Taking advantage of the elevation above the lower walkway, Robbie Walker adds an auxiliary module into the project, housing the garage, a laundry room, and a small kitchen that can open to the exterior. From this same path, discreet steps embedded in the terrain welcome the user, guiding them toward the house.
The interior is organized with just three partitions that divide the space into three areas: the bathroom, the bedroom, and a spacious open-plan area that integrates the kitchen with the living and dining room. The latter extends toward the vastness of the forest through a large floor-to-ceiling window, blurring the boundaries between the interior and the surrounding landscape.
Beyond its aesthetic function, the slatted envelope plays a crucial role in the home's thermal comfort. Thanks to the shade and ventilation created by the spacing between materials, the design eliminates the need for air conditioning, even during the hot Australian summers. Additionally, given that the house is located in a high-risk fire zone, the wood used is fire-resistant, ensuring safety without compromising the material’s warmth.
Sawmill treehouse by Robbie Walker. Photograph by Tasha Tylee.
Project description by Robbie Walker
This project is a nice example of a good design only possible with a good client. The brief was, "I want something small to share with my family and friends". Over the weeks until I visited the site, Hollie would send me pictures of all the trees explaining what they all were, never sending me tile samples or kitchen benchtop requests. Obviously, the site and how the building would feel were most important to her.
Site and project info
The site was the beginning of a gully where all of the street water was discharged. There is one apparent flat area close to the boundary, and all of it is covered in amazingly tall trees. The thought was to put the building up with the trees and out of the water. Inspired by the trees, the four columns represent tree trunks, and the slats catch light more randomly than a flat panel, like the leaves on the trees. They will also help the building breathe and stay cool, keeping the aggressive summer sun off the steel roof sheets and wall lining underneath.
It’s not a big building, just enough, one bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and living room. Having the building off the ground also allows for car access underneath to the garage that took advantage of that flat section, which houses a laundry and hidden outdoor kitchen. The huge trees make it a BAL 40 zone, so all external materials have to be non-flammable.
Environmental efficiency.
The true hero here is the client. I could say the interiors are entirely timber because it’s a sustainably grown material, and the rest is steel because it’s the easiest to recycle. But choosing to build something small when you have the space to go bigger takes real courage.
Real estate agents advised that a four-bedroom, three-bathroom house would fetch the best price if they ever decided to sell. The bank would likely struggle to value a one-bedroom home in a rural area, making financing more difficult. And when it comes to planning and building permits, there are hardly any cost savings—small projects still require the same consultants, reports, and approvals as larger ones.
So, after all that effort, resisting the urge to simply double the material use and add extra bedrooms is no small feat. In a system that rewards excess, choosing to build less—not out of necessity but out of principle—is just as, if not more, important than the materials themselves. Seeing that decision through takes real courage.
Points of interest
A steel building in the Australian sun gets very hot in summer (and timber could not be used in a BAL 40 bush fire area). To get away without having an air conditioner all walls and the roof are covered in steel slats that shade the building; the space between the slats and the building allows air to move through, aiding in the cooling.
