The first house concept designs from the architect

The first concept designs are now in!

Reproduced below is Neal-the-Architect's email, together with the initital designs.

"We have had a first go at distilling your briefing requirements and our conversations into something a bit more tangible.
Integral to this is a considered response to the qualities of place that make the site so special to you.
This is to get the conversation going, so don’t hold back with comments if you think something doesn’t fit with your thoughts.

SITE CONCEPT

The first drawing is very conceptual and seeks to convey an overall strategy for placing the house on the site and how you might move across and experience the landscape in which it is located.

Even though it is a bit blurry, I hope you can see (just)how movement is guided over and down between two wings of the house in order to capture a sense of living within the cliff face and moving between the rock formations.

The main idea is that the house is tucked into the hillside and almost becomes incidental in the experience of the landscape, with the roof forms the only sign of habitation from above.

FLOOR PLANS
The next 2 drawings are less abstract and are a first attempt at synthesizing the essential character of the site concept into something vaguely buildable; Consider them more as diagrams though, rather than a building.
Apart from thinking about whether the site strategy works for you, can you please also consider if the room relationships are generally ok.
The house is set on two levels, with the upper level forming an entry court containing a carport.
Passing by an open light court, a stair negotiates a crevice between two forms to reach a terrace on the lower level which leads to the front door.
The obvious downside to this strategy is that there is no continuous covered path from carport to the front door, but it does set up an intriguing entry sequence.
Entering from behind, the main living pavilion contains Lounge, Kitchen and Dining spaces and faces north-east. Studios and wet areas are tucked into the hillside either side of the light court, which can also be used as a contained cat run J.
The Bedroom faces down the site and is separated from The Android's studio by the walk-in-robe. Room sizes are not strictly accurate, but close enough to see if we are on the right track.

The design tries to deal with the bushfire management issues by placing defensive walls towards the likely fire fronts where possible.

We will need to discuss further where it might be best to consider fire-shutters or toughened glass windows.
Mindful of cost issues, now would be a good time to consider further the merits of negotiating with one builder against tendering to a number of builders.
I think it is important to get a better feel now for how the relative remoteness of the site and access difficulties might impact on likely costs before progressing the design too much further.
It would obviously be good to talk to you both together to go over the drawings. Can you consider how this can best be achieved and get back to me please.

Regards

NEAL MACKINTOSH

MANAGING DIRECTOR

JAWSARCHITECTS"

What do you think??!