100 CO-AP
havea volumetricgrandnesstothemthatmatchesthe
historicproperty’sstature.Rigorousplanningisevident
inthearrangementofnewspaces,threadingdeftlythrough
theold.CO-APhasflippedtheorientationoftheliving
roomsfromsouthtonorth,withnewindoorandoutdoor
spacesgivingthehousethecontemporaryamenitythata
familyneeds.
Fora longtime,afterCharlesleftCO-APin2006,
TinaandWillranthepracticeasa duo.Now,morethana
decadelater,thepracticeisa groupofsevenwithnoplansto
getmuchbigger.“I’veneverwanteda bigpractice,”saysWill.
Thethreegenerationsintheofficeallenjoythedifferences
betweentheminthinkingandapproach,andthewaysin
whichthatcontributestoa smallcollaborativestudio.
AnongoingdialogueaboutAustralianarchitecture
isimportanttotheCO-APteamandcontinuestoinform
itspath.TinagrewupinSydney’sNorthernBeachesand
WillinCanberra,bothlociofAustralianmodernismin
uniqueways.AsWillsays,theyaredefinitelylookingback
“tothelate‘60sand‘70s,PettitandSevitthousing,andthe
SydneySchool.”BothTinaandWillgivea hugeamountof
credencetoMichaelDysart,KenWoolley,HarrySeidleretal.
“Itwasthatwholegenerationwhoactuallyfocuseduson
beingAustralian,”Tinaexplains.
CO-AP’sworkrepresentsmodernismofa contem-
porarykind.Ifit hasa signature,it’snotobvious.Likeall
goodarchitecture,eachprojectisdrivenbythespecificsof
thesiteandtheparticularitiesofboththeclientandbrief.
TherespectivebackgroundsofTinaandWillfuseintoa
holistic,assuredandsophisticatedresponsetoeverybrief–
eachnewprojectisa discovery,and an opportunity to quietly
getonwiththeir practice.
co-ap.com
09 High-quality
materials,suchas
zincandmarble,are
leftrawatMoreton
Manor– a design
decisionbefitting
thesignificanthome.10 Byselectively
subtractinginternal
walls,CO-AP
transformedPoint
PiperApartment
intoa flexiblethree-
bedroom home.0910