Saturday, December 24, 2011

Small House / By Domenic Alvaro

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Domenic Alvaro
Post By:kitticoon Poopong
Photo © Courtesy of Trevor Mein - meinphoto Pty Ltd
World Architecture Festival 2011 - Category Winner: HOUSE
Small house is an ultra-compact concrete vertical house that adds to the urban fabric of inner city Surry Hills in Sydney. The site is so small it can fit into the garage of your typical sprawling suburban home (7mx6m).

Photo © Courtesy of Trevor Mein - meinphoto Pty Ltd
Photo © Courtesy of Trevor Mein - meinphoto Pty Ltd
The philosophy of small house proposes to build upwards rather than outwards, by assigning multiple uses to single spaces, with flexibility for change in the future.
"It is a house designed for myself and partner Sue “+ 1”.
Photo © Courtesy of Trevor Mein - meinphoto Pty Ltd
Photo © Courtesy of Trevor Mein - meinphoto Pty Ltd
With flexibility for change a single space can be subdivided into multiple zones:
  • Ground floor: utility/store/bicycle/parking
  • First floor: sleeping/bathing, storage, 
  • Second floor: living (with optional additional zone for sleeping)
  • Third floor: food prep/eating/entertainment 
  • Roof: a ‘working’ roof garden terrace (the circulation space enables a small study on the roof space, and the panel sliding doors open to enable the roof to become the 5th room of the house- albeit an outdoor room and herb, flower garden with over-scaled fig tree; thus creating a canopy effect )
Photo © Courtesy of Trevor Mein - meinphoto Pty Ltd
Photo © Courtesy of Trevor Mein - meinphoto Pty Ltd
Photo © Courtesy of Trevor Mein - meinphoto Pty Ltd
The above program is all connected by a series of pre-fabricated stairs - these draw air out through each level via roof-top sliding doors, maximizing vertical cross-ventilation. The large sliding windows maximise daylight, ventilation and frame city views; whilst the solidity ensures privacy from surrounding commercial buildings and good thermal mass. A services riser connecting each level enables the reticulation of all services and additional storage.
Photo © Courtesy of Trevor Mein - meinphoto Pty Ltd
Photo © Courtesy of Trevor Mein - meinphoto Pty Ltd
With an eco-conscious spirit in mind (and relatively modest budget), innovation was required for the construction, based upon a model of pre-fabrication. The two basic ideas were a structure with no columns to make effective use of the limited land area, and to achieve a final result which erased the sense of individual panels - in effect to make the building feel monolithic.
Photo © Courtesy of Trevor Mein - meinphoto Pty Ltd
Photo © Courtesy of Trevor Mein - meinphoto Pty Ltd
Photo © Courtesy of Trevor Mein - meinphoto Pty Ltd
Photo © Courtesy of Trevor Mein - meinphoto Pty Ltd
The collaboration and integration of all specialist engineers and consultants fuelled the project to existence. The philosophy was to preplan the entire project so that as many components could be pre-made in the factory. The structure, built entirely from high quality precast concrete (including floors), was fabricated off-site, and erected on site over a four day period. Wall and floor panels, cast in provisions for stairs, balustrades, windows, light fittings, and the like produced off-site, minimised on-site construction time and disturbance to the surrounding neighbourhood. Low-E comfort plus glazing, also reduces the reliance on mechanical air-conditioning.
Photo © Courtesy of Trevor Mein - meinphoto Pty Ltd
Photo © Courtesy of Trevor Mein - meinphoto Pty Ltd
Photo © Courtesy of Trevor Mein - meinphoto Pty Ltd
Photo © Courtesy of Trevor Mein - meinphoto Pty Ltd
Small house investigates a new typology in the current urban living space, whilst still reflecting a contemporary lifestyle full of diversity and creativity; all for the cost of a city apartment. Locally, Small House has created a sense of safety and amenity in its immediate precinct and has completed the streetscape. Today, Small House, its architecture and sense of place, is appreciated by onlookers forming part of the Sydney City Architecture Walking routes. 
level 0 floor plan--drawing © Courtesy of Woods Bagot-Domenic Alvaro
level 1 floor plan--drawing © Courtesy of Woods Bagot-Domenic Alvaro
level 2 floor plan--drawing © Courtesy of Woods Bagot-Domenic Alvaro
level 3 floor plan--drawing © Courtesy of Woods Bagot-Domenic Alvaro
level 4 floor plan--drawing © Courtesy of Woods Bagot-Domenic Alvaro


As the sizes of cities continue to sprawl endlessly, Small House proposes an affordable way to live in the inner city and most importantly avoids the need to cope with the grueling commute.
Description from the Architects:

elevation--drawing © Courtesy of Woods Bagot-Domenic Alvaro
exploded axon--drawing © Courtesy of Woods Bagot-Domenic Alvaro
Project Data
Project name: Small House
Location:   Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Program: Single family house
Storeys: 5
Awards: 
  • World Architecture Festival 2011 - Category Winner: HOUSE
  • 2011 Australian Institute of Architects Awards
The people
Client / Owner / Developer: Domenic Alvaro
Architects:  Woods Bagot-Domenic Alvaro
Builder: Nicholas Bettar: Baseline Constructions
Environmental Engineer: Domenic Alvaro
Joinery Contractor: Karisma Joinery
Landscape Architect: Daniel Baffsky, 360 Degrees
Lighting Consultant: DJCoalition
Precast Consultant: Hanson Precast
Structural Engineer: Waterman International
Photographs: © Trevor Mein - meinphoto Pty Ltd


Note>>Location in this map, indicate city/country but not exact address.
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