As an Architect and Builder collaboration between Joe Matthiessen and Collier Homes® — CONCRETE SERIES explores the thoughtful planning for a sequence of new homes that consider just a few ways to use concrete in your home. As recently aired on Grand Designs Australia, CONCRETE SERIES celebrates the successful completion of North Perth House.
Stacked forms.
Concrete is an established, dependable, and well-understood building material used for various building types in Australia. Forms of all shapes and sizes can be cast on-site or prefabricated and stacked for potential time and cost savings during construction.
Indoor-outdoor.
Courtyards provide a connection to the natural environment making for a healthy home with good sunlight and quality fresh air. Bringing the outside in promotes micro-climatic environments that moderate the temperature and increase occupant well-being. Indoor and outdoor can be connected through features such as dual-sided fireplaces, large openings, and seamless flooring.
Diverse applications.
Adaptable and versatile, concrete can be applied to the design of your home in many ways — structurally as the main building material for floors, walls, and ceilings. It can be formed rectilinear or cast to create arches and curves or even artistically as a finishing feature.
In the details.
Structural elements aside, concrete can also be used for finer details such as baths, shower bench seats, or benchtops. Different concrete mix designs can be chosen to vary the finish and create spaces that look light and bright, solid and dark, raw and unfinished, or marbled and washed.
So why concrete?
When applied effectively, the thermal mass of concrete can reduce the need for artificial heating and cooling of your home. In turn, this will result in lower energy costs and make your home more comfortable. Coupled with considered design, concrete can minimise the footprint of your home with less exterior wall area, allowing you to maximise your living space.
CONCRETE SERIES is a testament to our ethos that better buildings are formed by the value of good design and quality construction.
We connect process with creativity — to design homes people love.
CS/001 wall art by Elle Campbell :)
CS/001
We designed this home for small suburban sites. We celebrated the beauty of humble materials and the process of making, favouring simple built forms, the house functions around a large central courtyard, contrasting solid walls with glazed openings and perforated brick screens. The upper floor is penetrated by void space, allowing high north-facing windows to spill natural light into the living spaces, creating inside-outside flow and opportunities for passive environmental design. The expressive use of concrete within the interior gives a minimalist and calming character through the well placed bright artwork, timber furnishings, and planting a homely warmth is instilled.
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CS/002
This home by Joe Matthiessen adopts curved characteristics made possible by the versatile nature of precast concrete construction and is a development of his predesigned 'Skinny Series' of 6-10m wide houses. Courtyards punctuate the design welcoming green spaces and winter light deep into the home. Keyed concrete panel joints take cues from timber joinery. The exterior pairs lime-washed brickwork with concrete panels to the upper floor. Subtle curves of concrete on the exterior add soft texture and lines. Interior concrete panels bring texture to select living spaces. Skylights draw natural light into the kitchen, living and dining areas on the southern side of the home.
