The Brookes St House sits nestled between two heritage listed buildings in the Fortitude Valley, Brisbane. Designed by architect James Russell, the house is open in plan combining raw materials to create a tree house like structure with differing residential and commercial zones. The house seeks to offer refuge from its surroundings and is based around open and central courtyard.
As an environmental filter, this house captures it spectacularly. The house utilizes the surrounding natural environment with the placement of a gorgeous central courtyard bathed in sunlight. This courtyard wraps around three sides whilst the fourth is a combination of both the heritage listed church and stained glass windows. Russell explains, “‘Inside’ and ‘outside’ are deliberately ambiguous. The external environment is filtered through a series of layers so that harsh extremes are tempered and the occupants are held and nurtured by the building." (Hill. 2006)
Several components of the house such as the sliding glass doors and timber push out window flaps are adaptable, able to respond to the harsh and unpredictable Queensland climate.
In addition, the Brookes St House fulfils the requirements of a couple with young children. He has done well to combine public and private spaces in a way that is both functional and visually appealing. On the ground floor, two living spaces open onto the internal courtyard and are the main public spaces of this house. Above the living areas are the sleeping areas - the children’s above the playroom, and the parents suspended over the kitchen and lounge. A narrow bridge connects the two bedroom wings and overlooks the grass. Bathrooms and the laundry are concealed in cupboards running along the side of the bridge. To move from element to element and from room to room one has to go outside and then inside thereby being exposed to the heat of summer and the extremes of winter. This strategy was requested by the client as a way of using the weekend house to re-humanise oneself after a week of office work.” (Hill. 2006)
Inhabiting this house is truly a delightful experience. Walls of glass slide away completely at the edges of the living spaces, creating a fluid connection between the grassed and roofed areas. The home uses the richness of natural materials and light as well as the thoughtful and unique planning that has allowed this home to be not only a warm inviting sanctuary but a liveable sculpture. The courtyard, a rich rectangle of lush grass at its centre, abuts the church with a perimeter of concrete and timber planks, its floor level established from the height of the church windows. 1889 ecclesiastical stained-glass from Munich serves as domestic-scaled decoration for the courtyard and playroom, dramatically bathing the house in coloured light when offices in the old church are unpredictably used at night.” (Hampson. 52, 2007)
No comments:
Post a Comment