Simple, energy-efficient homes were a necessity for Australia's early
settlers due to limited access to materials, skills and resources. Architects
today recognise energy conservation as a global imperative as well as the
environmental impact of modern housing. They are increasingly using natural
materials in designs that suit the extreme Australian climate.
With ideas and examples by famous Australian architect Glen Murcutt, other
high-end architects and also DIY builders, the exhibition offers a glimpse at
the future of sustainable housing in Australia.
Low-energy solutions of 19th-century rural houses and environmental
suitability of traditional building materials and practices are inspiring a new
generation. Water is again being treated like a precious commodity and passive
shade, ventilation and heating strategies are being utilised.
This exhibition of past and present architecture highlights the benefits of
natural materials and corrugated iron in earlier times. Simple house designs
used light and air for their heating and cooling properties and water, the most
essential resource for survival, was carefully captured and conserved.
Despite recent efforts to make our homes more environmentally friendly,
Australians now use more water and land per person than most countries including
China, Russia, India and the UK.
By the mid-2030s it is estimated that worldwide we will be consuming the
earth's renewable resources at twice the rate that they can be
regenerated.
