In the next few months, my book about Australian architecture will be released worldwide. The project was commissioned by Schiffer Books, who are based in Pennsylvania, United States. This is the fourth book I have completed for this progressive publisher. The original idea was developed with my editor Cheryl, who has a particular interest in architecture. Her vision for this edition was to showcase a broad variety of residential homes in Australia. This continent has several different climates and diverse terrain, which dictates the materials used.
With this book project, I and Cheryl agreed early on that all the projects featured should be representative of Australian architecture. This means some of the homes are smaller in scale and restricted to tighter budgets. Early on I wanted to include ‘Plane Tree House’ (which I personally visited) by Adelaide based firm ‘Architects Ink’. However, due to my tight deadline and the director’s schedule it didn’t work out on this occasion.
Architect Ink is operated by three main directors (Marco Spinelli, Tony Lippis, Mladen Zujic) in Adelaide and an architect called Pierre Della Putta in Sydney. The firm specialises in modernistic high-quality homes for a range of discerning clientele. Recently, I discovered they had a been shortlisted for a prestigious ‘House Award’ for their newly completed ‘Sugar Gum House’.
Generally, I write about a lot of architectural projects around the world. That is why it is great to feature a residential property in South Australia. ‘Sugar Gum House’ is located in the popular location of Willunga. The residence has an internal footprint of 295 square metres and was completed in 2018. Similar to ‘Plane Tree House’ the home is built on a steep site and anchored around two significant sugar gum trees. The overall palette is neutral using materials like brick, concrete, timber and glass to great effect. It also maximises spectacular panoramic views of the Mclaren Vale wine region and surrounding coastal landscape.
