Lookout House – Room 11
Project summary
The Lookout House is a permanent getaway at Port Arthur for a semi-retired couple, visiting family and friends. This project takes the farmhouse typology and transforms it into a hybrid courtyard house. Visitors enter through a largely blank timber facade into a covered threshold. From this point, one views a treed courtyard with the veiled ocean view beyond. Upon venturing into the main living space the full panorama unfolds: a spectacular vision of iconic Tasman Island and the Southern Ocean. The extruded multi-gable form pushes beyond the building envelope to provide covered outdoor living space and enhance the focus on the landform and horizon. The three gable roof forms define particular functions within and, in turn, each has an individual relationship to the courtyard and its specific views to the surrounding landscape. The Lookout House is a simple gesture that opens up the opportunity for a simple life amongst a complex, ever-changing landscape.
Construction
Shane Salter, South East Building – builder
Consultants
Gandy and Roberts – structural consultant
Matrix Management Group – cost consultant
Ben Hosking – photographer
Holdfast – building surveyor