Inside Magazine Issue 95

The requirements due to the recent changes to regulations around installing pools and fencing made attaining a Building Permit quite challenging. Antony and his team were a great throughout the process.

Prompt, professional and a pleasure to work with. I would defiantly recommend DiMase Architects.

From start to finish, DiMase Architects demonstrated a level of professionalism, expertise, and dedication that truly exceeded my expectations.

Antony and Neia not only possess an impressive understanding of architectural design but also have an in-depth knowledge of the intricacies involved in town planning. Their ability to navigate the complex regulations and guidelines set by local authorities made the entire process much smoother than I anticipated.

One of the standout qualities of working with DiMase Architects was their excellent communication skills. They kept me informed at every stage of the planning process, providing clear explanations and updates. This transparent and proactive approach not only reassured me but also fostered a sense of trust and confidence in their capabilities.

Moreover, Antony exhibited a keen attention to detail, ensuring that the town planning application was thorough and well-prepared. Their meticulousness not only streamlined the approval process but also reflected positively on the overall quality of the application.

In both cases, especially the kitchen, we had pretty firm ideas about what we wanted, and Antony and Niea worked collaboratively with us to incorporate and improve our thinking. Antony recommended a terrific cabinet maker for the kitchen and the end result is of the highest standard within our budget.

We are ecstatic with the end result, particularly with the kitchen (the biggest part of the total project). We are keen cooks and just love using the new space. Doing the pergola came with some over-the-top requirements in terms of building permits which Niea in particular helped us negotiate without too much hassle. As the weather warms up we are loving that too.

DiMase knows about the realities of working with older homes in Melbourne’s inner north and are experts at getting the most out of them within the various constraints they impose.

Our paths have gone in different directions however we maintained our friendship as our interests overlap. There are four aspects of Antony’s career that stand out to me.

Firstly, Antony has instilled in his Fitzroy North architectural practice the foundation of professional services and contributed to making a better environment through his projects.

Secondly, his urban activism and advocacy against Apple at Federation Square and supporting Australian Architects Declare movement demonstrate a capacity to grapple with urban issues that affect us all.

Thirdly, Antony’s initiative to run a gallery as part of his practice extends a collaboration between architecture and the art world. Its success has grown over the past 5 years and is an innovation we rarely see in architectural practices.

Finally, Antony’s interest in lighting, technology and sustainability is substantiated by his Master’s research and continues through his podcast with Jackson Stigwood.

Each of these aspects illustrates Antony’s capacity to extend architecture into a broader public sphere and to communicate complex issues in articulate, clear and effective ways. Antony’s good-nature means that he is a good listener, and his broad expertise and experience provide him with the tools to solve difficult architectural problems with relative ease and empathy.”

Our little backyard studio apartment is now at the lock-up stage and is looking elegant, minimalist, even a bit dramatic. As an added bonus, it has been the inspiration for the up-coming garden design.

“When I approached Antony and his team to design a house for the block of land, he asked the usual question: what was I looking for? I gave him three answers: the first was the rather opaque request to build a house that suited our needs; the second was to make the most of the perspective onto the park while respecting the users of the park; and the third was to build an energy efficient house.

However, it was only after living through the design and build that I realised how much the request for an energy efficient house sat in tension with the other two requests. Much of the commentary and background knowledge around energy efficient houses relates to technical aspects of energy efficiency in cold climates. Thus to ask for large windows to overlook a park in a warm climate creates different design problems to those encountered in cold climates. It is a credit to the DiMase Architects team that they could work with the opaque request to build a house that suited our needs, the lived experience is of a comfortable house that is enjoyable to live in!” – Owner and Client

It’s a very easy house to live in – the spaces work well,” says Donna. “I was concerned that it would still be a very small house, but it actually feels quite spacious because of all the light and the high ceilings.

It works well thermally too; the couple says that the downstairs stays cool through the hot days of summer, aided by good cross ventilation and night purging of warm air.

Nonetheless, the retention of masonry and the thermal mass it provides + the double glazing and insulation means that the interior temperature is very stable. We are very glad we got into the house when we did – things went pear-shaped in the world not long after, and working from home here is a pleasure whereas we’d have been going stark staring mad in the original house or the rental.

A number of friends came to look at the place – all of them have commented that they can see the hand of an architect in it (and said in a positive way!). It’s exceeded our expectations all around. Once we’ve been in for a full year and seen the way it works through the seasons I’ll no doubt appreciate it even more, but the view lines and alignment of windows and the way light comes through is fantastic. The yellow feature wall works really well – it adds a golden cast to the light as the sun comes through. Alas a photo doesn’t do it justice.

Visitors have been interested in the modernist colour scheme & in the use of low-maintenance surfaces. The lack of grout has had many who clean those surfaces regularly waxing lyrical (me being one of them – it seems impossible to clean grout properly without eventually destroying it).

We’ve ended up repurposing the rain garden as a herb garden by just leaving enough rocks in it to stop soil washing away when a deluge comes. We’ve also been using it for vermiculture by embedding a couple of in-ground worm-farms in it so we can do on-site composting. Between the two we’ve got a wide variety of herbs growing successfully where we couldn’t before. Worms seem to be much better than just adding fertilizer. I mention the rain garden and our use for it because it’s not something we would have had unless Yarra had insisted, but it’s actually been a positive, so that experience might be useful to other of your clients. So – we’re all well and happy to be home at this end.

For Architect Antony DiMase, one of the real achievements of the project is that though it followed the Passive House approach, “it’s not engineer-driven, which many Passive Houses can be – it’s architecturally pleasing.”