2 MEET DAHSW DESIGN TEAM Your colleagues in Bunbury give an insight into their jobs and backgrounds.
5 FEATURE DISPLAY DAH’s The Botanica, at Heron Park, is attracting lots of attention. Sarah Mossop takes us through it.
3 AFFORDABLE HOUSING There are many considerations when designing affordable housing. Dean Brunton explains.
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4 SUSTAINABLE LANDSCAPES It’s a brave new world out there ~ and we must embrace it, writes John Passarelli.
6 DESIGNER PROFILE Dame Zaha Hadit is a designer ahead of her time ~ and she has the awards to prove it. Tamara Whitsed reports.
7 DESIGN & DIVORCE Tamara Whitsed explains the housing needs of a divorced couple and how they can co-habit under the same roof (with their children)
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8/9 NEW TRENDS Why copper is the new black and knitwear has big appeal.
10 PROFILE Don’t mess with Dianne Brown-Neaves ~ she’s a woman with bowls.
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content
ian doe
trent bulman
DDES MANAGER & DISPLAY CO-ORDINATOR Thirteen years in the industry and South West, straight out of TAFE. I began as a trainee draftee, progressed to manager and last year took on estimating and scheduling Something you don’t know about me: Dislocated a knee on my wedding day and I’m building a replica Knight Rider car.
DESIGN & DRAFTING Seven years in the industry and joined ABN straight out of TAFE. I like the technical and detailing aspects of the job.
BRAYDEN JONES
Something you don’t know about me: I like to wear bright coloured pants, yellow and pink.
TRENT BULMAN
ANTHONY HARRIS
tom den boer ERIN FRAZER
SPECIAL PROJECTS DRAFTSPERSON Four years in the industry and South West. Straight out of TAFE, progressing from trainee to senior draftsperson handling overflow design work. Something you don’t know about me: A bit eclectic, I play music and I’m a bit nerdy. I like video games and cartoons. Into fitness training and can be very competitive.
Something you don’t know about me: I like to restore and reupholster furniture. You will often find me rummaging through garage sales and op shops looking for treasures.
DRAFTSPERSON Eight years on and off at South West with three-year intermission over east as a bible teacher. Something you don’t know about me: I packed Weetabix.
TOM DEN BOER CAMERON BROWN
IAN DOE
CHRISTINE OLIVER
brayden jones TRAINEE DRAFTSPERSON I am eight months in the industry, straight out of TAFE. This is my first job and I love it. Tom Den Boer is mentoring me. Something you don’t know about me: My second toe is longer than my first, I idolise P!nk and love karaoke.
erin frazer TRAINEE DRAFTSPERSON/ DESIGNER Started trainee drafting three months ago. I have a visual-arts degree, majoring in glass sculpture. Studied interior design and worked in Melbourne for a furniture design company before moving to WA and falling in love with the place.
cameron brown
anthony harris SENIOR DESIGNER Fourteen years in the industry and joined ABN in 2010. Worked on luxury residential and only ever used ArchiCAD. I was head cocktail maker at Broome’s Cable Beach Club Resort in 2003. Something you don’t know about me: I designed my own cocktail for the annual mango festival called Choc Full Of Mango, but the recipe is a secret.
christine oliver DESIGN & DRAFTING Twenty-two years in the industry. Went straight from TAFE into my own business. First job was a 26-unit development on the beachfront in Kalbarri. I started with South West twelve years ago. Something you don’t know about me: I was a competitive roller-skater for 23 years and national champion in senior free skating.
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meet the team
MAKING IT AFFORDABLE! WHITEMAN EDGE TERRACES
DEAN BRUNTON & SIMONE CARRIVICK ABN Design are working closely with ABN & DA Developments and prominent WA land developers to create new affordable, innovative housing products. The re-thinking of long-held principles on how big a dwelling needs to be and combining these ideas with alternative building methods and products has helped create exciting new housing possibilities for the ABN Group. Small lot sizes introduce new complexities into building and design. We work closely during the design phase with planning consultants to provide specific and detailed Local Development Plans or LDP’s (formerly referred to as a DAP). The LDP’s provide planning guides outlining variations sought from the R-Codes and local council policies. Without these variations in place and adopted by local authorities, it would be impossible to obtain development approvals using the standard principles set out in the R-Codes. The variations sought are commonly a reduction in primary street setbacks, site coverage, open space requirements and solar access. The planning consultants then demonstrate to the local authorities using our design drawings and 3-D imagery together with their independent planning assessments, how the these high density projects provide sufficient amenity to the occupants and fit in with everyday life within local communities and streetscapes. The next challenge is to construct these buildings in the quickest and most cost effective way. Building methods considered alternative for WA are timber framing to walls and floors. New-to-market pre-finished wall linings internally and externally are being explored rather than traditional render on brick or blue board techniques. Floor and roof trusses will be used to hasten the building process and provide alternative ways of running services throughout the building. External services such as power and water runs including domes and meter box, storm water disposal including soak well locations are also a challenge when designing these multi-dwelling projects. Aimed at first home buyers, investors, downsizers and lock-and-leavers, special sized lots designed to accommodate the new products are being included in upcoming subdivisions by developers. This will help provide much-needed diversity in housing size and cost for the WA market. Already in the market place and creating a buzz around town: terraced townhouses on 6mx30m lots, mini terraced townhouses on 7.5x15m lots, multi dwelling 1 & 2 bed apartments and maisonettes are some of the products to be rolled out in the near future by the ABN Group.
SEASCAPES MANDURAH TOWNHOUSES
CATALINA INTERIORS
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product
TIMES (AND HOUSES) ARE A’CHANGING JOHN PASSARELLI SUSTAINABLE (definition): pertaining to a system that maintains its own viability by using techniques that allow for continual reuse. Sustainability has become the buzz word of the 21st century as people respond positively to the problem of the world’s dwindling resources. As a result the sustainable garden is more of a life philosophy than a style – centred around recycling and using renewable resources; accommodating biodiversity; conservation and an organic approach to gardening. Since the Industrial Revolution (17601840) we have scarred the planet and decimated many species of life with our escalation of greed and increased population. We have become ignorant of what truly matters to ensure our continued existence on Earth. We have forgotten the roll plants in the fragile balance of nature and we continue to destroy acres of forests around the world every day. As designers, builders and developers, we must embrace the ideal of replacing the green matrix we have cleared when building a home or structure on this land. You have probably already seen vertical garden walls in our display homes which is a great start. The latest display home by Dale Alcock Homes has utilised this on the front of the home. Other methods would be to replace the fertile soil taken from the ground and place it on the roof to grow vegetation. Covering a building with plants has big benefits for energy efficiency and carbon footprint. Eventually I hope government legislation will implement this over time to make it compulsory when better and more economical techniques are developed. One of my inspirations for sustainable design is Joost Bakker, the creator of The Greenhouse Restaurant here in Perth and many other projects throughout Australia. I encourage you to watch his 12 minute video showing some of his great ideas.
From roof and wall gardens it is reasonably easy to progress to create and think about how to provide a productive garden within the confines of our ever-diminishing lots to supplement our food intake and recycle human and vegetable waste back into the soil for enrichment and continual growth of produce for ourselves. I believe this is just the beginning of a revolution and as designers we must take the philisophical approach of being in harmony with our surrounding environment and then, hopefully, be creative enough to put the working ideas together to form an aesthetic home that will please the senses. We have learned to understand passive solar principles and implemented some of them to achieve our compulsory six-star ratings. As time passes we will be able to afford and include other materials and technology to give us a better rating and eventually we will design homes that require zero energy to run. Working towards a zero energy, self-sufficient home is becoming popular and will require more understanding of our planet’s eco systems and how we should be able to integrate to ensure non-invasive harmony. In conclusion, I believe the future housing designer will not only need to have creative flair but be acquainted with science and local biodiversity.
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exteriors
BOTANICAL DREAM COMES TRUE SARAH MOSSOP Nestled among the new Heron Park display village, the leafy elevation of Dale Alcock Homes new The Botanica presents a unique example of a relaxed resort style home ~ and one that cannot be missed. Featuring a distinctive side-entry that’s emphasised by the beautiful elevation and vertical garden, this 3x2 home is ideal for small families and entertainers. With open-plan living and big alfresco area, the home lends itself to the relaxed style of Australian outdoor entertaining. Internally, the theming is reflected in the selection of fixtures and finishes. With a stunning internal wall feature facing the entry and a large theatre room you can’t resist being drawn inside to explore the spacious living and dining areas. Both the minor bedrooms and master suite are brought to life with wallpaper by Emily Ziz style studios and intricate screen prints from Lumier Art and Co. For an added point of difference the additional bedroom has been transformed to demonstrate an alternative use as a home office. Perfect for those empty nesters! Another unusual but interesting feature is the integration of the laundry into the garage showing how the Botanica makes better use of space for smaller lots. Transforming into a multifunction area, the fit-out of the garage demonstrates how empty space can be captured to provide for the changing needs of Australian families. Be it an activity, gym, storage or rehearsal space, The Botanica proves a point of difference because you can park ‘n’ play without sacrificing function and style. Located at 48 Oakbella Parade, Herron Park, Harrisdale. It’s a must see or check out the DAH website.
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interiors
ZAHA HADID: PUSHING THE BOUNDARIES TAMARA WHITSED Dame Zaha Mohammad Hadid, DBE, is an Iraqi-British architect. She received the Pritzker Architecture Prize in 2004, the first woman to be awarded. She also won the Stirling Prize in 2010 and 2011. She was born on October 31, 1950 in Baghdad, Iraq. Her books include: Zaha Hadid Complete Works, Major and Recent Works, Architecture of Zaha Hadid in Photographs. She studied at the Architectural Association School of Architecture from 1972 to 1977 and the American University of Beirut. Dame Zaha consistently pushes the boundaries of urban design. Her work experiments with spatial quality, extending and intensifying existing landscapes in pursuit of a visionary aesthetic that encompasses all fields of design, ranging from urban scale through to products, interiors and furniture. She is best known for her seminal built works Vitra fire station, Land Formation-One and the Strasbourg tram station and her central concerns involve a simultaneous engagement in practise, teaching and research. Dame Zaha’s forcefulness is both a blessing and a curse. A curse because a strong character can make clients run for the hills. Until recently she was more famous not for the buildings she had built but for those she had not — preserved only in her famously vigorous, dramatic images. Often, as in the case of the Cardiff Bay Opera House, these opportunities were lost quite spectacularly. In the end, though, her forcefulness is a blessing. Like architectural natural selection, it helps weed out weak projects and weak clients so that when architecture is finally built, it is as strong-willed as its creator.
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designer
SHARED HOUSE FOR DIVORCED PARENTS ~thinking outside the square TAMARA WHITSED These days we talk about designing to suit lifestyles and with an ageing population multi-gen living is becoming part of design. Maybe we need to think differently about the family unit and what it is. In Australia, every third marriage ends in divorce. As a result, it is often a cheallenge for parents to put their children’s needs above their own. Often when a marriage breaks down the man leaves the family home and finds somewhere else to live, shuffling the kids between the two parents. Part of the issue with separating is the cost - resulting in seperated couples but living together. This is understandable to help save the marriage but choosing to continue with their living arrangement long after the divorce papers have been filed away is something to think about. These families decide at some point they are better off together but live separate lives within the framework of their family unit. An example of this is divorced parents who design a clever family house with a hall and door system which allows kids stay in one place. They call it the transporter. It “beams” the kids from one home to another in the blink of an eye. After the marriage ended, Kent left the family home and they were forced into a new and awkward routine familiar to thousands of single parents with the kids spending a week at each house. Thinking there had to be a better way, Monica did a rough design and it became the home they live in today — a duplex linked by a transporter. One of the neat things about the McGrath/ Kirkland home (or homes) is that it hides its duplexness from the street. Monica’s door faces the front
while Kent’s is offset and facing one side. Both front doors share a veranda, but from the street you’d think it was one large home. City planners needed to be convinced of this, by the way, as the design did not meet their guidelines. The interior of each house is very different, reflecting the taste and style differences between the two, but what they have in common is the transporter. The kids’ bedrooms are in a hallway accessible to both homes. At each end of the hallway are locking fire doors. If it’s Kent’s week with the kids, Monica locks her end of the hallway and Kent locks his hall door on his week off. The kids know not to knock on or try to enter through the locked doors. If they need the other parent, they can use the phone or the front doors. The advantage of the arrangement is that the kids have permanent bedrooms. No need to ferry stuff around. The parents don’t need to drive to pick up kids. The transporter allows for more flexible lives. “It was a lot of work to get here,” says Monica with a smile. “There were hard feelings, but now I think we look out for each other. We don’t feel like single parents.” Granted, this is not everyone’s cup of tea but perhaps we need to start designing products that are this type of living. It could also be done with a multi-storey development with the children in the middle. It’s mutli-generation where everyone still wants their own space but are close enough to check on the others.
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3D illustration
This is our job as designers – to continue making decisions until the purpose of the design is perfectly clear. Then you are done.
— Terry Acker
KNITS ARE BACK IN VOGUE Furniture designer Claire-Anne O’Brien knows exactly what’s big in home decor right now: knits. The fact that winter will soon be here makes these cozy knitted stools even more appealing -- who wouldn’t like warm, comfy yarn furniture featured in their home? Made in London, these knitted stools definitely have a soft grandmotherly feel about them. Available in three spool-wound styles, the seats look scarf-wrapped and snug. The oversized knit is achieved with gigantic needles creating a comical but quirky finish that works in many ways ~ from furniture, floor coverings to over-the-top throw rugs. Embroidery, knitting and hand craft. We have seen this wave take off through sites like Etsy. Think large-scale knits and macramé taking off in decor and furniture. It’s at times like these we wish we had learned our grandmother’s skills at cross-stitch, sew and knit!
THE EVOLUTION DOOR
Ladies and Gentlemen, behold a door that flips! Austrian design firm Klemens Torggler has designed this incredible hinged door that slides on a track and gently folds itself back into position. Torggler, who describes his four-panel creation as a flip panel door, said it was just a prototype, but he was hoping to see a lot more of these in the future. Must be seen to be believed. Take a look: http://youtu.be/umfvm8I9_oU
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GEOMETRIC WOODEN WALL TILES Spanish firm Monoculo Design Studio’s Bee Apis wood tiles allow you create any design you wish on your wall. These modular tiles come in either faceted or flat design, and are available in cedar or beechwood. Each of the faceted tiles are one of a kind allowing for the creation of an impressive look.
COPPER IS THE NEW BLACK ! This season we are seeing metallic accessories flood the market particularly copper, in both polished and bronzed tones. This is a good way to add warmth to an interior as it complements charcoals and matt black schemes.
9 trends
DIANNE BROWN-NEAVES: ABN INTERIOR DESIGNER WHAT WORDS BEST DESCRIBE YOU? Nerdy and introvert ... but slightly bonkers too (according to my so-called friends) WHEN DID YOU FIRST BECOME INTERESTED IN THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY? I fell into it because we couldn’t afford a builder ~ so it was all hands on deck. Garry helped too. WHERE DO YOU DRAW INSPIRATION FROM? Everywhere, television, magazines, film, overseas, friends. Once I even had an idea of my own. WHAT ARE YOUR OUTSIDE INTERESTS? Annoying my husband. But now I’m mustard-keen on lawn bowls since my sensational debut at a recent ABN function. Figjam! WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST JOB? It was a job to dye for ~ in my sister’s hair salon. WHAT DOES THE NEXT YEAR HOLD FOR YOU? Same old, same old. More cosmetic surgery, a tattoo. IF WORK WAS OPTIONAL WHAT WOULD YOU DO WITH YOUR TIME? Interior decorating, give lawn bowls lessons, rocket science.
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MOST USEFUL TIP? Do your very best. For lawn bowlers ~ check out my new website www.bowlswiz.com MOST EMBARRASSING MOMENT? Falling down a flight of stairs at an official function. Luckily, I didn’t spill my drink.
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