Meeting the architects

One of the most pleasant outcomes of participating in Brisbane Open House was how it led to a wonderful meeting with the architects who designed our home. Apparently, the newspaper publicity about the A.F Dawson Residence earlier this month was enough to pique the interest of 82-year-old architect Peter Heathwood to pay me a visit.

And what an enormous privilege it was to meet Peter Heathwood, who also brought along the charming Michael Cardillo, a second year cadet during the time the house was built. Michael's handwriting was even on the original plans. He eventually became a partner in Heathwood's architectural firm which exists today as Heathwood, Cardillo,Wilson, although both Peter and Michael are now retired.

You know it will be a nice visit when your guests bring cake, which they did. They were simply delightful and we had a good old chat!

It was quite a special moment to have the people who conceived the design of the house come back after 51 years. They were very comfortable with the home and could talk with great ease about the design features and materials used in the home...like it was built yesterday. They were impressed at how well the home had fared for its 50 plus years.

I had a number of questions about whether or not certain things were original to the house. It was namely the use of lattice for the verandah/patio screen and balustrade, as it seemed at odds with the modernist style of the home.

I can confirm the lattice is indeed original. It was used as a buffer on the western side of the house to provide protection from the sun. The lattice pattern was also repeated for the balustrade. It is also consistent with many of Peter's other homes which used forms of screening. Michael visited the house just after it was built and remembers it quite well.

Michael said the house is very much how all of Peter's homes were built. The AF Dawson Residence is one of Peter's 'tent designs' which is quite evident when you enter the home with the central pole in the middle of the house.

Comfort and climate were the overriding imperatives in his homes. His philosophy was a home should provide shelter and his homes were designed for the best possible comfort in our sub-tropical climate. And it is a very comfortable home in which to live!

Interestingly, Peter designed all the interior and exterior Perspex light fittings himself because he said you just couldn't get decent light fittings at the time. He was chuffed they were still in the house. The yellow light shades outside were to repel mosquitoes and minimise the bugs which are attracted to white light.

The best line of the day was when Peter entered the refurbished 1980s kitchen and exclaimed, "Well, this is certainly not our work!" You'd understand why if you saw our country style kitchen which is completely out of kilter with the rest of the home.

The kitchen benches would have been much higher and would have had white Laminex bench tops which curved up the splash back and then there was a shelf  for condiments before the overhead cupboards would start. The cabinetry was originally maple plywood with black d-mould handles similar to the cabinets in our bedrooms.

Peter said to give him a call when we renovate the kitchen, as he would be able to help us out. That job has obviously jumped up in the priority list...especially given Peter's age... Stay tuned!

A.F Dawson Residence at Brisbane Open House

Well what a busy couple of weeks we've had in the lead up to Brisbane Open House which was held last weekend.

It's all done and dusted and we were so pleased to be involved in the event as part of the residential homes component. For those who don't know, our home was the A.F Dawson Residence in the program.

Jason and I had a terrific time opening our home and sharing it with the general public -  meeting lovely new people and even the neighbours. We were also happy to meet quite a few Fun and VJs readers and instagram followers. Thanks so much for visiting and hearing the story of what we know about the home so far and our plans for it.

For those of you who missed out, you can visit Walk Among the Homes blog to view a special virtual home tour. As the house is very much a work-in-progress, there have been a few changes since then...it's ever evolving as we remove, repair and restore!

AF Dawson residence – Photo by Elizabeth Santillan www.walkamongthehomes.com.au

We were also chuffed to be in the Courier Mail's QWeekend 4 October issue with an article written by the wonderful Margie Fraser. It is a hoot of a story about how we came to view the house because of the furniture and ended up buying the house instead!

And if you still want to satisfy your curiosity about the house, keep reading here. I promise to keep it updated more religiously as we go along!

Brisbane Open House 2014

Attention all archi-tourists: it's that time again when we have to plan our itineraries for Brisbane Open House to be held on the weekend of the 11/12 October 2014.

For those of you not in the know, Brisbane Open House is an annual event which grants the general public access to some of Brisbane's architectural gems. You can read about my experience at last year's Brisbane Open House event here.

Last week we attended the official launch and received our information guide books. The breadth of historical and contemporary properties which will be on show is rich and diverse. There are nearly 90 properties featured in the guide - with 35 new buildings opening their doors this year.

Brisbane Open House guide book

One of those new buildings is also our home...Eek!

We were asked to participate and are among some of the suburban residential offerings in this year's open house program. Our home is listed as the AF Dawson residence in the program and you can book a tour of our place via the ballot system on the Brisbane Open House website. Go on, we'd love to meet you!

AF Dawson residence

We are very excited to be part of this year's event as hopefully it will raise awareness of the importance of preserving mid-century homes. Too often, homes like ours are unsympathetically renovated or even demolished to build homes which are generally poorly designed and constructed...And we can't have that, can we?

Our home was designed by an award-winning Brisbane architect called Peter Heathwood - it was drawn as a specification house for builder AF Dawson in 1962. The house was owned by the one family until we purchased it earlier this year. It's a great home and we really love it.

Railton House. Image from here

In the open house program there are other mid-century residential homes and buildings which are 'must-sees' for the mid-mod enthusiast. My pick is Railton House and Office located in Spring Hill, Torbreck Home Units in Highgate Hill, Jacobi House in Indooroopilly. You can check out the Hot Modernism suggested itinerary on the Brisbane Open House website to see what else is on offer.

Because we are part of the event it means my 'archi-touring' will be curtailed to just one day. I've got my heart set on seeing the old Boggo Road Goal built in 1903 and also the 2014 Christian Street residence designed by architect James Russell.

If you're in Brisbane which  buildings do you plan to visit?

Hot Modernism

Queensland's modernist architecture from 1945 to 1975  is put under the spotlight at a major exhibit now showing at the State Library of Queensland.

I was very excited to gain a sneak preview of the Hot Modernism exhibition at the official launch earlier this week thanks to dansk vintage who is principal sponsor of the exhibition. (They were away overseas on a buying trip and kindly gave me some of their tickets. Yay!)

Centenary Pool Spring Hill designed by James Birrell

It is heartening to see there is a growing appreciation of mid-century design and from a preservation point of view this exhibition will add to that important conversation. You can never fully grow if you don't learn from the past. It is undeniable the period of development between 1945 to 1975 was the start of a modern Queensland. And it is wonderful to see the architects, designers and builders who dreamt big (and a little bit left of field) after the immediate post-war period acknowledged.

So, from a mid-century modernism enthusiast's point of view, this is a must-see exhibition. There are photographs, plans, models and videos a-plenty in which to immerse yourself. I'll be going back to have a good old leisurely look when the children are back at school next week.

Inside the re-creation of Jacobi House with vintage Danish furnishings from dansk vintage

One of the many highlights was the full-scale replica of the iconic Jacobi House (1957) designed by Hayes and Scott. It is a fabulous re-creation and gives a taste of how 'less is more' when it comes to building design.

Madly modern Susan posing in the Torbreck room.
Ironically, Susan looks like a 1950s housewife but has never  used a washig machine in her life according to her domesticated partner Chris.

There is also a room dedicated to the construction and history of Torbreck Home Units (which I wrote about in a previous blog post).

Speare House profile in the Hot Modernism exhibition

And of particular interest to me were the drawings and photographs of the demolished Speare House (1959) which was designed by the same architect who drew our modernist house. Although it precedes our home by four years, some of the features and ideas about climatic design can be seen in our humble abode.

Our friends, the publishers of Australian Modern (Chris and madly modern Susan), were also interviewed as part of the exhibition. A short three minute video was made about their mid-century home and how they came to buy it and then become friends with the architect, Barry Walduck.

Their modernist home will play host to the Man about the House Tim Ross Comedy show which is part of the Hot Modernism special events. The show cost is $58 and can be booked here.

Mid-Century Queensland with Chris Osborne and Susan Bennett from State Library of Queensland on Vimeo.

Hot Modernism is a free exhibit at the State Library and is open until 12 October.

Torbreck Home Units

I ticked another thing off from my bucket list...visiting the landmark Torbreck building in Highgate Hill. Torbreck is one of the first highrise mixed-use (though the proposed restaurant and shop never eventuated) residential towers in Brisbane, which was built between 1957 - 1960 and designed by architects Job & Froud (read my post about a Froud house).

It is one of those Brisbane buildings which fascinates locals. Due to its very high location up on Dornoch Terrace, it is the most visible and distinctive looking building on Brisbane's southside. It always had the reputation of being the residence of the well-heeled...and to some extent, it still has that reputation today with the units occupied by mostly professionals.

I've always wanted to see the units and when Chris from Australian Modern organised a tour of the building for his annual MAD Weekend, I jumped at the opportunity... as did many other mid-century architecture enthusiasts.

Torbreck Home Units

The Torbreck entry from Dornoch Terrace

The Torbreck home units comprise of the Tower Block and the Garden Block which are linked by an external walkway.The Garden Block was erected first, with the Tower Block following quickly afterwards. If you want to read a more detailed account of the Torbreck building you can visit their website HERE which has links to further information.

Interestingly (for me, at any rate) , the architect who designed our house also worked on the drawings for the Garden Block when he was a student architect at Job & Froud. As a consequence, I was very keen to seen these compact one-bedroom units in this block.

First floor of the Torbreck Garden Block

Mid-century brick relief between the Tower and Garden Block. You can also just see that a different coloured check tile was used on each level of the Garden Block

We saw four different units in the Garden Block which the owners very graciously opened up for us during our visit. Each unit would have been almost identical when they were built, but over the years they were renovated or updated to suit their individual owners.

Original kitchen in a Garden Block unit

Some of the units had original kitchens while others units were completely reconfigured. One unit had its bedroom moved to where the kitchen would have been originally, while its bedroom was enclosed behind glass partition walls. It was interesting to see how each resident used and interpreted their living space.

Original planter boxes on the balcony of a Garden Block unit which overlooks the communal swimming pool.

The highrise Tower Block units are the more spacious units of the two blocks. We visited three very different two-bedroom units in the Tower. The Tower block also takes in the most spectacular views with each unit having at least one balcony.

Looking up to the Tower Block from the linking bridge 

Again, the Tower units were different in style, some with many of the original features, while others were updated to a more contemporary style, often undoing past renovation of previous owners.

Original entry/ kitchen in one of the two-bedroom Tower Block units

Lovely contemporary plywood kitchen.
Apparently, the original kitchen was replaced in the 1980s with a pink and curvy kitchen which had dated quite badly. The new owner has brought back some restraint to the space and has referenced the exterior Torbreck tiles in the splash back. 

Climatic design elements can be seen at play in the building. For example, full height sun blades are used to control the sun on the eastern and western sides of the building. It allows owners to adjust the amount of light and breeze to enter the unit.

Blue metal sun blades to control the light

In the units, the internal plumbing is stored in the ceilings. Originally they would have been hidden behind a perspex ceiling which gives an almost ethereal light adding the illusion of space in the small bathroom/laundry. 

In some units the perspex has been replaced with solid panels and in one particular unit the quirky owner decided to rip out the ceiling entirely and paint the pipes gold! GOLD!

Quirky exposed plumbing 

The jewel in the crown for Torbreck is definitely its observation lounge on the top floor. It has the best uninterrupted view of Brisbane and was definitely a huge highlight of the entire visit. How lucky to have this in the building where you live! It was simply breathtaking and was a fabulous place to sit and contemplate the world.

The Torbreck observation lounge with 360 degree views of Brisbane. 

Drawings of the observation lounge and proposed roof top garden which was never built.

Torbreck is on the Queensland Heritage register. The iconic Brisbane building will also be featured in the Hot Modernism exhibition at the Queensland State Library starting on 9 July.

Its image is the 'face' of the promotional campaign.

Image from here

Top 3 makeover inspiration sources

Blog post brought to you by Cordell

Online information is my preferred source of design and room makeover inspiration while we have been renovating the Sow’s Ear these past four or so years.  And as much as I love design magazines and books, they are becoming slightly more obsolete for me (mostly because limited space becomes an issue with full bookshelves) now that there are more quality resources online.

Here are my top 3 go-to inspiration sources when planning a room makeover:

Blogs

Design and renovations blogs are a great and inexpensive way to obtain the information we need to tackle a project. I follow quite a few local Queenslander renovation blogs which have provided us a lot of food for thought when making choices about renovating the Sow’s Ear. West End Cottage and Walk Among the Homes have been some of my favourite local blogs and I am a huge fan of Desire to Inspire - a joint Australian/Canadian blog which showcases a diverse range of interiors and exteriors from around the globe.

The beauty of a design blog is that they are also interactive. You can always leave a comment or ask questions and the bloggers are generally very helpful.

Instagram

I have a big love affair with Instagram at the moment. It is an app which allows people to share photographs with each other. It is where I have been spending most of my online time lately because it’s a quick and easy way to get my interiors and renovation inspiration fix. I stalk quite a few local and international designers, architects and stylists as it seems most have built drool-worthy design portfolios through Instagram. My favourites are Brisbane local Kara Rosenlund (she owns a sweet Queenslander too) and Brisbane interior design firm Wrightson Stewart

With our next big renovation and restoration venture I can see myself spending even more time scrolling through everyone’s portfolio.

Pinterest

Pinterest is a handy online tool to use if you are renovating or sprucing up a home. Pinterest allows you to find and save inspiration images onto boards which you can share online. It’s like a virtual interior decorator mood board. You can set up your boards room by room and save the inspiration images you find on the internet that are relevant for your project. It’s a great way to organise your thought processes as you plan a renovation.

I’ve set up boards for particular rooms and even have a few boards dedicated to furniture and mid-century objects which I covet. Pinterest is extremely addictive though and I try to limit my time there as I could spend hours looking through design images!

So, those are my top three online places to go when planning a room makeover.  Where do you go to get your inspiration?

Sneak peek inside 1943 Queensland cottage

It's fascinating to visit other people's homes, particularly homes which are as well-loved such as the one I visited a little while ago.

The house is a circa 1943 timber and tin weatherboard cottage which is set high upon a hill in Brisbane's inner west. It is owned by a jet-setting couple who spend many weeks out of the year travelling the globe for work and pleasure.

Between trips the couple have completed a fairly extensive renovation to undo the sins of past renovations and to maximise the spectacular views afforded by this stunning home. The front of the home has been opened up and has been turned into a sunroom of sorts. Custom built windows were installed to capture the views out towards Mt Nebo.

In this new section of the home a modern look which references the Queenslander vernacular was achieved with the use of coloured glass mimicking louvre windows.

It's a clever take on a traditional design feature as the windows are also engineered to block out the heavy traffic noise from the busy road below. Throughout the day, the play of light changes subtly in this front entry to create a warm and beautiful place to sit and enjoy the verdant outlook.

The different coloured glass is encased inside two panes of glass to form  one large single pane for these casement windows.

One thing that strikes you as you walk around the home is the amount of colour and pattern which abounds in this home. The owners are unafraid to punctuate their home with colour - yellow was chosen for the main living and dining rooms and suits the sensiblities of the artistic owners.

Beautiful exotic floral Jatana cement floor tiles (made in Byron Bay) were used as an accent in the main bathroom. It is so refreshing to see a bathroom bucking the clinical trend which is so prevalent in bathroom renovations today. It is unique yet entirely appropriate for this style of home.

Found objects, thrift finds, inherited pieces and souvenirs from travelling expeditions can all be found in this tastefully curated home. The pottery, art glass and ethnic textiles add another layer to make this a warm home.

West German pottery vessels found in an op-shop

Tribal harvest mask takes pride of place in the kitchen

 I hope you enjoyed this mini tour of a lovely Queensland style home. Long live colour and pattern!

Blue painted exterior with delicious timber porthole windows

QAGOMA California Design exhibition

A very cool new design exhibition has hit Brisbane - California Design Living in a Modern Way 1930 to 1965.

I attended the launch (thanks to the lovely Elizabeth from Walk Among the Homes who moves and shakes with all the right people) last week and had a sneak preview of what the exhibition entails at the Queensland Art Gallery.

The exhibition features many of the design icons that you would  normally associate with California during the mid 20th century and introduces us to some other new designs/designers from that period. Curated by Wendy Kaplan and Bobbye Tigerman from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LCMA), the exhibition is a tasteful selection of the work of pre- and post-war American designers.

Qunicy Jones and Frederick E Emmons sofa and side table from Spencer House 1961-64, with Milo Baughman cocktail table 1950

From the sleek industrial design of an airstream Clipper trailer and an Avanti Studebaker to the enormously popular furniture designs of Charles and Ray Eames, there's a little bit of something for everyone in this star-studded tribute to California design.

Airstream Clipper 1936

California furniture, fashion, textiles and jewellery have their moment under the spotlight in this wonderful exhibition.

Dan Johnson desk  1947 and Dan Johnson Gazelle lounge chair 1959

Levi Strauss & Co pants and top 1955

There is also an excellent book called California Design which goes into more detail about what is in the exhibition, as well as an accompanying book called A Handbook of California Design with biographies of the craftspeople, designers and manufacturers.

I received a copy of California Design for my birthday earlier this year and bought the handbook at the launch.
A lovely addition to my bookshelves at the Sow's Ear

Both are available at the QAGOMA gift shop 

Two very astute design junkies reading Australian Modern

It really is a fun exhibition and if you are into design, it is a must-see show. It closes on 9 February 2014. 

Beachcomber Homes

You gotta love a modest mid-century project home. I know I do, especially after visiting one of the most famous of project homes - Beachcomber House -  in the idyllic locale of Avalon in Sydney.

The Beachcomber houses were designed in the 1960s by Croatian born architect Nino Sydney when he was the chief architect for Lend Lease. He really ought to be a very well known figure in Australia given how popular his homes were.

The homes were cutting edge for the times - the use of floor-to-ceiling glass and the simple suspended box-like structure meant the average person could buy a stylish architect-designed home for an affordable price. Bauhaus on a budget!

Beachcomber Mark 2 in Avalon

About 200 Beachcombers were built during the 60s and 70s in and around Sydney and you are still able to pick out the distinctive Beachcomber shape as you travel around certain areas.

Sadly, not all the remaining Beachcombers are intact with many owners not realising what they have and 'renovating' these homes beyond recognition...some have been given Roman columns...while others have been given gables...Ha!

Luckily, there are some Beachcomber owners who know exactly what they have in their possession and are respectfully restoring their homes, embracing the original design with gusto!

It seems like there is a secret Beachcomber society developing amongst the more savvy owners. You can read more about these fabulous mid-century homes from the blog called Beachcomber . Such a fabulous resource with historical photographs of these homes!

This Beachcomber's garden was recently landscaped

Many thanks to Helen and David for their hospitality last weekend!

Jack House

I had the absolute privilege of visiting Jack House nestled in the leafy suburb of Wahroonga in Sydney during my trip down south. Jack house is the 1957 Sulman Award winning home designed by Russell and Pamela Jack and now in the loving custodianship of designer and educator Annalisa Capurro.

Front entry to Jack House 

The L-shaped home is the epitome of understated restraint, but exudes an overwhelming warmth that is hard to ignore as you first enter its doors. Built over a natural creek bed, the home is a study of how architecture sits in harmony with its environs rather than rudely intruding into a peaceful setting.

During rainy weather a cascade of water flows through the masonry arch as a natural stream runs through the property

The hallway to the living areas

Annalisa kindly opened her home to a group of about 30 design enthusiasts on the weekend, giving us a tour of the place that she now calls home and explaining many of the intricacies and quirks of the iconic Australian home. The home is very much intact and was recently given a State Heritage listing in New South Wales.

Annalisa (wearing black ) is giving her guests a tour of the office.
Nino Sydney, architect of the Beachcomber homes, paid a special visit  and is the white-haired gentleman to the left of Annalisa

Here are some of my photographs on the day. They barely do justice to this beautiful home...

The living area. Some of the furniture pieces came with the home when Russell Jack sold  it to Annalisa.

Small sitting room behind the fireplace

Annalisa has collected mid-century furniture for nearly 20 years.
She said that many of her pieces have slotted into the home perfectly.

The office/study with original wallpaper and built-in cabinetry

The silvered timber deck with two Hardoy chairs

The dining room 

This home was yet another highlight of a rather excellent trip to Sydney. A trip made in heaven for someone like me!