Australian studio Gardiner Architects has completed an off-grid farmhouse on a rural site in Victoria that has been renovated with native plants and trees.
Named Heather House Off Grid after its client, the property is located on a 37ha former pasture farm site on the edge of the Barwon Valley.
Melbourne-based Gardiner Architects was commissioned to create a low-budget home for Heather and her family that “balances modern conveniences with off-grid living,” contributing to the ongoing renewal of this natural landscape.
The resulting home is completely self-sufficient, equipped with solar panels, water tanks, a sewage system, a wood-fired boiler, and space to grow vegetables.
“The conceptual framework for the project is guided by the principles of family support, sustainability, flexibility, pragmatism and functionality, reflecting Heather’s values and priorities while responding to the practical needs of the property,” lead architect Marley Dawson told Dezeen.
“The sustainable farm balances modern conveniences, flexibility and off-grid living with a design that responds to the surrounding farmland and native vegetation,” she added.
Heather’s electricity-free home is divided into three wings. The flat-roofed central wing contains two bedrooms, surrounded by a shared living, dining and kitchen space and a guest wing, both topped with prefabricated single-pitched roofs.
These U-shaped suites are arranged around an outdoor patio that extends into the surrounding landscape, overlooking an area of hardwood floors. Here, an outdoor fireplace connects to the dining area via sliding glass doors.
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The guest suite is designed to be flexible, either to provide space for family to visit, for work, or to adapt as a separate vacation rental in the future.
Gardiner architects chose the farmhouse’s materials and finishes to be “strong and durable,” with an exterior of filled brick and timber that will gradually turn grey over time.
The structure is also built from locally sourced timber, and is finished internally with plain white walls.
“Heather wanted a fairly simple color palette, so a simple mix of neutrals, white, and wood was chosen,” Dawson explains.
“The prefabricated ceiling system allowed for the incorporation of a wood ceiling that we felt would add warmth and texture,” Dawson continued. “The wood was bleached to ensure it wasn’t too dominant in the space.”
Other off-grid homes recently featured on Dezeen include a holiday home by Italian architecture studio PAT on Manda Island in Kenya and a country house in the Romanian mountains by architect Mark Thorpe.
Photography by Rory Gardiner.
