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Ooi House
Housing Commendation
KERRY HILL
top North elevation with guest house at left. above Main living space.
Built on the banks of WA’s Margaret
River, the Ooi house is a single-storey,
three bedroom holiday residence with a
guest chalet intended to be the first of
several. These relate to courtyards,
pools and decks. Because the semi-rural
site is not overlooked by other
properties, the design of both houses
promotes transparency and openness.
Materials (stabilised earth walls,
tallowood floors and screens, steel
roofing, glass) have been chosen to
relate to the natural context and local
trade practices. The plan divides the
main house into two zones: a steel and
glass living wing with a skillion roof,
and a private wing, made with earth
walls under a pitched roof, of two
bedroom suites linked by a courtyard.
The chalet is built of similar materials.
Jury Verdict A house at peace with the landscape
and the horizon. A house of details,
although every junction and element
has been thoughtfully and carefully
resolved to a high level of consistency.
There is a continual delight and surprise
as one moves from space to space.
While its rammed earth walls and the
giant kauri locate it firmly as part of the
south west of Western Australia, the
calm refinement and elements such as
screens and reflecting pool impart an
Asian sensibility. This is a house of
great serenity. It acknowledges its
exceptional site, directing views
towards the river, bush hillside and the
ocean. It also sits in dramatic contrast
to its environment, a light pavilion
anchored by its rammed earth spines.
This house resurrects some of the
fading traditions of Australian domestic
architecture, giving them an added
sophistication and sensitivity which
results in empathy of form, space and
texture with the landscape. It belongs to
the school of seductive architecture.
Rammed earth walls in the south-east corner.
Photography Martin Farquharson
Ooi House, Prevelly, WA Architects and Interior Designers Kerry Hill
Architects—team Kerry Hill, Rowena Hockin,
Albano Daminato, Robert Allan. Structural
Engineers Scott Smalley Partnership. Electrical
Engineers CCD Australia. Hydraulics Engineers
Hutchinson Associates. Quantity Surveyors
Davis Langdon & Silver. Building Contractors
Innovest Construction.