As a boy I was forever drawing. Some of those drawings were
of houses. I became interested in house designs and I spent
many hours drafting designs of houses that one day I dreamed
of building. At high school I discovered the architecture of
Frank Lloyd Wright, the Spanish architect Gaudi and the work
of the Neo-Gothic architects. Some of their ideas fashioned
some of my thoughts about the house I wanted to build.
When it was possible to begin designing the house I could build
I realised the financial and physical restraints of such an
undertaking. Building materials are expensive and certain
construction techniques (like the use of stone) were impractical
considering I needed to build the house in my “spare time” after
work and during the holidays. So I decided on a modest design
using timber, glass and fired clay bricks.
Large wooded framed windows invite the rainforest inside and
the brick and timber create a warm atmosphere inside. It was
only after I travelled through the Transylvanian mountains of
Romania and studied the neo-gothic domestic architecture of
that region that I dreamed of adding to my house using some
elements of these amazing houses. So stage three
incorporates an hexagonal turret.
In the role as an owner building I learnt everything from: laying
bricks; pouring slabs; roofing a guttering; plumbing; electrical
wiring, tiling and carpentry. At times it seemed an impossible
task. I have often thought if I had known what I was getting
myself into would I do it again? It is however exceeding
satisfying to sit back and admire what I created and enjoy the
space and the forest that surrounds it.
My
House in
Australia