• Location
    Goulburn Valley
  • Status
    Complete
  • Type
    New Build
  • Internal Area
    300sqm
  • Team
    Rob Kennon, Emlyn Olaver
  • Collaborators
    GL & DC Marshall Builders, Meyer Consulting
  • Photographer
    Derek Swalwell
  • Awards
    AIA Victorian Architecture Awards - Goulburn Valley House (Commendation), Houses Awards - Goulburn Valley House (Shortlist)
  • Tags
    Regional, Repetition, Family Home, Housing

Set on the outskirts of a small, rural town in northern Victoria, this family home is raised slightly above the flood plain of a working farm. In a remote dry, environment with little protection from trees, the design provides an adaptable building envelope set in the shadows of its own form.

The building is split into two separate envelopes: a carport to the south and a courtyard house to the north. A series of verandah posts encircle the two enclosures, providing support for a continuous roof that connects the two forms. The courtyard is more an outcome of trying to bend the house around itself, rather than that of a punched hole. It provides connection between the internal spaces, counterbalances the open plains surrounding it, and allows for cross-flow ventilation.

The house is zoned into discrete sections; an open living area to the north, bedrooms and bathrooms to the south - with an outdoor room and a study separating the two. Though zoned, the house is more about controlling the connection between spaces rather than separating them [5]. To encourage unexpected interactions within the home, occupants have been given every opportunity to explore alternate paths within the plan.

[1] Set on the outskirts of a small, rural town in northern Victoria, this family home is raised slightly above the flood plain of a working farm. In a remote dry, environment with little protection from trees, the design provides an adaptable building envelope set in the shadows of its own form
[4] The material palette provides a stable and rich environment. Exposed double brick and cork floors on an insulated waffle slab ensure an exceptional level of thermal comfort. The warmth of plywood, dark tones of laminates and the subtlety of the cement render provide visual relief to the sharpness of the sun outside.
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[2] A series of verandah posts encircle the two enclosures, providing roof support as well as a sense of repetition and order in which to read the backdrop of the natural environment
[3] The house is zoned into discrete sections; an open living area to the north, bedrooms and bathrooms to the south - with an outdoor room and a study separating the two.
[5] Though zoned, the house is more about controlling the connection between spaces rather than separating them. To encourage unexpected interactions within the home, occupants have been given every opportunity to explore alternate paths within the plan
Natural materials such as plywood and cork give a subtle texture and warmth to spaces

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