This off-form concrete home in Perth embraces the brutalist and modernist architectural legacy of its locale
珀斯溫暖家居活現當地的現代主義和粗獷建築風格
“LANDSCAPING BLURS THE BOUNDARIES BETWEEN INDOOR AND OUTDOOR SPACES”
The suburban residential neighbourhood of Floreat is about eight kilometres northwest of the Perth’s central business district in Western Australia. Along with a handful of other residential areas such as City Beach and Dalkeith, Floreat is known as a “garden suburb” because of its abundant trees and sweeping green vistas. Floreat also has an architectural legacy of modernist and brutalist buildings constructed with board-marked off-form concrete. So when Australian architect Neil Cownie designed this 6,000sqft family residence named Roscommon House, he worked to embrace both the green outdoors and the suburb’s architectural personality.
“In keeping with Floreat’s ‘garden suburb’ history, landscaping blurs the boundaries between indoor and outdoor spaces with pocket courtyards and roof terrace gardens,” explains Neil. “The spatial arrangement of the pocket courtyards is also driven by environmental concerns; the building is teased apart to maximise winter solar penetration and to capture prevailing cooling breezes.”
在西澳洲珀斯市內、離主要商業區西北面約8公里之處，就是寧靜優美的住宅區Floreat，鄰近還有City Beach和Dalkeith等。Floreat周邊盡是茂密樹林和無邊際的翠綠草地，素有「郊野花園」之美稱。
Floreat的建築風格亦別具特色，主要由表面呈木板紋理的大型混凝土築建而成，呈現出現代主義和粗獷主義的美態。當澳洲建築師Neil Cownie興建這間6,000平方呎的大屋時，亦刻意把四周的嫩綠景致，以及地道建築特色融入其中，完美糅合。
Since the suburb is already home to a number of outstanding modernist concrete buildings, Neil and the owners decided on grey off-form concrete for the walls and ceilings. “I think that when building, an architect has a responsibility to ensure that their new build will be contributing positively to the community,” he says. “The greater area around Roscommon House has a significant modernist and brutalist architectural history, and concrete was used as a ‘finished’ expressed wall and ceiling finish in many buildings in this locality. The materials we selected for the house were influenced by this.”
Neil’s design incorporates passive heating and cooling measures, and includes a concealed 16.5kw photovoltaic array with 50 panels that enables the house to produce its own energy. While the bulk of the house’s programme is set across a single level, the floor plan also includes a 1,500sqft basement and a small 750sqft first floor with roof gardens.
Within, the indoor and outdoor communal areas are seamlessly integrated. A kitchen is connected to a family room, and both these spaces open up to the outdoors. Around an interior stairwell, Neil created a void with an exposed, sculptural, off-form concrete ceiling that references
「為配合Floreat『郊野花園』的美譽，我們利用小庭院和天台花園模糊室內和室外的分界。」Neil表示：「小庭院的空間分布亦受其他環境因素影響：建築物分成多個部分，目的是令冬天的日光能盡情灑進屋內，夏天時又可讓涼風吹遍居所。」
由於外圍已建有多幢奪目的現代混凝土建築，Neil和屋主們決定採用大型混凝土來建造牆壁和天花。「建造過程中，建築師有責任確保新建築物能為所在社區作出貢獻。這裡到處也散發著現代主義和粗獷主義的建築歷史氣息，很多建築混凝土也運用混凝土作為牆面和天花面飾；我們因而選用這種物料進行興建。」
Neil的設計充分考慮季節因素，裝設由50塊太陽能板組成的16.5kw發電系列，自給自足。大宅主要空間建於同一層內，同時亦設有一個1,500平方呎的地牢和連天台花園的750平方呎小樓層。
“AN ARCHITECT HAS A RESPONSIBILITY TO ENSURE THAT THEIR NEW BUILD WILL BE CONTRIBUTING POSITIVELY TO THE COMMUNITY”
the nearby Great Lakes – a series of lakes, swamps and wetlands on the Swan Coastal Plain that are important to the local Noongar aboriginal people.
For the kitchen’s central island, Neil set a 60mm-thick marble benchtop over a timber cabinet. He concealed services and the acoustic insulation within the timber ceiling, and the refrigerators behind the cabinetry. A small northern courtyard draws in sunlight to insulate the kitchen during the colder months.
A central courtyard connects directly to the kitchen and family room via stacking external glass doors. Once these doors are open, the internal and external spaces become one. From the indoor living areas, the family can look out to this central courtyard that opens to the sky, and in summer, they often enjoy their meals here underneath a honey locust tree that provides dappled shade.
室內外的空間流暢連接。廚房與家庭房相連，兩者也可通往戶外。Neil在屋內一條樓梯的平台上方打造了一片獨特空間，連雕塑般的外露混凝土天花，反映毗鄰的Great Lakes——在Swan Coastal Plain上多個湖、沼澤和濕地，對當地Noongar族原住民來說極為重要。
廚房中島由60毫米厚的大理石台面和流線型木櫃組成。建築師又把隔音設備隱藏在木天花之內，雪櫃則收在廚櫃之後。陽光自北面的小庭院照射進內，令廚房在冬天也能保持溫暖。
中央庭院跟廚房和家庭房之間由數道玻璃門相連，打開後，戶外和戶內即合二為一。屋主們可從客廳望到中央庭院和蔚藍天空，夏天時，他們常在庭院的Gleditsia樹下用餐。屋外一條樓梯正好落在庭院一邊，把地下花園跟天台平台花園連繫起來。
“THE QUALITY OF ‘TIMELESSNESS’ IS SOMETHING THAT I STRIVE FOR IN ALL MY DESIGN WORK”
An external staircase to one side of the central courtyard links the ground level garden both visually and physically to the garden of the roof terrace. Neil says, “The garden and pockets of courtyards were ‘carved’ out of the mass of the house to connect the building with its landscape, to provide cross-ventilation in summer and to draw the sun deep into the house to warm the interiors in winter.”
The backyard, where the swimming pool is located, has “floating” roof structures that echo the shadows of the trees. “These shapes are also a nod to Oscar Niemeyer and his contribution to international modernist architecture, which inspired the Western Australian architects responsible for the many modernist buildings constructed through the 1960s and early ’70s in this suburb,” explains Neil.
The master bedroom is located at the top of the interior staircase on the first floor and has its own private roof garden. The children’s bedrooms and activity area are separate from the core of the house, so the kids can make as much noise as they want without disturbing the adults.
To add warmth to the interiors, Neil layered the concrete walls with timber and brass details, and embraced the uneven concrete surfaces in a celebration of Japanese wabi-sabi aesthetics. He chose furniture that would give the house a contemporary rather than mid-century feel, selecting pieces based on their shape and form as well as how comfortable they felt. He custom
「花園和小庭院可說是從大屋中分割出來，把建築物和周邊地形相連起來，令居所可享受到夏天的涼風和冬日的溫暖。」Neil解釋說。
後院設有游泳池，一個像是飄浮在半空的屋頂式結構提供舒適的遮蔭效果。Neil說：「這些設計的形狀是向Oscar Niemeyer和他在全球現代建築方面的貢獻致敬，他的理念影響了很多1960至1970年代初在這興建現代建築的西澳洲建築師。」
主人睡房位於1樓，就在室內樓梯盡頭旁邊，附設私人天台花園。小孩房間和活動區遠離了大屋的核心區域，讓小孩們盡情開心玩樂，不怕騷擾大人。
為了增添溫暖感，Neil在混凝土牆面加上木材和銅製元素，並包覆了凹凸不平的混凝土表面，展現日本侘寂美學。他以形狀和舒適感作為挑選傢具的條件，為居所注入現代氣派多於中世紀氣圍；他亦特別訂製了室內和室外用的餐桌、床頭櫃、樓梯
designed the indoor and outdoor dining tables, bedside tables, pendant lamps in the stairwell and a rug in the family room, and sourced streamlined, elegant pieces from brands such as Moroso, Punt and Diesel from Foscarini to create an elegant yet relaxed atmosphere. The outdoor areas were furnished with Kettal’s Boma three-seat sofa, Mesh sofa and coffee tables, and Basket Outdoor Club armchair.
“The quality of ‘timelessness’ is something that I strive for in all my design work,” concludes Neil. “I try to avoid trends, and rather look at the lifestyle of my clients and the specificity of each site. This way, the completed building sits comfortably, both for the owners and for the wider community that views it from the outside.” //
平台的吊燈和家庭房的地毯，並搜購多件流線型的優雅設計，分別來自Moroso、Punt和Foscarini的Diesel等品牌，為空間營造出雅致又悠閒的氣氛。戶外空間置有Kettal的Boma 3座位沙發、Mesh沙發和咖啡桌，以及Basket Outdoor Club扶手椅。
「我所有設計工程也講求永恆格調。我盡量避免跟隨潮流，以客人的生活方式和每個工地的特色為本。唯有這樣，完成後的建築才能令屋主生活悠遊自得，而所在社區的人們從遠處望向這個建築時，也同樣感到舒適自在。」//