The brief for the house was to create a cozy mountain retreat to serve as as a retreat and ‘base camp’ for the busy days the owners spend outside maintaining and improving the large property. It is also a warm refuge for the evenings and when inclement weather rolls in. The house is a simple device for comfortable habitation and reflection – framing and celebrating the many and varied aspects of the landscape in which it sits – both near and far.

It is a house that allows for both prospect and retreat – opportunities to engage with the site and landscape, be it through the care and maintenance of the land or in a more leisurely contemplative manner from the house itself which allows varying degrees of exposure and comfort. Depending on climatic conditions and the owners’ preferences and moods, inhabitants can be sheltered from, or immersed in ,the natural environment. In this way it is a perfect vessel for facilitating life in this very magical landscape. It provides a simple function for the active care of the site and also nurturing comfort for a more cerebral and spiritual connection with it.

The home is created as a durable and well insulated ’shell’ to deal with the extremes of climatic conditions that the Bunya Mountains experience but with a rich, tactile and warm interior – befitting of a mountain retreat in a climate that often experiences quite cool days and nights, even in summer.

The dark simple forms recede into the landscape and allow the dominant greens of the surrounding forest and pastures to ‘pop’. They also echo the dark trunks, branch forms, and needle patterns of the Bunya trees. Similarly, the standing seam cladding and battened screens reflect the texture of the Bunya trees’ bark and foliage. 

With respect to the greater landscape and the building’s connection with it, the plan has been arranged to create a north east facing terrace from which to view the vast plains of the South Burnett at the base of the Bunya Mountain – several hundred kilometres of view. 

The ‘L’ shaped plan also protects the courtyard from western summer sun and westerly winds. One wing contains the master suite and living spaces whilst the second, connected via a protected entry breezeway contains the carport, laundry, 2 guest bedrooms and bathroom.

Strategically placed picture windows frame particular views – both micro such as the peak of a Bunya tree through the kitchen clerestory; a middle ground view under a draping branch from the master suite master; or a macro view of the landscape from the master suite daybed. Tall windows on the western elevation allow for efficient cross ventilation whilst echoing the elegant trunks of the Bunya trees.

The house functions entirely off grid.