835 High St. Residential Building

835 High St. Residential Building
© Rory Gardiner

835 High St. Residential Building

Carr

ARCHITECTS
Carr

DEVELOPERS
Moda

ARTIST COMMISSION
Anna-wili Highfield

PHOTOGRAPHS
Rory Gardiner

LANDSCAPE
Acre Studio

CONSTRUCTION
Flux Constructions

MANUFACTURERS
Miele, Apaiser, Astrawalker Tapware, Gibbon Group, Reckli, Signorino

STYLIST
Jess Kneebone

PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Paxpm

ARCHITECTURE AND INTERIOR DESIGN
Carr

BRANDING
Assembly Branding

AREA
9278 m²

YEAR
2022

LOCATION
Armadale, Australia

CATEGORY
Residential

835 High Street creates a new benchmark for medium-density housing by using core design principles, considered apartment planning, and high-end materials.

835 High St. Residential Building
© Rory Gardiner
835 High St. Residential Building
© Rory Gardiner

Site

 Located on the busy thoroughfare of High Street, Armadale, the architectural language was approached in consideration of its contribution to the streetscape.

As with all Carr projects, the architecture is not a human gesture by ‘the architect’ but rather one that takes cues from the surrounding context – materializing through scale, rhythm, color, or proportion.

835 High St. Residential Building
© Rory Gardiner
835 High St. Residential Building
© Rory Gardiner

Architecture  

Featuring an architectural language of its own, the building is shaped by a distinctive grid pattern.

Every horizontal and vertical frame aligns perfectly from the outside over five levels, one atop the other in a linear pattern.

These applied repeating elements – similar to music or other forms of art where shape, space, color, and texture are used to induce rhythm – give a sense of movement on the façade, which is created by using a well-defined and ordered street wall.

The result creates a sense of place, which aids the building’s identity within the streetscape.

835 High St. Residential Building
© Rory Gardiner
835 High St. Residential Building
© Rory Gardiner

The façades to the east and south are highly refined and detailed, while those to the north and west gradually step back, wrapping around and dissolving the form with the use of the framing. The effect is calmness through consistency and balances through repetition.

Through lush planting, Acre worked to find ways to soften the rectilinear grid of the building, while offering each apartment an aspect of green.

They achieved this by designing climbing structures that over time will see greenery climbing and draping from the large-gridded façade.

835 High St. Residential Building
© Rory Gardiner
835 High St. Residential Building
© Rory Gardiner

This is a building that breathes. The pinnacle is the soaring 13-meter void in the center, clearing a vertical pathway for the private residential lobby.

As each level recesses, the building is punctuated by clear glazing offering sweeping views across Armadale over the city skyline.

In doing so, large terraces reveal gardens and open spaces to further soften the distinctive exterior.

835 High St. Residential Building
© Rory Gardiner
835 High St. Residential Building
© Rory Gardiner

Interiors  

The design intent was to achieve a sense of continuity between the interior and exterior spaces.

The static repetition on the facade is in constant conversation with the internal spaces and provides a simple principle of composition.

835 High St. Residential Building
© Rory Gardiner
835 High St. Residential Building
© Rory Gardiner

This affords a sense of coherence and equilibrium between the architecture and interiors. The palette of interior materials and finishes is akin to the external – a sense of order and symmetry.

The texture of the external is brought internally through common spaces and as you enter each apartment that sense is heightened through soft greys and muted tones which helps extenuate the view beyond.

The seasonal change to that view acts as a picture frame.

835 High St. Residential Building
© Rory Gardiner
835 High St. Residential Building
© Rory Gardiner

The apartment planning process was underpinned by biophilic design principles and the desire to provide each home with an axis to external views and ventilation. The resulting ambiance is dramatic.

As you enter each apartment and journey through each room, the omnipresent natural light offers a sense of calming expansiveness.

The building steps back, and the interior planning works in tandem with the external grid, affording many of the secondary spaces Juliette balconies. By having this strong relationship between the exterior and the internal spaces, the interior spaces speak for themselves and take center stage with framed views beyond.

835 High St. Residential Building
© Rory Gardiner
835 High St. Residential Building
© Rory Gardiner

Landscape

For every project, Acre’s objective is to connect residents to nature, and 835 High St was no different.

Working with Carr, the balconies were pushed and pulled to accommodate beautiful garden outlooks from bedrooms, bathrooms, and living spaces.

On the rooftop, Acre designed the penthouse pool and arbors to feel as much like a ground-floor garden space as possible.

The result is a textured variety of plants that spill from planters, combined with overhead greenery that casts dappled shade onto the exposed site.

835 High St. Residential Building
© Rory Gardiner
835 High St. Residential Building
© Rory Gardiner
835 High St. Residential Building
© Rory Gardiner

With time the landscape will merge with the built form, giving a wonderful character and softness to the streetscape. Acre wanted to be smart and creative with their outcomes and feel this project will improve dramatically with age.

Artist

 In a natural fit to defer to the rich fabric of surrounding art, internationally renowned artist Anna–Wili Highfield and sculptor has created a 12-meter-high feature piece ‘Bird’ that sees tens of small birds dotted up the walls of the interior lobby space.

The outcome is a dynamic, animated void, created by dancing with light and shadow play.

835 High St. Residential Building
© Rory Gardiner


835 High St. Residential Building
Plan - Basement 01
835 High St. Residential Building
Plan - Basement 02
835 High St. Residential Building
Plan - Ground Floor
835 High St. Residential Building
Plan - 1st Floor
835 High St. Residential Building
Plan - 2nd Floor
835 High St. Residential Building
Plan - 3rd Floor
835 High St. Residential Building
Plan - 4th Floor
835 High St. Residential Building
Plan - 5th Floor
835 High St. Residential Building
Plan - 6th Floor