Stamp House by Charles Wright Architects
Charles Wright Architects have constructed the Stamp House, a self-sustaining concrete home that can withstand the most intense cyclones in northern Queensland, Australia.
From the architect:
“A safe and secure off-grid structure, carbon neutral in operation, as luxury retreat & sanctuary – an enigmatic bunker. A new tropical architecture of resilience, both brutal and elegant. We liked the idea that the concrete over time will age well and feature a ‘patina’ further enhancing its sense of place in the sited environment. From the outset, we had a clear vision for the project as reflected in water with the rainforest, mountains and sky.
Critical to our approach was in developing new ways of living in tropical latitude, by providing secure yet flexible open areas for all functions including living, entertaining, dining, recreation & swimming, which are completely naturally ventilated and further enhanced with integrated building systems. These flexible main living areas oscillate around the feature central pool & landscaped courtyard, complemented with cascading waterfall features which further provides an evaporative cooling effect to both levels in the drier months. Bedrooms are designed so that each has a particular character by virtue of its orientation and unique aspect at the same time providing privacy.
Stamp House is Carbon Neutral in operation. All energy is renewable, provided by the large photovoltaic array & battery storage, off-setting the use of air-conditioning and LED lighting. The entire roof area is harvested into a 250,000 litre in-ground water tank integrated with all hydraulic systems. Also featuring on-site Advanced Tertiary Sewerage treatment plant and insulated thermal mass engineering, the concrete structure is ideal for the location due to its inherent long life cycle efficiency and material properties to deal with the harsh, corrosive wet tropical environment.”
Photos by Patrick Bingham Hall
Leave a Reply
Your email is safe with us.