The House with Old Roots

2022 National Architecture Awards: Sustainable Architecture – Shortlist

The House with Old Roots | The Mill: Architecture + Design

Traditional Land Owners: Ngunnawal & Ngambri Peoples

The House with Old Roots is the story of a young family finding its own way, through the gifts of past generations. The house was built in a greenfield development, sitting high on a hill with commanding views.

The home was designed by Shannon Battisson, co-director of The Mill: Architecture + Design and incoming National President for the Australian Institute of Architects. It is the second home Shannon has designed for her own family, a privilege she takes very seriously as not only the opportunity to create a space to nurture, encourage and celebrate family, but also to educate, share and promote good design to the public.

Through both her work and her own home, Shannon looks to celebrate the sanctity of home and to design to encourage the most efficient footprint whilst balancing the desire for whimsy and joy in the most sacred of spaces.

Client perspective:
How does the design benefit the way you live/work/play/operate/educate/other?

This home not only met our brief but also performs brilliantly in both winter and summer, and more than that, is a beautiful space to live in. The use of light and colour create a fun space for our children, encouraging their own sense of creativity and understanding of what home means to them.
The way the spaces easily open up or close off from one another means we get such flexibility out of the house, and allows us all to adjust how we use the space depending on the season, time of day or even our mood.