CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK • This residence in a rural setting on Brisbane’s western edge is a further development of Donovan Hill’s research into dwellings where slab on ground and masonry construction coalesces with the pragmatic benefits of climate control and occupation directly ‘with the landscape’. It is an attempt at ’being with’ rather than ‘gazing at’ our surroundings. The intention was to shift from the revered ‘placing’ of the object in the landscape to designing a landscape that included a dwelling, or better still, places for dwelling. PUBLIC AND CULTURAL BENEFITS • Continues research regarding an idealized Australian type – the single house alone in a ‘natural’ setting. • Inadvertently triggered a lot of interest in utilizing fairly low quality brickwork in ways other than as partition construction. RELATIONSHIP OF BUILT FORM TO CONTEXT • Through actively forming the landscape the building emphasises that landscape’s particular character. The ridge has been cut and then a new plateau is retained by the house itself. This contrasts with the ‘spine’ of swimming pool which extends the ridge as a level crest. Views to the larger setting from the house are strongly differentiated (screened, framed, foiled, foreshortened) and include views to the sky. • The accompanying drawing clarifies the landscape design which is currently incomplete. PROGRAM RESOLUTION • Arrival is inevitably by car, with the route contrived to terminate at the ‘invented’ rear above the house proper. This upper flattened area is

intended to facilitate and capture the open ended activities and machinery of ‘farming’, vehicles and business (in the independent ‘shed’). Circulation descends to the single domestic level in a linear plan which includes kitchen and public rooms at the centre. Movement to bedrooms east and west is beside the retained plateau under a series of roof-lights. INTEGRATION OF ALLIED DISCIPLINES • Environmental elements form part of the building armature. The combination of sun/rain hood protection, upstand beams to contain soil, planting and water storage yield a stable enhanced mass ‘against’ and ‘over’ the occupation. Required water is collected on site and stored in drainage capsules in both upper and lower landscapes. COST/VALUE OUTCOME • Apart from establishing strategic ‘value’ moves, the Architects (as is typical in most of our projects) responded on a package by package basis to the owner’s instructions. SUSTAINABILITY • While projected conceptually via mass/water handling, it is the client’s choice to live with dependence on vehicles and separation from shared amenities. This form of project demonstrates that the lead with sustainable environments lies with society as a whole, made up as it is of clients, transport groups, service suppliers, etcetera. Architects have a limited role. RESPONSE TO CLIENT AND USER NEEDS • The client’s central concern was to reveal the charm of the setting and create comfort conditions that did not require mechanical cooling/heating. They spend a lot of time in the house.