The above images are by Sean Godsell. Landscape sensitive architecture by its lightness and ability to keep inhabitants visually connected to the environment. The translucense of the "skin" act as climate control as well as a major factor of delight.
Again by Wood/Marsh Architects, the ACCA (Australian Centre of Contemporary Art) in Melbourne, VIC. There are references in the building to the past occupation of the site, namely warehouses and foundries, in the predominant shed vocabulary of a steel frame and taut metal skin.
The Visitors Centre Karijini National Park, Western Australia by Woodhead Architects is another example of this regional Australian aesthetic with an aboriginal inspired twist.
The building is defined by an assembled collection of freestanding overlapping weathered
steel wall panels which emerge directly from the red brown earth and are arranged in plan to
provide an abstract representation of the Kurrumanthu. Integrated with its surroundings, the building form confidently engages with the inherent strength of the landscape.
The next important aspect I feel to be very important in dealing with the Australian bush landscape is the response to potential bushfire threat. A number of the following exemplars utilise design features that integrate this natural disaster in a way that either gives us a constant reminder of the potential threat, but also integrating the operability of such features into the everyday use of the buildings. The design should aim to embrace the the bushfire as part of the landscape without the need to radically clear and destroy the surrounding flora.
The above is H House by Ian weir - QUT landscape architecture lecturer/architect/industrial designer. Having completed the collaborative design subject 1 year ago with Ian, I have a new found appreciation for bushfire sustainability through architecture. This house in Bremmer Bay, Western Australia, utilises landscap strategies and architectural specifications to protect inhabitants from large heath fires which frequent the area. An internal "fire safe" room is actually the laundry, so that users are familiar with the space, integrated into their daily living. The design also features no eaves, but instead drop down radiant heat shields over the windows which are operable daily and act as the sun control so that inhabitants know hw these work and can comfortable and quickly lock the house down in case of bush fire. Ian also used flame retardant treatments on all external timbers and cleared minimal flora from around the house in an aim to protect this region as one of the world's most biodiverse areas. The idea is not to live and hide underground, but to embrace the beauty and integrate our daily life with the environment.
Link to Ian Weir's demonstration of the house on ABC's New Inventor's program:
http://www.abc.net.au/tv/newinventors/txt/s3023743.htm
On the subject of video media, here's a link to Grand Designs Ausralia - Season 1, Episode 1. This episode I'm glad to say featured what I considered to be a stunning house, born of bushfire. While the house may not be the most protected from future fires, the owner re-used materials from the site which were devastated by the Victorian bushfires. These elements weren't hidden, instead utilised as a reminder of the beauty and also the formidable nature of our landscape.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkrdP0AcDlg
Lastly, I came across this building by Woodhead Architects who designed the Pinnacles Desert Discovery Centre to experience the unique role of fire, both culturally and environmentally, as part of its design and construction process. During in the construction process the vertical timber elements were deliberately set on fire enabling the architecture to become a registration of the role of fire in the landscape:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7am8kE5KwP0
The building is defined by an assembled collection of freestanding overlapping weathered
steel wall panels which emerge directly from the red brown earth and are arranged in plan to
provide an abstract representation of the Kurrumanthu. Integrated with its surroundings, the building form confidently engages with the inherent strength of the landscape.
The next important aspect I feel to be very important in dealing with the Australian bush landscape is the response to potential bushfire threat. A number of the following exemplars utilise design features that integrate this natural disaster in a way that either gives us a constant reminder of the potential threat, but also integrating the operability of such features into the everyday use of the buildings. The design should aim to embrace the the bushfire as part of the landscape without the need to radically clear and destroy the surrounding flora.
The above is H House by Ian weir - QUT landscape architecture lecturer/architect/industrial designer. Having completed the collaborative design subject 1 year ago with Ian, I have a new found appreciation for bushfire sustainability through architecture. This house in Bremmer Bay, Western Australia, utilises landscap strategies and architectural specifications to protect inhabitants from large heath fires which frequent the area. An internal "fire safe" room is actually the laundry, so that users are familiar with the space, integrated into their daily living. The design also features no eaves, but instead drop down radiant heat shields over the windows which are operable daily and act as the sun control so that inhabitants know hw these work and can comfortable and quickly lock the house down in case of bush fire. Ian also used flame retardant treatments on all external timbers and cleared minimal flora from around the house in an aim to protect this region as one of the world's most biodiverse areas. The idea is not to live and hide underground, but to embrace the beauty and integrate our daily life with the environment.
Link to Ian Weir's demonstration of the house on ABC's New Inventor's program:
http://www.abc.net.au/tv/newinventors/txt/s3023743.htm
On the subject of video media, here's a link to Grand Designs Ausralia - Season 1, Episode 1. This episode I'm glad to say featured what I considered to be a stunning house, born of bushfire. While the house may not be the most protected from future fires, the owner re-used materials from the site which were devastated by the Victorian bushfires. These elements weren't hidden, instead utilised as a reminder of the beauty and also the formidable nature of our landscape.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkrdP0AcDlg
Lastly, I came across this building by Woodhead Architects who designed the Pinnacles Desert Discovery Centre to experience the unique role of fire, both culturally and environmentally, as part of its design and construction process. During in the construction process the vertical timber elements were deliberately set on fire enabling the architecture to become a registration of the role of fire in the landscape:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7am8kE5KwP0
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