Visiting Friends – by Gary

What's this???

Do you know what the above is? Can you guess?  Set in a low sandstone wall, it's a horse hitching wall out front of an Ipswich church.  Cool huh?  Recently we spent several very pleasant days in Ipswich visiting friends and, amongst other things, discovering that this small city of 160 odd thousand people boasts some really interesting historic architecture.

The real highlight of the town's built heritage are the 'Queenslanders', that unique form of vernacular architecture, responding so beautifully to climate.  Raised high on stumps these houses escape the radiant heat of the ground, capture breezes and, with their low thermal mass, cool off quickly at night.  Wide shady verandahs and high pitched, vented roofs help keep the interior cool.  The verandahs of course also provide wonderful outdoor living opportunities – even during an afternoon tropical downpour.  Utilising the State's formerly abundant timbers, and cheap galvanised iron rooves, they could be built inexpensively.

Mein host Brian took us on a guided tour, explaining some of the 'nuts and bolts' of the style. He showed us how at the simplest end of the 'Queenslander 'spectrum there is your basic workers cottage.  It's a small square house, built on stumps,  with a high pitched roof and modest sun control over the windows.  In its very simplest form front steps lead directly to the front door.  Brian then went on to show us how this simple form can be amplified to find a solution appropriate to all tastes and circumstances.

Here is a workers cottage, but a flash one, it's fitted with a front verandah.  As you can see the verandah has been closed in at some stage to provide extra internal volume.

Painted and restored the workers cottage can be a charming place to live.

If you'd got more money you could ask the builder to add some further complexity, a wrap around verandah, a gable end over the entry, some more decorative elements.

With even more money you could 'bigger' the whole thing, integrating the verandah under a single pitched roof and add more decorative elements.  The bit on the back is most likely a later addition.

Still more money?  Put the house on a bigger block, get the builder to add more detailing to the verandah and roof line over the entry statement.  Perhaps splurge on some bay windows.

Filthy rich?  Get the big block, depart entirely from the basic square, add wings, bays, french doors and lots of detailing.

Verandahs – ultra cool and stylish or down to earth slobby, wonderful either way.

Throw in a bit of landscaping and what more could you possibly want?

Brian's explanation of the Queenslander, for me really captures the essence of its beauty.  The form allows for such a wide range of personal expression depending upon your taste and financial circumstances, yet creates towns and neighbourhoods with extraordinary cohesiveness, so conspicuously absent in contemporary Australian suburbs.  But I guess you have to like painting.

Our architectural guided tour took in some other notable works.  I'm a sucker for a bit of built humour.

But how about this?  Walter Burley Griffin, the American architect, landscape architect cum town planner is well known for giving us Canberra, less well known for his Sydney suburb of Castlecraig and a whole slew of private houses, but perhaps even less well known for his industrial architecture – the hand of the master is so evident in this Ipswich incinerator plant.

On the right, in order after Zeke are our wonderful Ipswich hosts, Majella, Brian, Jean, Tasman and Yogi the dog.  Thanks for a great time guys.

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