Tony Owen Partners have designed a house in Sydney, Australia for a client who is a concrete contractor who built the house himself.

From the architects:

The house was designed to make maximum use of concrete and solid construction. Because of the client’s heritage, the design was influenced by the materials and forms of Mediterranean Architecture. The curved shell forms reflect the sails of the fishing boats from the Greek Islands. In addition the client does a lot of entertaining and wanted a house which maximized the connection to a large outdoor space.

Bill’s House by Tony Owen Partners

The client’s brief was to create a unique and iconic home. This presented challenges as the site is situated in a fairly homogenous suburban location. As a result, the house has been designed as a series of blocks which modulate the scale and minimize the impact of the house to the surrounding areas. It consists of a series of different internal levels, which step up progressively from the street. The house is quite solid from the street and progressively opens up to be completely open to the rear. These changes in levels created an opportunity for the strongly stepped external massing as well as the complex interplay of the stairs in the central internal spaces.

The house has an ‘L-shaped’ configuration to maximize the solar aspect for the living spaces. There is also a central courtyard to the west which allows for light to penetrate the middle of the house and also serves to break up the massing of the facade.

A feature of the house is the large central staircase element. The original idea for this stair came from the James Bond movie ‘Never Say Never Again’. This stair adjoins the central courtyard so it is always bathed in light. The stair connects the various level changes in a single fluid sculptural element in dark polished concrete.

The dominant feature of the house is the curved sail-like rear white walls. These walls soften the massing and bring a lightness to the house. The walls break up the space and progressively dematerialize the house into a series of cantilevered vertical and horizontal planes to the rear. The kitchen and living areas of the house finally dissolve into a large outdoor room for entertaining. This space contains a glass swimming pool with a pool bar and an a minimalist outdoor seating enclosure. This structure has more the feel of a lounge area or bar with reclining daybeds and fabric clad structures. The use of mirrors and chandeliers enhances the luxurious lounge feel. The rear space also contains a terraced market garden which enhances the European character of the space. The living room and outdoor areas are connected by an indoor/outdoor fireplace. The spaces revolve around this element and further blur the line between inside and out.

The complex geometries of the curved structures were resolved in 3-D by computer. Like all of our projects, this house, was designed entirely using 3-D computer modelling software. This allows the architect to see the influences of the site and spatial relationships on the design. This technique is called parametric design and you can see in real time how the design changes as you adjust to changing environmental variables.

Visit the Tony Owen Partners website – here.

The Fitzwilliam Hotel in Belfast, Northern Ireland has recently opened, featuring an interior that has been designed by Christopher Ash from the London-based Project Orange.

The Fitzwilliam in Belfast is meant to reflect the “baronial modern” style of the Fitzwilliam Hotel in Dublin, a theme which combines that of a grand, stately baronial mansion house with modern decor.

The Fitzwilliam Hotel in Belfast by Project Orange

Located adjacent to the magnificent Opera House in the heart of Belfast, the sister hotel to the original Fitzwilliam in Dublin, Project Orange were appointed to work on the interior fit-out of this five star, 132 bedroom hotel.

Bringing a slice of the Manhattan Manor House to Belfast, our designs bring together simple, bold colours, warm oak panelling, quirky fabrics and luxurious marbles to create a decadent, glamourous setting.

The ground floor lobby draws on the inglenook as a central element of the manor house to create a key zone to the hotel. With traditional oak settles and library shelves to peruse either side of the contemporary fireplace, guests will be able to sit back and relax. Stepping away from the inglenook, the double height reception area unfolds with floor to ceiling glazing throughout and hints of luxurious marbles, bronze and oak detailing.

The first floor restaurant plays on the theme of the traditional “oak room” becoming a series of three dining carriages all lined in oak throughout. Booth and banquette seating with playful mobile privacy screens create a rich layering to the space and on one side overlook the double height lobby.

Visit the Project Orange website – here.    Visit the Fitzwilliam Hotel’s website – here.