THE BILLABONG
a forest house of Australia
The Billabong House was planned to fit along a stagnant body of water along the Darling River. Australia’s dry climate of the outback resonates through the design, which complements its perched position along the billabong. The gumtree forests and humid climate influences an ‘outback’ aesthetic of the household, paying homage to the surrounding materiality of its great Australian landscape, and the original owners and custodians of the land by the Ngemba Tribe in the Canyon of Mt. Gundabooka.
The Design of the house offers clear views of the billabong and its surrounding landscapes. Its driving concept adopts the small cottage house lifestyle for two, taking inspiration from Australian bush sheds, which can be found in the harshest areas of the outback in Australia. The house adopts an open floor plan providing transparency between spaces which connect interior and exterior scenes. The living and dining room can be transformed into outdoor living experiences, allowing spacious areas for family entertainment and flexible lifestyles. This transparency between the conditioned interiors and the exterior forest setting, establishes a deeper connection to the site, the application of an all timber frame design compliments its status within the natural setting. Inside the spaces the timber is carried through the entirety of the building. Its interior program includes; a large open space for the kitchen, living and dining area overlooking the exterior landscape, a lobby room which connects the front verandah spaces to the interiors, a fitted bathroom with a laundry unit, a spacious bedroom that overlooks the billabong and a large outdoor decking space that extends the residency to the forest scene. Capturing the natural sunlight and cross breeze ventilation of the site, provides adequate lighting for all areas, and enough ventilation access to cool the spaces during the day. The high window openings and Skillion roof, generate a tall void space that allows light and natural air to circulate though the living areas. The roofs large surface area provides an efficient source of rain water collection, coupled with simple irrigation methods including, chain downpipes and a rainwater collection system, which ensures the building does not impede on the landscapes’ foundation. The construction of the house comprises of traditional timber frame building methods, with recycled applications of pre-fabricated timber joinery and wall cladding found throughout the design. These features include the interior cladding of the living room sourced from CNC milled recycled timber found on site to formulate the timber cladding. In addition, the exterior vertical timber cladding is sourced from repurposed exterior timber. These features would support the reflections of the site and the buildings obligation within its landscape. |
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