Lightness and Tradition – Alabaster House by DAH.A and Connors & Co.

Emphasising the lightness of the home in both its local context and Queensland, DAH.A and Connors & Co pay an homage to tradition and incorporate modern twists. The teams combine to create Alabaster House, a contemporary interpretation of an elevated yet familiar weatherboard home.

Drawing inspiration from iconic Queensland worker’s cottages, Alabaster House is wrapped in timber battens and weatherboard cladding. Capping the gabled form is a sleek metal roof, which is comprised of lightweight materials. Internally, a palette of natural finishes and muted, calm tones establishes the home as a place of refuge and retreat while remaining connected to the surrounding landscape and welcoming natural light and airflow. DAH.A and Connors & Co reinterpret the residence’s traditional style through refined detailing and an open approach to planning. Allowing the living zones to spill outward, openings in the facade aim to use the entirety of the site, and the garden acts as an extension of the home.

DAH.A and Connors & Co reinterpret the residence’s traditional style through refined detailing and an open approach to planning.

The owners are keen entertainers and ensuring their home could facilitate hosting was key. Working with a steep terrain, the team have used the fall of the land to create a hierarchy across the site, with moments to come together and others for retreat. With the needs of the young family anticipated to change over the coming years, embedding a flexibility within the spaces, while anchoring layered and joyful moments that remain in place, underpins many of the design principles.

Creating a strong connection to the landscape, windows frame views outward and an overall openness ensures the home is responsive to the sub-tropical climate it sits within. Sustainability is a core value of the owners and directed how they wanted to live. The act of reducing the home’s environmental footprint carries through to the materiality – materials were sourced as locally as possible and the design is conducive to the natural elements. With sunlight encouraged inward, the textures of each of the surfaces were considered with regard to how light play would transpire, adding a richness to the home.

Allowing the living zones to spill outward, openings in the facade aim to use the entirety of the site, and the garden acts as an extension of the home.

Alabaster House combines modern living with nods to the past. Through amplifying light, DAH.A and Connors & Co ensure the home will remain relevant and function comfortably for its owners.