#53 Shaun Lockyer’s home is a map of meaning and connection; in Singapore This Humid House embraces the ephemeral. The Art Issue.
MARCH – JUNE | 2022 AUD$17.95 | NZ$17.95 | SGD$13.95
issue #53 habitusliving.com
Dissolving the edges TEXT ALEESHA CALLAHAN | PHOTOGRAPHY ANDY MACPHERSON
In search of meaning through place, Shaun Lockyer’s Brisbane home is a tapestry of memories that has evolved in a manner counterintuitive to his architectural practice.
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She’s also a furniture designer, the founder of supercyclers (an internationally acclaimed sustainable design initiative) and the sustainablist line (a circular “line” of clothing that has only one simple, timeless black dress), alongside a gamut of other collaborations and ventures. To sum it up, she says, “my practice over the last decade has been actioning sustainable outcomes in design”. A series of events led King to this point. When she first visited Milan’s Salone del Mobile in 2010, King was swept up in the “fantastic energy” of the place. But it didn’t take long for her to start wondering why no one was talking about just how much stuff there was. Since then, King has been reckoning with the impact of the design industry on the environment, leading her to reconsider the impacts of the profession, particularly in furniture and object design.
ABOVE King’s studio is constructed with polycarbonate and charred timber RIGHT Extremely minimalist, the white kitchen is punctuated with a mix of designer chairs
portrait
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King has been reckoning with the impact of the design industry on the environment.
issue #53 habitusliving.com
Art Issue
The art of decay TEXT ALEESHA CALLAHAN | PHOTOGRAPHY STUDIO PERIPHERY
This Humid House brings together a motley crew of lateral thinkers and creatives, where time is an omnipresent factor.
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PREVIOUS Set in the rolling countryside of Christchurch, Tai Tapu House has been designed to age gracefully THIS PAGE Sharp openings express an undeniably modern form
On location
Not everything is purely functional; the home features several playful flourishes that make it feel thoroughly fresh.
T
he appeal of a large garden with lots of open space was too tempting to pass up for Richard and Scot, the owners of Tai Tapu House. Set on a one-acre block on the edge of Christchurch, the move offered them the chance to start afresh following the devastating earthquake in 2011. New beginnings meant Scot and Richard could craft the perfect home to suit their lifestyles, where gardening and creativity are the epicentre of activities. It comes as no surprise given Scot is a potter and Richard is an academic with a background in art history. Both are keen gardeners and have embraced the country lifestyle, establishing veggie gardens alongside New Zealand natives. To bring their vision to life the pair worked with local designer Case Ornsby. Journeying out of the city, Ornsby shares that the drive follows the hills and winds around narrow, country lanes. It was this agrarian setting that became the point of inspiration for the home, expressed most acutely with the strong A-frame form, reminiscent of a modern English farmhouse. But this dwelling is only the first of three, which is another nod to the English farmhouse vernacular where it’s not uncommon to see separate buildings clustered around a courtyard. “The three buildings will form a Y-plan and run out into the landscape,” shares Ornsby.
As the first dwelling on the property, it sets the tone and architectural language for the remaining stages but will eventually become the guest house. The simplicity of the building casts a striking form in the landscape, while its volume creates vast interior spaces. Sprawling, six-metre-high ceilings allow ample wall space for the couple’s extensive art collection. Logic and spaciousness define the interior planning with the kitchen and living area running out to a covered “multi-use” terrace space featuring “two cavity doors that can be either completely closed or open to the elements”, explains Ornsby. Not everything is purely functional; the home features several playful flourishes that make it feel thoroughly fresh. A tiny window from the guest bathroom punctures the eastern façade when approaching the building. Its portal-like appearance has been deftly detailed with sharp steel pintucks. The same design intent can be seen in the entry canopy – a fine metal form that pushes through into the interior. “It’s deliberately whimsical to look like it’s floating off the ground,” explains the designer. Scot and Richard were the best kind of clients, according to Ornsby, who shares that they were open to being challenged and didn’t shy away from some of the more adventurous ideas – which come out in unusual ways.
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On location
On the first storey, mouldings run along walls at half height, as requested by the client. White frameless pocket sliding doors replace all the doors as space-saving devices. They also grant the home an uncluttered feel. “These gave me the ability to terminate the mouldings more sensibly, as opposed to worrying about architraves,” says Lim. Bathrooms are equally neat and neutral, with some articulation through the angular Rombini tiles from Mutina. In the living areas, a small, bespoke, plush sofa suits the narrow space well, accompanied by an angular Pierre Jeanneret chair from Phantom Hands. In consideration of active children and a dog free to roam indoors, the Axel Vervoordt dining table was replaced by a custom bone-white dining table made from glass fibre-reinforced concrete (GFRC) shaped with an accident-preventing bullnose edge and rounded legs. “It’s strong but not as heavy as traditional concrete as it lacks large stone aggregates. It’s more often used in the construction of bridges and buildings in high seismic zones – nothing like overkill for a dining table,” humours Lim. This robustness is balanced with a lightness from luminous light structures. A Cloud 19 pendant lamp by Apparatus Studio hangs over the dining and an effable Tense lamp from New Works floats above the living room where a Samsung The Frame television adorns the wall as a piece of functional art. In the dining room, an Edward Hopper print provides another jolt of colour.
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OPPOSITE The dining area features a stand-out pendant light by Apparatus Studio ABOVE Looking down from the mezzanine, the whole living area comes into focus NEXT PAGE Artful touches elevate the home, bringing ample character and charm
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RIGHT A salvaged door closes off the butler’s pantry BELOW A hallway has become an unofficial gallery space to display Mark’s photographic work
On location
FIRST FLOOR
GROUND FLOOR
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ENTRY/GALLERY LAUNDRY BATHROOM BEDROOM MAIN BEDROOM
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WALK-IN ROBE ENSUITE COURTYARD STORAGE STUDIO
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KITCHEN PANTRY DINING LIVING BBQ
The bench, which belonged to Mark, has been carefully ‘stitched’ together with a new marble bench and refitted with a sink and mixer tap. Complementing these touches are industrial pendant lights and strategically placed spotlights in the rafters that accentuate the past. Given the warehouse is triple brick, few if any cracks were found during the renovation. However, some of the timber window frames had, unfortunately, become rotten and needed to be replaced. The black-stained timber storage unit directly below the terrace conceals the couple’s bikes and an outdoor shower is testimony to their love of the outdoors, which are also captured in Mark’s landscape photographs. While some may have endeavoured to create
a sleek urban pad on the edge of town for a couple of empty nesters, for both the owners and the architects, the impetus for this renovation was to create things as simply as possible, allowing the history of this warehouse to be ‘read’ and clearly understood. “We didn’t want this place to be overdesigned. Part of the pleasure is imagining how the furniture was created in this space and where it was finished. And given our children occasionally come to stay, there was the opportunity to make the spaces permeable,” adds Mark, musing on the brandnew life injected into this building. McIldowie Partners | mcildowiepartners.com.au
issue #53 habitusliving.com
Tai Tapu House
Three Buckley Apartment
DESIGNER Case Ornsby INTERIOR Belle Interiors – Colin Foggo BUILDER John Ross Builders Ltd LANDSCAPING Canopy – Paul Roper-Gee
INTERIOR DESIGN Pupil Office
CASE ORNSBY +64 2131 4231 case@caseornsby.com caseornsby.com FINISHES Cedar cladding from Herman Pacific. Espan roofing by Metalcraft. Floors by Peter Mark Floorpride. Benchtop – marble from CDK Stone. Resene Black White paint. Basalt tiles from Reptiles. FIXED & FITTED Oasis French Grey bathtub from Concrete Nation. Appliances – Fisher & Paykel, Smeg. Spa from Alpine.
PUPIL OFFICE hello@pupiloffice.com pupiloffice.com FINISHES Floors – Burmese Teak in Rubio Monocoat. Bathroom Wall Tiles – Rombini by Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec for Mutina. FURNITURE Pierre Jeanneret Easy armchair from P5 Studio. Spider beige marble coffee tables, Jade green marble console, Grigio Billiemi marble island – custom made by Mondo Build. Sofa – custom. Concrete dining table and microcement headboard – custom made by Tsuri Custom Concrete. 606 Universal Shelving System by Vitsoe. Outdoor lounge and dining furniture by Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec for HAY. Outdoor dining table – custom made by Studio Helico. Tri-Space bar stools by Terence Woodgate for Case Furniture.
Munnering Lane
LIGHTING Tense Pendant lamp by Panter & Tourron for New Works from Finnish Design Shop. Cloud 19 Pendant by Apparatus Studio from Palicon. Halftone 400 Wall Light by Astro from Made & Make. Micro Recessed Wall Light by Astro from Made & Make. General Lighting by Sol Luminaire.
ARCHITECT McIldowie Partners STRUCTURALENGINEER Creo Consultants BUILDER Madeform
FIXED & FITTED CUBO Synthesis sliding pocket doors by CUBO. Italian sanitary fittings by Hansgrohe from Volume Five. Kitchen fittings by Blanco & Reginox. Handles and accessories by Kawajun.
FINISHES Polished concrete floors by Grind & Seal. Engineered floor boards in Nordic Grey by Scandinavian Floor. Bathroom tiles, Snow Zeillige from Tiles of Ezra. Paint throughout – Natural white by Dulux. Feature wall paint (master suite & pantry) Palm Beach Black by Porters Paint. Bathroom custom joinery – timber veneer in Xilo Planked Black from the Elton Group. Kitchen bench: Lorde White in weathered finish from CDK Stone. Fireplace hearth, hand trowelled in desert finish from Concrete Collective.
MCILDOWIE PARTNERS +61 3 8695 0300 info@mcildowiepartners.com.au mcildowiepartners.com.au
FURNITURE Prostoria cloud lounge from Stylecraft. A collection of vintage pieces from the clients overseas travels. LIGHTING Sphera Lighting throughout. Vintage pendant lights in living room.
It’s all in the details Dress it up or play it down, here are the pieces that turned these houses into homes.
FIXED & FITTED Bathroom fixtures –Yokato by Brodware. Kitchen oven and exhaust – ILVE. Fire clay double farmhouse sink. Custom made kitchen island bench – incorporating clients’ vintage work bench. Pantry door – custom made antique, hand carved door. Fireplace – Nectar 900. Joinery handles from Kethy.
on location
Adelaide Residence
ARCHITECT Williams Burton Leopardi INTERIOR DESIGN Williams Burton Leopardi STYLING Williams Burton Leopardi BUILDER Bower Construction and Design LANDSCAPING Lee Gray Landscape Design JOINER Admor Joinery ENGINEER Meinhardt WILLIAMS BURTON LEOPARDI +61 8 8223 1177 wb@designbywbl com au designbywbl.com.au FURNITURE Engineered timber floorboards, European Oak, Voss from Woodcut. Dolomite, Super White from CDK (kitchen). Limestone, New Savior from CDK (bathroom floor & walls). Ceramic wall tiles from Eco Tile Factory (bathroom). FURNITURE All Wood Bobbin side table, in Solid Ash, Walnut finish from Aura Objects. C_2 Lounge Chair by Mathieu Cottin from Handmade & Found. Iva stool, upholstered in Pelle Barolo Botanic from Grazia and Co. H Base Table in Walnut stain from Built Furniture. Pavilion dining chairs by &Tradition in lacquered Walnut from Cult. Miller sofa in Luna, Oregano from Jardan. Pebble side table from JAM.
LIGHTING Trapeze 1 wall lights in brass with porcelain bowl from Apparatus. Core table lamp by New Works in Lundhs Blue Granite from Aura Objects. Boyd floor lamp from Jardan. ART & OBJECTS Ildiko Kovacs, In & Out, 2020, Oil on board 122 x 244cm from Hugo Michell Gallery. Clay sculpture (dark), Sam Gold, Untitled 2021, Stoneware and liquid quarts, 89 x 32 x 32cm from Hugo Michell Gallery. Luna Vase in Dolomite from JAM.
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Fuller Street Cottage
Dolphins Sands Studio
ARCHITECT DAHA LEAD ARCHITECT David Hansford BUILDER Mylne Construction STRUCTURAL ENGINEER Macstructure
ARCHITECT Matt Williams Architects PROJECT TEAM Matt Williams, Natasha Lowry, Dhugan McLean BUILDER Peter Blythe Builders STRUCTURAL ENGINEER JSA Consulting Engineers
DAHA +61 07 3311 5342 info@daharchitecture.com.au daharchitecture.com.au FINISHES Cabinetry – Laminex. Dolamite stone from Stonehaus. Pine flooring from Finlaysons. LIGHTING Lumen8. FIXED & FITTED Gareth Ashton from Abey. Neff appliances. Franke sinks. Doors and windows from Eden Made.
MATT WILLIAMS ARCHITECTS +61 3 6234 3001 mattwilliams.com.au FINISHES Silvertop Ash battens from Radial Timbers on exterior, over a cladding of fibre cement sheet. Surefoot footing system. Roof – stainless steel Colorbond. Silvertop Ash decking from Radial Timbers. OSB lines interior including all joinery. Black limestone pavers on floor. Benchtops/splashbacks/walls – Dekton Domoos by Cosentino. LIGHTING Fittings from Inlite, Saturn and Decrolux. Bathroom feature light from Artemide. FIXED & FITTED Integrated dish drawer, integrated cool drawer refrigerator, cooktop and rangehood from Fisher & Paykel. Handles from Lo&Co.