From the Archives: Ozetecture

"What is architecture if not a framework for our lives and living" —  Richard Leplastrier

In 2012, I had the pleasure of joining 20 architecture students from Australia, and around the world, for a week long intensive course with Richard Leplastrier, Peter Stutchbury , Lindsay Johnston and Glenn Murcutt.

Walking through Stutchbury's designs is a wondrous thing. Natural elements, such as earth and rock, traverse pastoral backdrops, opening the eyes of visitors to the sweeping Australian landscapes. These structures, or homes, have a sensitivity about them - a sensitivity to nature, to life. They flow with ease, and harmonious energy breathes life into the beings that live there.

"There are three things you should ask yourself before you start designing:

1. What is the geology.

2. What is the climate.

3. What is the human culture (western and traditional)." 

— Peter Stutchbury

Stutchbury went on to explain that "the landscape is already a room. The floor moves. The walls are living. The sky is magnificent. When we build something we are merely furnishing the greater room." These words have continued to follow me on my journey, especially when I have only the stars as a ceiling.

Architect Andrew Forsyth and I canoe along the perimeter of the site for our site analysis.

Andrew and I working hard in Pittwater 

Our class biding farewell to Pittwater. From left to right: Andrew Forsyth (grey shirt, upper level),  Felix Blackman (white hate, bottom level), me (brown hat, next to Blackman) and Alice Wilkinson (white shirt, next to me). 

Our class of 2012