When Clinton Cole was asked to transform a 1920s Californian bungalow on Sydney’s lower North Shore into a celebration of Australia’s unique climate, the award-winning architect jumped at the chance.
His clients, a family of five returning to the Harbour City after 17 years living in high-rise apartments in Hong Kong, dreamed of owning a sustainably powered ‘inside out’ house where the garden is not confined to the outdoors.
Their willingness to experiment with the avant garde allowed Mr Cole to design the kind of daring structure he had always wanted to create, one where bedrooms, bathrooms and hallways spill out into the open air.
The result of the three-year project, which ran from 2015 to 2018, is a one-of-a-kind four-bedroom split into two separate buildings known as the ‘Iron Maiden’, with a sunken swimming pool, an enormous marble kitchen and and floor-to-ceiling windows that capture postcard views of the CBD from the top floor.
Shrouded in a corrugated metal sheet, the house is so-called for being the first steel-clad house in Longueville, a neighbourhood characterised by conservative gabled houses which makes the ‘Iron Maiden’ all the more striking.
The ‘Iron Maiden’: Architect Clinton Cole painstakingly created this one-of-a-kind family home on Sydney’s lower North Shore over the course of three years from 2015 to 2018
The result of Mr Cole’s three-year project is a one-of-a-kind four-bedroom split into two separate buildings
Shrouded in a corrugated metal sheet, the house is so-called for being the first steel-clad house in Longueville, a neighbourhood characterised by conservative gabled houses which only makes the ‘Iron Maiden’ all the more striking
A natural gorge filled with water cuts through the centre, with windows on either side reflecting sunlight that glimmers on the surface of the stream onto the interior walls.
Mr Cole’s pièce de résistance is the fish pond that divides the home into two pavilions, a clever feature that cools warm breezes and drowns the sound of passing traffic with a blissful white noise from its bubbling fountain.
Separate sleeping wings – one for adults, the other for kids – were designed to help the children build independence under the watchful gaze of their doting parents.
A natural gorge filled with water cuts through the centre, with windows on either side reflecting sunlight that glimmers on the surface of the stream onto the interior walls
The clients willingness to experiment with the avant garde allowed Mr Cole to design the kind of daring structure he had always wanted to create – one where bedrooms, bathrooms and hallways stretch out into the open air
Bedrooms spill out onto an open-air timber decked hallway, creating additional space while bringing life to the otherwise empty corridor which overlooks the swimming pool.
Natural light floods through every window, bathing the bedrooms and master bathroom in a bright glow that lasts from sunrise until sunset.
‘The idea of leaving the building and walking down a covered outdoor hallway to bathrooms and bedrooms was a concept the family embraced,’ Mr Cole told Daily Mail Australia.
‘It’s one we had attempted to convince previous clients of with limited success.’
The kitchen is dominated by two marble-top islands, which Mr Cole’s clients envisaged as the perfect spot for entertaining guests and serving food
Natural light floods through every window, bathing the master bathroom in a bright glow that lasts from sunrise until sunset
The kitchen is dominated by two marble-top islands, which Mr Cole’s clients envisaged as the perfect spot for entertaining guests and serving food.
A seated alcove nestled in a nook to one side of the kitchen provides space for drinking coffee and reading the newspaper in the morning.
Sustainability is the lifeblood of the house, with a slimline Escea DX1000 gas fireplace heating the main body from its recessed perch on the living room wall.
These luxury fireplaces – which cost between $8,799 and $12,000 – are easier to maintain and cost less to run than traditional models, as well as burning ‘cleaner’ with fewer polluting emissions.
Sustainability is the lifeblood of the house, with a slimline Escea DX1000 gas fireplace (pictured right) heating the main body from its recessed perch on the living room wall
Mr Cole’s pièce de résistance is the fish pond that divides the home into two pavilions
Separate sleeping wings – one for adults, the other for kids – were designed to help the children build independence under the watchful gaze of their doting parents
The house’s foundation is supported by a series of steel portal frames, all differing in shape and size due to the nature of the double sloped roof.
Its 287 square metre floor size is considerably larger than the average size of a New South Wales home, which was 220.3sqm in 2018, according to figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Outside, the corrugated iron clad wall that gives the house its name was partially inspired by the 1985 book ‘Leaves of Iron’ by Pritzker prize winning architect Glen Murcutt, who believed in the need for ‘strong, independent, attractive and practical architecture’.
‘The cladding is actually a traditional material used in Australian construction for the past 200 years,’ Mr Cole said.
The galvanised metal sheet that fronts the house is still manufactured in the same way it was when it was imported by British settlers in the 1800s.
The ‘Iron Maiden’s 287 square metre floor size is considerably larger than the average size of a New South Wales home, which was 220.3sqm in 2018
Bedrooms spill out onto an open-air timber decked hallway, creating additional space while bringing life to the otherwise empty corridor which overlooks the swimming pool
The corrugated iron clad wall that gives the house its name was partially inspired by the 1985 book ‘Leaves of Iron’ by Pritzker prize winning architect, Glen Murcutt
The striking individuality of the design was recognised when the ‘Iron Maiden’ was shortlisted in the 2018 World Architecture Festival and Houses Awards.
The family who commissioned the ‘Iron Maiden’ have lived there since its completion in 2018 and plan to spend the ‘next two decades and more’ in their tailor-made paradise.
Mr Cole did not disclose the cost of the project and its worth has not been valued at current market rates.
