architecture

Australian National Maritime Museum /  by James Whitaker

We've just had an enquiry about including the Starburst House in an exhibition in Germany.

Always a nice email to receive!

Here are some photos of a model of Hechingen Studio and images of the Starburst House at an exhibition in Sydney at the Australian National Maritime Museum.

Hidden grass-covered villa looks just like a putting green from aerial view /  by James Whitaker

The Oval Villa

Thanks to Kristy Johnson for her article about the Oval Villa in nine.com.au.

I’m not entirely sure how the article came to be, we’ve not published this house anywhere else, I’m not sure it’s even been posted on Instagram. Regardless of how it came to pass though, it is wonderful to see it being picked up. Massive thanks to Kristy.

All the rooms in the house are accessed off a central courtyard, which features a cooling pool.

We worked on the Oval Villa about a year ago for a resort on a small island in south east Asia.

The brief was for a standalone villa, that could either be serviced by a hotel, or be a self-sufficient, privately-owned, holiday home.

The main living room of the house, nestled under the sweeping roof.

In the end, the client paused the entire development so this project hasn’t gone any further, but it would have been fantastic to stay there sometime.

It would be lovely to see an iteration of it in another location.

We will post again soon about the concept behind the house and how the different spaces flow into one another.

Amongst the leaves /  by James Whitaker

Whitaker Studio’s design for a tree house at Kew Gardens in London

Whitaker Studio’s design for a tree house at Kew Gardens in London

Another image of our competition entry for a tree house at Kew botanical gardens in London. Our aim was to allow as many people as possible to experience being high in a tree up amongst the branches listening to the wind in the leaves, feeling the texture of the bark and seeing the insects and birds up close.

Low-cost Desert Living /  by James Whitaker

Model of Casa Milagro by Whitaker Studio, a low-cost house for the Californian desert. To keep costs low the internal space is as compact as possible, but supplemented by covered outdoor space at each end of the house. The long south side of the house has large eaves to shade the house reducing its need for mechanical cooling.

12 months ago a lady got in touch saying that she would like to retire to the desert, to a plot of land that she bought with her late husband. The only catch is that her budget is very tight.

To begin with I dismissed it, thinking the task impossible, the budget too low, but the emails kept coming.

Now I’ve got the bit between my teeth. I want to see if there is anyway we can make something work. And not just anything, but something that is low-cost, low-energy, low-carbon and accessible, all packaged up inside a considered piece of architecture that enhances day to day life.

The task might yet prove impossible, but I think there might just be a way to achieving something here. And if we can, somehow, make it work then we will create a design that can be reproduced for other desert dwellers in need of a low-cost home.

If you know anyone who might be interested in this project do spread the word.

Model of Casa Milagro by Whitaker Studio, a low-cost house for the Californian desert. This image shows the covered terrace at the west end of the house

Model of Casa Milagro by Whitaker Studio, a low-cost house for the Californian desert.