2015 Australian Houses Awards
Australian House of the Year and winner of New House over 200 m2: Planchonella House by Jesse Bennett Architect.
Winner of New House under 200 m2: Sawmill House by Archier.
Winner of House Alteration and Addition under 200 m2: West End Cottage by Vokes and Peters (with Owen and Vokes and Peters).
Winner of House Alteration and Addition over 200 m2: Tower House by Andrew Maynard Architects.
Winner of Apartment or Unit: Darlinghurst Apartment by Brad Swartz Architect.
Winner House in a Heritage Context: House in House by Steffen Welsch Architects.
Winner of Outdoor: Cut Paw Paw by Andrew Maynard Architects.
Winner of Sustainability: QV8 by Breathe Architecture.
Winner of Emerging Architecture Practice: Archier. Pictured is Archier’s Ashfield Apartment featuring the studio’s Highline pendant light and Otway dining table.
2015 Houses Awards jury, L–R: Katelin Butler, David Welsh, Adrian Spence, Stephanie Little and Kerstin Thompson.
A breathtaking home by an emerging architecture practice has taken out the top honour in the 2015 Australian Houses Awards, marking the first time in the program’s history that an up-and-coming architect has made such an impression on the jury. From a total of 135 shortlisted projects, the jury selected Jesse Bennett Architect’s Planchonella House, located in a luscious rainforest setting in Far North Queensland, as the 2015 Houses Awards Australian House of the Year.
The raw and honest dwelling, which also won the New House over 200 square metres category, takes things back to basics, reminding us of the beauty of simplicity. The jury noted that Planchonella House is “a building that will get better with time – as it ages, it will recede back into the landscape and appear as a ruin in the jungle.”
The 2015 programme, quite fittingly, also marked the introduction of a new category that celebrates emerging talent. Archier received the inaugural award for Emerging Architecture Practice, selected from a shortlist of twelve practices. The studio also won the New House under 200 square metres category for its Sawmill House. Archier’s work shows a joyful sensibility that taps into one of the great advantages of being an emerging architect.
The full list of the 2015 Houses Awards is as follows:
Australian House of the Year
Planchonella House (Qld) – Jesse Bennett Architect
New House under 200 m2
Sawmill House (Vic) – Archier
New House over 200 m2
Planchonella House (Qld) – Jesse Bennett Architect
House Alteration and Addition under 200 m2
West End Cottage (Qld) – Vokes and Peters (with Owen and Vokes and Peters)
House Alteration and Addition over 200 m2
Tower House (Vic) – Andrew Maynard Architects
Apartment or Unit
Darlinghurst Apartment (NSW) – Brad Swartz Architect
House in a Heritage Context
House in House (Vic) – Steffen Welsch Architects
Outdoor
Cut Paw Paw (Vic) – Andrew Maynard Architects
Sustainability
QV8 (Vic) – Breathe Architecture
Emerging Architecture Practice
Archier (Vic)
Commendations
Twenty-seven projects and four emerging practices received commendations across the nine categories.
The jurors for the 2015 Houses Awards were: Stephanie Little (Chenchow Little Architects, NSW); Adrian Spence (Richards and Spence, Qld); Kerstin Thompson (Kerstin Thompson Architects, Vic); David Welsh (Welsh and Major, NSW); and Katelin Butler (editor, Houses magazine). Advice for the House in a Heritage Context category was provided by Peter Williams (Williams Boag Architects) on behalf of the Heritage Council of Victoria.
Issue 105 of Houses Australia contains a full report with coverage of the award winners, commendations and finalists.
