An innovative residential property, designed by Peter Maddison and built by Atkinson.Pontifex, has won the HIA-CSR Victorian Home of the Year award for 2009.
The Beaumaris-based custom built home sits on an elevated seaside location and, according to the awards judges, "ticked all the boxes with a wonderful relationship to the outdoors, use of view, fits into the streetscape and neighbouring properties, together with excellent internal zoning and storage."
Maddison said one of the most challenging aspects of the design was taking advantage of the views of Port Phillip Bay while also being as environmentally aware as possible.
"There was a conflict with that - with the orientation and the view because it was back-to-front. The view actually faces south ... the sun was coming in at the opposite side of the house. That represented a challenge to us - how were we going to make it well orientated while taking in its 270 degree panoramic views?" he told Architecture and Design.
The challenge was overcome by creating a building with a "dual personality" comprising a south-facing cantilevered black zinc clad living area, and a two-storey north-facing bedroom. The two elements are separated by a circulation zone, with the roof prised up over the elements, allowing the sun to penetrate into the living zones.
Taking out the Victorian Home of the Year award on 6 November showed Maddison that "slow building" is still appreciated and valued in the industry.
"This house is a good example of slow building and it's good to see recognition for houses that have the effort and thought and quality go into them. This house took about a year in our office to design and document, and took the builder two and a half years to build. But that building will probably be there in 100 years. It won't be falling apart in 25 or 30 years and, I mean, that's sustainable isn't it? That's the way buildings should be built," he said.
A number of sustainability measures were implemented into the design, including a thermal chimney, geo-thermal hot water to heat the pool and home, a 20,000L water tank, low E glass and sun-controlled louvres.
