05
would serve their ‘kids-out-of-the-house’ phase
of life. Downsizing, however, did not mean
doing without the little luxuries in life — like
a four-car garage, gym, artist’s studio and
generous master suite. “Being an architect, I
was happy for the house to be a little diff erent
and experimental,” says Robert. Some small
setbacks in the permit process required a few
adjustments to the plan that resulted in some
surprising innovations, such as fl oating wall
planes that “act like horse blinkers” so as not to
infringe on the privacy of the neighbours. In the
end, the “happy house” the owners wanted is a
capsule of light and excitement.
Architectural and Interior Design Robert
Puksand, Gray Puksand (graypuksand.com.au)
Builder 360 Construction Group
(360construction.com.au)
Photography Shannon McGrath06: DESIGN LONGVIEW HOUSE
LOCATION WILDES MEADOW, NEW SOUTH WALES
With 40 hectares of open space at his disposal,
architect and homeowner Roger Vidler set out
to design a home that could very well be the
pinnacle of his life’s work. The brief detailed a
space that functioned as a weekend residence
for Roger, his partner and extended family
to enjoy when needed. The resulting design
consists of a series of connected pavilions
arranged in a stepped line, with every room
featuring a view of the surrounding farmland
and national park through fl oor-to-ceiling
windows and glass doors that open up the
house to the outside. Folding internal walls
also help to form “a suite of spaces”. As the
architect, Roger was free to design his home
without restrictions, taking two years to play
with the plans until they crystallised in time
for construction. “As an architect, the design
embodies some ideas about proportions and
numbers which I used as determinants,” explains
Roger. “It was unusual for me ... to have an
absolute clean slate site ... a ‘free-hand’.”
Architectural Design Roger Vidler
Builder STH Construction
Photography Ian Provest05: DESIGN FIELD HOUSE
LOCATION BRIGHTON, VICTORIA
As architect of your own build, creating exactly
what you want becomes an “opportunity
to address everything you missed out on in
previous homes and live the life the way you
want to”, according to architect/homeowner
Robert Puksand. Keen to move from their
suburban location to a site closer to the
beach, Robert and his wife Joanne purchased
a property that would allow them to develop
the easy-living, low-maintenance home that06
PROJECTS
(^) // ARCHITECTURE