Lake Wendouree House
- Bricks
- Krause Classic 76mm Bricks in Grampian Blues
- Design
- John Wardle Architects
- Build
- Spence Construction
- Photography
- Peter Bennetts
This choreographed residence is an homage to the beautiful gardens of Ballarat. It comprises a series of pavilions located within a landscape of varied garden types – formal, public, rambling, courtyard, and kitchen gardens. The differing gardens and landscaping provide a variety of outlooks from within the house, accentuated by changing light and seasonal coloration.
This house’s centre of gravity is the kitchen and generous central courtyard. The front pavilion is constructed of brick and overgrown with deciduous ivy which changes colour with the seasons. It reinterprets the tradition of the front hedge, so evident in the character of Ballarat. As you sit in the dining room, the topography of the site has been altered so you sink into the site with grassed berms surrounding you. Our preoccupation with the landscape manifests itself again in the front window of the main living room which traces the outline of the lake and treeline in its frame to idealise the view.
Text from Wardle
A sitting room appears as a greenhouse with glass louvers making for a warmer interior. This house grows with its landscape and garden surrounds.
“External materials are natural and durable and will age gracefully over time, requiring minimal maintenance.”
— John Wardle Architects
“The house is both a tranquil oasis and a theatrical portal to the life of the street… the front of the house is strange and intriguing: it sits like an alien in the streetscape, yet was created by its context. ”
— Tobias Horrocks – Architecture AU