summer, as well as the harnessing of cooling breezes. The steel and timberframed provides open-plan living over two levels, while the sawtooth roof provides reference to the house s neighbouring industrial context. The upstairs bedroom, bathroom and study have been designed to take advantage of the views of the trees on the block, and a downstairs bedroom and bathroom have been designed to ensure universal access and flexibility in use over time. Rather than employing a technological showcase, the design sought the subversive embedding of low-tech sustainable initiatives to enhance the spatial and environmental quality of home, as well as achieving the broader environmental and economic benefits that arise from a higher degree of self-sufficiency. The high ceiling in the living space opens directly to the north and uses cross ventilation, thermal stacking, thermal massing, sun shading devices and louvres to achieve desired levels of thermal comfort. The roof form maximises the capture of rainwater to offset internal toilets and laundry water demands. Greywater reuse for irrigation, solar water heating and photovoltaics are additional features that improve the self-sufficiency of the home. A heavy emphasis was placed on the use of sustainable materials, including plantation timber in the structural system and internal finishing of the building. Meanwhile, the timber-lined ceiling and exposed timber beams create a rich contrast to the charcoal burnished slab and cool white walls. ISSUE 152 australiandesignreview.com

3 52 EMERGING PROJECT SPECIFIC INCLUSIONS WERE PASSIVE SOLAR, AN EDIBLE GARDEN, A SPACE TO READ IN THE SUN DURING WINTER, SECURE-ABILITY, THE FATHER S FURNITURE, WARM MATERIALS LIKE TIMBER AND THE ALLOWANCE FOR COOL BREEZES TO PASS THROUGH. Project details Client: Private client Scale: Floor area 160 square metres, site area 295 square metres Completion date: 2015 Collaborative partners: Junior architects with Mountford at the time Emilie Suen and Steven Corns as well as Ross Henson, the builder at AT Brine Principal design leader: Ben Mountford Photographer: Stephen Nicholls Photography THE BUSINESS OF ARCHITECTURE

4 How did Sussex Street come to you and how did it evolve? Three years before Sussex Street, I had provided some design advice via Archicentre, as well as a small upgrade for the client to the townhouse they were living in at the time. The advice was about shutters, furniture and cabinetwork doors. The client s father was a furniture maker from Queensland, I think, and they had four very simple but well-conceived pieces and some antique Japanese pieces that needed to be incorporated into the home. We took care and located these in the adjusted layout. Funnily enough, all the furniture was recast in the brief for the new [Sussex Street] house three years later. Tell us about the brief and what it involved. It was quite a detailed brief a list of products and items so specific in some sections, but still open to ideas on the shape and form. Specific inclusions were passive solar, an edible garden, a space to read in the sun during winter, secure-ability, the father s furniture, warm materials like timber and the allowance for cool breezes to pass through. The brief was also emotive in its description of what the home should feel like to inhabit as well. The client deliberated on our design proposal for few weeks, as it wasn t what she was expecting. To the project s credit, she understood what opportunities we had uncovered and how they serve to evoke the feeling for the space she described in her brief. How involved was the client throughout the design process? Did she want a big say or was she happy to leave it to you? She was very specific on the brief, and close to the design as it was being developed, giving a lot of feedback, which we worked with. I find most clients will respond to environment or logic of the context, but are also receptive to a poetic aspect of the place or their own story and that s something for us to carry into design. For us, this part of the client brief is like a found object we like to respond to this as much as context and other usual requirements. For the project benefit at Sussex Street, the client s profession was in writing and communication. You have mentioned that the home had to be built with the client s ageing in mind can you talk us through what this meant and how the design achieved this? The plan has to work now and then also be able work when a client is less mobile. And by working, we don t just mean level floors, wide hallways and wet areas; you also need to look how the house and its environment are enjoyed in this later stage. Therefore things ISSUE 152 australiandesignreview.com

5 54 EMERGING PROJECT THE BUSINESS OF ARCHITECTURE

6 THE PLAN HAS TO WORK NOW AND THEN ALSO BE ABLE TO WORK WHEN A CLIENT IS LESS MOBILE. like view-corridors and sun paths need to be considered, especially within the bedroom, study and lounge/dining. How did you consider ordinary materials imaginatively to deliver the project? We used a weatherboard, which is usually associated with cottages, but we used it on an industrial form. The industrial typology of the sawtooth roof is found just across the road in the small brick factories of Maylands (which is now making way for infill housing), so the shape of the house is a nod to its neighbour across the street. Eventually most of the factories will go, leaving this house as a reference. How did you make your material and colour palette choices? The site is very busy on the ground plane with a permaculture garden, trellises and ponds, so white presented a strong profile to the street view. Materials wise, the James Hardie Linea weatherboard has a characteristic sharp horizontal shadow, which a darker colour would dilute, so white worked on both levels. How did you fit everything into a small footprint? Did you have any tricks? We put all the wet areas and kitchen against the south-west boundary, taking up a two-metre service spine on the ground floor. Also, the rear bedroom can be alternatively used as separate living room. What was the inspiration for this project? The huge tree out the front of the site. It s seen from most windows and dapples the light in summer and lets the light back in during winter when it s needed. What were the biggest challenges and how were they resolved? The timer ply and laminated beams that run the length of the building were low cost and needed to be sanded and sealed to show their recycled state. We had used them on another project, but a change in the termite treatment at the supplier s end meant they arrived onsite sprayed blue! We restocked those and put the credit towards an upgraded hardwood laminated beam. This kept full sheets and no cuts, so we had to resize and arrange walls and layouts on the fly. It s now my favourite element of the design with a well-crafted warm timber plane in every room that complements the sentimental pieces of furniture. It s also a great example of how to respond to the challenges that projects bring. ar ISSUE 152 australiandesignreview.com