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design
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75
“Kennedy Nolan folds Aldo van Eyck’s
famous experiential ground planes, his
circles on the ground – his essentialist
thresholds – upwards and around corners.
At a school, they become windows for
children to look through, even crawl through,
or in a house, they become holes in a roof
to ponder not the ground but the sky.And a
whole wall might be a painting, a number, a
mural, or a perforated screen.And a roof
might be held up by either a wall or a giant
cruciform prop or perhaps a work of art – or
are all three the same thing?”
Their interest in materiality, texture and what
is known as truthful materials is clear.As
Kennedy puts it: “materials that express
themselves as they are, there is no need for
wall lining on say a brick wall” and “... Brick is
a commitment.You can hide a multitude of
sins behind a stud wall but you can’t do
that with a brick wall.A masonry wall
achieves the certainty of solidness.”
Other projects include Sacred Heart Primary
School in Oakleigh and the O’Reilly house, a
refurbishment project that features the use
of materials in a particularly delightful
fashion as well as performing thermally well
with an emphasis on white-washed internal
brick dividing walls.The zonings of this house
work to achieve the complexity of many
people undertaking a range of activities in
the space without necessarily imposing on
each other.
Lovely Banks House was a very early project.
Set on badly degraded farmland outside
Geelong, this new house is all about the site
context and the plan. It sought to draw from
the traditions of the generously-proportioned
Australian homestead sitting proudly in the
landscape.
The Stockbroker Tudor House project is an
interesting project that demonstrates Kennedy
Nolan’s interest in links with the Arts and Craft
movement which predates Modernism.They
are interested in the craft of material and the
craft of making.This project sought to
reconcile High Modernism with Tudor Revival
elements of the Arts and Craft movement
which would appear to be a very tall order.
Finally, in answer to a question about favourite
projects, Rachel says that jealousy is a good
measure of how much she’s attached to a
project.“Coming away from a house and
wishing I lived there is a good sign.”
previous page.
Kennedy
Nolan Architects works
primarily on residential
projects, particularly those
on small inner-city sites.
The practice has a strong
interest in materiality,
manipulating space and
minimising environmental
impact.
this page.
Kennedy
Nolan’s Eaglemont house
demonstrates what Phillip
Goad, Chair of
Architecture at The
University of Melbourne
called “their investigation
into the art of the wall.” In
contrast, their Stockbroker
Tudor House reconciles
High Modernism with
Tudor Revival elements of
Arts and Craft.