Tasmania
The Wattle Bird House is inspirational in its design and construction. It is planned to be an intergenerational, sustainable, and comfortable home for the owners and their extended family. The house is thermally efficient, packed with technology, connected to place, and the build is a showcase of the local construction industry. Construction wise it delights with purposely atypical approaches to typical solutions and layers of detail upon every turn. It delights and demands attention. The house showcases construction as a creative activity. The care, labour and skill in the Wattle Bird House is inspirational.
The Wattlebird House is a jewellery box of architectural ideas. A home carefully crafted for the varied needs of an extended family, it has been skilfully oriented on a difficult corner site to maximise the potential of existing and restored landscapes and capture views and sunlight.
The architects have demonstrated considerable skill in resolving this construction, including the use of bespoke structural systems, custom glazing suite fabrication and a roofing system that capitalises on the inherent qualities of BlueScope Colorbond steel products.
The jury was impressed by the attention paid to the environmental sustainability of the project. This has extended across the design from the selection of materials and construction systems to thermal performance and building services.
At a component level, the architects have expanded their scope by prototyping, testing and implementing a unique 3D, digitally printed roof-capping detail. This custom element has facilitated simple and cost-effective forming of challenging junctions between roofing sheets of different pitches.
We love our home! For the framed views of kunanyi/Mt Wellington and of the river Derwent. The Design has allowed us to feel comfortable as we grow older with ergonomical elements incorporated in the design in the kitchen layout, the laundry and the bathroom. The inclusion of a lift reduces stress in moving groceries, taking our bags for travel and being able to invite friends and family over who have mobility issues. The Studio is bright and light and a wonderful place to work with its connection to garden. The study is spacious, quiet, private and tranquil.
Scott Flett, Design Architect, Documentation Architect
BridgePro, Civil Consultant
Darren O’Dea, ESD Consultant
John Caley, ESD Consultant
Kim Dale Eagling, Building Surveyor
Partridge Engineers, Structural Engineer
The Australian Institute of Architects acknowledges First Nations peoples as the Traditional Custodians of the lands, waters, and skies of the continent now called Australia.
We express our gratitude to their Elders and Knowledge Holders whose wisdom, actions and knowledge have kept culture alive.
We recognise First Nations peoples as the first architects and builders. We appreciate their continuing work on Country from pre-invasion times to contemporary First Nations architects, and respect their rights to continue to care for Country.
