Glenn Murcutt By Susan Germann

 “TOUCH THE EARTH LIGHTLY”

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 Glenn Murcutt is Australia’s most internationally famous architect. He has received twenty-five Australian awards and was awarded the prestigious 2002 Pritzker Architecture Prize.    Murcutt is best known for his use of corrugated iron which have elevated the humble Aussie shed to an art form.  His works are economical and multi-functional.   Murcutt also factors in environment such as wind direction, water movement, temperature and light surrounding his sites before he designs the building itself. Materials such as  glass, stone, timber and steel are often included in his works.

What I like about Murcutt’s designs are they do all blend in with their environment, windows with lots of light and open decks with lots of space – allowing the outside in.  Simple and streamline is what I personally aspire to……a stark contrast to my living space, which is cluttered with every space filled – very un-zen.

And in stark contrast to most glamous architectectural firms, Murcutt still works humbly in a one-person Sydney office with a waiting list of clients –  many of whom have become close friends.  Filmmaker Catherine Hunter, who is making a documentary on the architect, has said: “He gives everything, he can’t help himself. He’s unstoppable, he’s this force. Long before we started talking about things such as sustainability, Glenn was practising those things.

Whilst reading about Murcutts’ background, and how and where he was raised, it is clear to see how these humble values were developed.  Murcutt grew up in PNG, and as a young boy he identified two essential things he still insists a house must provide – prospect and refuge. Murcutt’s father Sam, built the village family home and wanted to understand the art of making a good place to live in – he had American architectural reviews flown into their village on a Gipsy Moth. Glenn built a cubby house lit with electricity and charged a admission when he was a child.  By the time he  graduated from architecture in 1961, he already knew how to mix concrete, make bricks, lay drains, knock up a door or put on a roof from working alongside his father Sam.  His father was also an environmentalist and planted natives when everyone else planted flowers.  To read more about Murcott’s fascinating father and early years of growing up, they are described so poignantly here.  http://www.themonthly.com.au/meeting-glenn-murcutt-fathers-sons-peter-robb-3983

Murcutt’s feeling for Indigenous Australia has developed over the years and he has travelled widely in remote regions, One of his most original houses is the one he built in Arnhem Land. The client identified him as the whitefella architect who could make a house her people could live in. Murcutt forwent his fee and, because the government agency refused to subsidise the cost of a wooden house it said would burn down within a year, ended up paying a chunk of the building cost as well. After 17 years, the open and adaptable house remains a delight for everyone who spends time in it.

“Life is not about maximising everything, it’s about giving something back – like light, space, form, serenity, joy. You have to give something back.”

Building projects

▪   1972-74 : Laurie Short House, Sydney (NSW)

▪   1974-75 : Marie Short House, Kempsey (NSW)

▪   1976-83 : Berowra Waters Inn, Berowra Waters (NSW)

▪   1977-80 : Nicholas House, Mount Irvine (NSW)

▪   1977-80 : Carruthers House, Mount Irvine (NSW)

▪   1982 : Kempsey Visitor Information Centre (NSW)

▪   1981-83 : Ball-Eastaway House, Glenorie, Sydney (NSW)

▪   1976-88 : Museum of Local History and Tourist Office, Kempsey (NSW)

▪   1981-82 : Fredericks House, Jamberoo (NSW)

▪   1982-84 : Magney House, Bingie Bingie (NSW)

▪   1986-90 : Magney House, Sydney (NSW)

▪   1988-91 : Done House, Sydney (NSW)

▪   1988-92 : Meagher House, Bowral (NSW)

▪   1989-94 : Simpson-Lee House, Mount Wilson (NSW)

▪   1991-94 : Marika-Alderton House, Yirrkala Community, Eastern Arnhern Land (NT)

▪   1992  : Murcutt Guest Studio, Kempsey (NSW)

▪   1992-94 : Bowali Visitor Information Centre, Kakadu National Park (NT), in collaboration with Troppo Architects

▪   1994-96 : Schnaxl House, Newport, Sydney (NSW)

▪   1996-98 : Fletcher-Page House, Kangaroo Valley (NSW)

▪   1995-96 : Douglas and Ruth Murcutt House, Woodside (SA)

▪   1996-99 : Arthur and Yvonne Boyd Art Centre, Riversdale, West Cambewarra (NSW), in collaboration with Reg Lark and Wendy Lewin

▪   1997-01: House at Kangaloon, Southern Highlands (NSW)

▪   2000-03: Murcutt/Lewin House and Studio, Mosman (NSW)

▪   2001-05: Walsh House, Kangaroo Valley (NSW)

▪   2006-07: Moss Vale Education Centre (University of Wollongong), Moss Vale (NSW), in collaboration with Wendy Lewin

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

http://www.ozetecture.org/oze_NEW_portfolio_glenn.html

http://www.themonthly.com.au/meeting-glenn-murcutt-fathers-sons-peter-robb-3983

http://www.be.unsw.edu.au/profile/glenn_murcutt

http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2002/04/14/1018333454263.html