Interior - Honours (Interior Design)

The Cottages

The Cottages is an obesity prevention facility guiding parents from planning their pregnancy through to early parenthood located at 20 - 22 Prospect Street. The facility favours strength in preparation of the family unit, targeting key causation areas based on a reformed framework. An innovative intersection of medical, physical and educational services embodied by translated local characteristics of familiarity. The Cottages pays homage to the Prospect Street worker's cottages, taking cues from the sub-tropical vernacular architecture unique to Brisbane whilst curating a familiar space.

Renae Buttsworth

THE PROJECT

The Cottages Logo The Cottages - Strength in Preparation

RESEARCH

PROPOSAL

DESIGN RESPONSE

6 diagrams: -Expand and contract -Balance -Core focalisation -Perspective -Connection -Family unit

FACADE

The building forms depend on one another for support, emphasising the comfort embodied within The Cottages. Perforated brick speaks to the fundamental passive design of the cottage as a raw sustainable material. Light render contrasting the brick, demonstrates strength in a varying way whilst celebrating the two building forms as one.

PLANS

ENTRY THRESHOLD

Building entrance with patient walking bike towards bike rack. Palm tree in courtyard casts a shadow on the brick.

Users are welcomed into The Cottages by the sweeping courtyard entrance. Custom bike racks are available to patients, promoting non-motorised transport to the facility as per the Active Design Guidelines (2010). The courtyard also promotes the local community to engage with the envelope, providing access between Prospect and Scanlan Streets.

BREEZE WAY

Immersive ceiling installation captures natural light inspired by breezeways.

Welcome to the Breeze Way. The immersive ceiling installation pays homage to the fundamental passive ventilation of the worker’s cottage. The Danpalon internal partition system and custom screening allows for transparency and exhibition of movement. The evocative entrance establishes an ease of transition into the facility.

Reception catches glimpses of breeze way.

Patients travel through and are swept into the reception. Wall linings and olive accents merge elements of cohesive familiarity and tranquility in the cottage reception. Connection within the space is enhanced through the feature ceiling which continues horizontal lines of the exterior brick wall. Glimpses of the Breeze Way ceiling convey subtle hints of movement.

FLORA

Retail store has concrete look finishes and warm green stone, with wall linings creating repetition seen in cottage VJ. Colourful fruit is recessed into storage displays.

Beautifying the process of purchasing local fruit and vegetables (essential for healthier outcomes during pregnancy) (Australian Government, 2021), Flora enables a luxury retail experience whilst supporting local producers. Focus placed on texture in the store connects to the diversity of balanced gut flora necessary for obesity prevention. The central forms instil balance and support.

LINK

The pool has natural light in the form of the Cottage causation map dancing in the water, with users being guided by a physiologist. Blue scalloped wall linings wrap around the interior curved wall.

The Link aquanatal pool facility enhances patient connections within The Cottages. A void above enables skylight penetration, allowing the organic causation map forms to dance in the water. The immersive experience places movement on show, whilst guiding parents through their physiology journey.

THE CORE

The Core references the central spaces of the cottage which make it home. The lower courtyard sits at the base of the atrium, grounding the desirable circulation space. A shallow pond enables wayfinding and orientation for ease of use, visible throughout the entire Core. Ramps and stairs wrap around the focal point, celebrating movement. Ramps ensure the inclusive nature of the space, allowing for all users to circulate between level offsets.

PERSPECTIVE

Looking over the pool, a psychologist presents an education seminar to an expecting mother and planning couple. Natural plants cascade down the void whilst absorbing the natural sunlight from above.

The Perspective psychology level revolves around the void which echoes the Link pool facility. The immersive silhouettes of people swimming within pool instils thought provoking focalisation of movement, whilst patients are educated by the Cottage psychologists. Glimpses of the sun-lit atrium, organic skylights and pool below allow for altered perspective enhanced by sensitive daylighting.

ebb & flow

The delicate medical room is designed for an obstetrician and has deep pink retractable curtains. A pregnant mother walks towards the consultation bed which is olive green. The atrium screening allows natural light to cast through the window.

The Ebb and Flow medical/consultation suites embody the outdoor-in concept. Backing onto the central atrium, the light filled obstetrician setting ensures mothers feel nurtured and supported. Recessed track mounted curtains and blinds ensure maximum customisation by back and forth movement. The colour pallet further stems off the atrium space, informed by window-bed daisies on the perimeter.

Mothers lay on the rooftop grass of the terrace, relaxing in the tranquil space. Views down through the entire building are captured by the large skylights. Birds fly through the sky behind the large palm tree.

Exploration of causation map as a parti for the skylight design allows for a meaningful contrast on the rooftop terrace stemming through the building. Light and shadow move over the skylights, highlighting various surfaces with the zones which founded The Cottages.The humble space reflects qualities embodied in the backyard of the worker’s cottage.

A birdseye view down the atrium shows the light pink stairs and ramps wrapping around the atrium. The circular pond at the bottom provides a vertical connection through the space.

Views of the Core from the top of the atrium instil a sense of accomplishment in the users. The atrium allows for meaningful connections, movement exhibition and more desirable physical activity. Recessed lockable roller doors ensure safety of the building whilst enabling a meaningful connection to the heart of The Cottages.

MODEL

A laser cut mdf model shows the terrain of the site and the building forms merging into one. The model is able to be disassembled into three pieces to better communicate the levels inside.

The laser cut model communicates the complex level offset alongside building engagement with natural light. The model is designed to be fixed into three removable pieces, allowing for a greater understanding of the interior spaces.

Renae Buttsworth

Renae has recently completed her Bachelor of Design (Honours), with a major in Interior Design and second major in Architecture. She is intrigued by the relationship between interior and exterior environments and is passionate about design which integrates active design strategies to enhance user activity and promote physical well-being. Renae designs spaces which curate atmospheric experience, whilst responding to contextual analysis and future-proofing demands through sustainability consideration.