Peter Stutchbury

More or less

The world is changing.
The computer is disconnecting us from nature. 

Nature has evolved over hundreds of millions of years – since the industrial revolution humans have disrespected the relationship with nature, decimating resources that belong to the world. Space exploration is a human endeavour, the means by which we pursue the future is human responsibility.

I arrived at the isolated Papua New Guinea highland village after a three-day labored walk through unfamiliar waterlogged, deeply aromatic mountain country.  Walking was exhausting; high altitude and thin air.

The village format had thousands of years of evolution; the ultimate refinement of simple, socially accurate bush structures.  The structure, the selection of materials, the assembly, the human balance – all aligned to manage a pre-determined life-span.  No waste was evident – not questions of style or philosophy – legibility my single memory of this village’s built forms – their language of infinite evolutionary wealth. 

I sat in the longhouse, dirt floor, blades of scattered light through horizontal rounds, family fires, a sago leaf roof lacquered black from years of smoke, mood changing from daylight to firelight.  Silhouettes and soliloquies.  The longhouse, PNG’s temple of the highlands – a building of restraint,  accuracy and consequent timeless beauty.  I found here an economy of means. 


Long House, Papua New Guinea – 1981 The longhouse is the primary building for occupation and ceremony in the highlands of PNG. It’s form variers over the multiple highland tribes but function remains similar – large entry community room for cooking / communication / dance/ confrontation / social interaction – secondary dark spaces for separated male / female sleeping. Unquestionably a clear representation of culture.


We were out fencing.  My Uncle Harry was a big man, could drive a fence picket through the crusty, semi-arid desert floor and beyond with one accurate blow.  Days were invariably hot in this landscape, the old Ford 8-cylinder flat back truck laden with an array of star pickets and corner posts, a monotonous job. Three and a half hours from the nearest hardware store – every utensil, every fixing and piece of equipment needs to be considered.

The truck is parked central to the fence line, importantly in the shade – hot fence pickets are annoying – picket spacing determined by wire spacing and/or their length of travel. Different wires for different jobs – anticipate more tie-wire than calculated.

The fence line is set out and adjusted to accommodate the ground and vegetation - most important that corners are founded on reliable ground – remembering that the ground changes nature when flooded with sheets of water and accompanying debris.

Different length posts, different ground –bracing panel is inserted strategically, wires are threaded and strained; the old twist tightening knot and figure-8 joiner remain universal connectors.

Corner strainers can never be too strong.  Be careful not to over-tighten, it can snap under tension and sever a finger or diminish the ability of the wire to absorb the force of a mob.

Uncle Harry was 88, he knew all this and slowly but effectively constructed the fence – likely he’ll not be back should it fail – fifty years later the fence remains. 

We are, a product of our inheritance and learning, chosen or simply experiential.  Our preferences are developed from inside to out – right and wrong are not adjudicated by a set of rules.  How we deliver our thinking becomes a refinement of how we translate and prioritise our moments in time.  The two experiential moments described rise to the surface and take their place in our ruminations.

I recall an eighty-year-old woman living in a stone house in a vineyard on the upper banks of the Duomo River near Oporto.  We stayed in a tiny stone cottage down the hill, along a dirt track, removing tiles from the roof to allow cooking smoke out.  Every morning the old woman would arrive with a gift of either eggs, potatoes, sardines or wine – her actions adjusted to the day and weather – language no barrier.  (Her sister sat against a stone wall in the sun but gave us little acknowledgement as we passed by.)  To show appreciation, we took our friend to a local café for lunch, twenty kilometers away.  She had in her lifetime not visited that place; she travelled by foot as required.  She was an extraordinary human light to me, who understood and communicated across the ravines of life, all within a limited range of experiences.  She drew upon the lessons of the micro (her means), constructing her macro world. 

Architecture becomes a form of expression.  As the days build maturity, one’s reliance on acceptance overtakes the desire to investigate, hence the evolution of culture.  Traditionally, elders were those respected and referred to for their wisdom.  Imagine: the uncompetitive refinement of knowledge, where as a youth one accepts the truth of the elders, then translates, then develops – this evolution nurtures wisdom through ancient truths.  Working alongside natural systems enables a consistent reference and opportunity to test a theory time and time again.  At what moment does invention or idea revolutionise such a process?

Times of freedom, unpredictability and chance are not common as they can be confronting and time consuming.  Evolution harbors both adaptation and invention within the realm of understanding, thus completing the circle within the sphere.  The sphere is an infinite number of circles, the completion of a circle can be a moment of self-truth.


Sisters 80 years Upper Banks, Duomo River, Oporto- 1989 In a small village up the river from Oporto a number of ancient stone huts / homes characterise the olive / wine growing hillsides – occupants are hardy and have inherited survival techniques that coordinate with local resources. Two sisters occupy a 3 room old stone home; the more pro-active visits the banks of the Duomo River every morning to collect a tray of sardines – her garden nurtures grapes, olives and potato’s – chooks provide eggs – by managing her assets and trading a little at the local market, she supports herself and her sister as has been enacted for hundreds of years. Image – Peter Stutchbury


Thereby, our architecture is us, until an over-loaded mind can no longer order our thinking to a level that is accurate, interpretive and evolutionary.  There are peaks and troughs, equally, a moment of saturation is time to rest, to sit alone with a shadow of doubt, reassess and then in the comfort of personal assurance, move on.  Economy of means begins with the accuracy of our thinking; accurate thinking means least waste.

Often the simple gesture in architecture is more considered than the complicated form – elemental gestures demand a moment of clarity.  The depth of our means is reduced to a legible reaction ‘the ability to identify the response that aligns all we choose to know at that time.’  I suggest this is the architect’s single most potent tool, a honed ability to clear the deck of distraction thus uncovering the single vision.

At this moment we imagine an architecture that reassures and confirms, it finds a life, that informs what follows.  It’s complicated and demanding, easily abstracted and distracted. It requires a certain confidence and focus.  In this changing world where instant information is a habit and diversity a ‘catch-cry’, the likelihood of refined wisdom cannot be expected – more likely there will be either instant gratification or lengthy explanation.

How can a timeless philosophy be possible in such an environment?  Flight like a feathered finch from branch to branch seeking immediate satisfaction of temporary desire.  Our work stems from our economy of means, determined by values and discipline.  When approached to design an environmental woolshed, the owner set firmly the direction: “I don’t want a palazzo, I need a functional, environmental building that redefines the woolshed model – this can be a place of beauty but first it must work.”

My mind did not turn to form, instead it considered the values of Uncle Harry’s fence, the efficiencies of the Papua New Guinea longhouse and drew upon my father’s practical engineered aesthetic.  It helped that I understood the practice of shearing and could integrate passive means for heating and cooling.  This single building represents accurate thinking, it is free of waste and derives its aesthetics as a consequence of the efficient relationship of all decisions – the building can be completely explained and singularly represents how composition can represent economy of means.

Deepwater Woolshed – Wagga Wagga NSW, Australia – 2001-2003 The Bulls Run property 50 km north west of Wagga Wagga in regional New South Wales is a project that rethinks woolshed design. The program initiates an optimal work environment for shearers, while meeting the highest quality standards for wool preparation and sheep handling. Orientation and siting of the woolshed were integrally considered such to benefit all logical outcomes. Managing major temperature changes particularly extreme heat, was a major design objective. Photography – Michael Nicholson

Deepwater Woolshed paved the way toward a particular confidence around the functional aesthetic.  We architects can appreciate the beauty found in industrial buildings but are challenged when considering the transfer of this appreciation into other forms of projects. Often decoration in its multiple forms becomes the unnecessary companion to the work.  We are not brave enough to ‘let it be’ – (I wonder if that’s what the Beatles meant?)  The Woolshed communicates a universal aesthetic, style is absent, function is at the core of exploration – composition the architecture; we are after all composers.

Similarly, the Archery Centre for the 2000 Olympics – the site was once a swamp, an important indigenous hunting location, then decimated by white man to become a place of toxic rubbish.  Archery the art – the tradition, a building typology undefined except for the ‘zen-like’ quality of the shooting action.  Our response was elemental parts that formed a whole; a structural grid that reflected the archers, a roof that protected from and balanced the weather, a freedom yet an accuracy, all decisions evident.  The building told a story of place, of activity, of structure, a bridge between the land and the human.  At the opening ceremony the local aboriginal people thanked the design team for restoring the values of the site.

A recent project for City of Sydney took existing infrastructure and inserted imaginative pieces to change function and produce architecture.  The economy of means in this instance could be attributed to the discipline required when adjudicating the new and old, an exercise in humility and balance – a reflected searching, an act of measured choice.  The building, inherited from England, was so out of place in Australia – hence the strategy to employ insertions to shift the order and redefine the aesthetic with contemporary pieces, interpretive spaces, environmental initiatives – underlying was our values, and responsibility to the original site.

When one invents there is never security, just the chance of growing older with grace.  Recent residential projects:  Indian Head, Guarella Bay and Night Sky, all express the restraint and efficiency demanded by inventive refinement.  Intensity can be unmanageable, or personal, in which case it may have freedom.  It comes as no surprise that extreme art has been supported by unmanaged addiction.  These three projects are characterised by clear explanation, discipline and invention – their logic intense, it begs the question: should architecture provide relief? Can fantasy be included within economy of means? 

The Archery Centre, Sydney International Archery Park, Homebush Bay 1996-1998. A large awning roof twisting across the northern boundary of the shooting field: it reflects the dynamic yet mathematical nature of the sport - a combination of light and heavy structure and the identifiable character of an endless verandah. Photography – Michael Nicholson

Each of these projects originate from and can be explained by their site.  To be successful the building must nurture the user, it is a reciprocal act.  Architecture arrives as intuition, then evolves as real.  No mark-up necessary. Responsibility is to strip the idea of all surplus, to consider the outcome as an accurate response to the essence of necessary living.  Through that lens Indian Head is a cliff-top residence for experimental thinkers; Guerella Bay a forest room for a deep-thinking middle-aged woman; Night Sky a mountain plateau for a highly intelligent disabled gentleman.  Ambition: to fit for place and purpose.

Since 2015 we have travelled to Brazil with students to work with disadvantaged communities – Favelas.  We have constructed a kindergarten/community centre and a story-telling room.  This work had forced a review of both ‘economy’ and ‘means’.  Reliance on sponsorship, isolated communities, limited resources, unskilled labour and fixed time have steered the process – preparation, co-operation, humanity and effective communication, our priorities shift, methodologies adapt, accuracies modify.  Ultimately the outcome reflects an ideology based on a differed bag of tools.

Pleasure sometimes found through people – architecture the bridesmaid, success is community welfare.  In this instance ‘economy of means’ shifts orientation centring on social outcomes beyond aesthetic refinements. 
Architecture and economy of means are not necessarily bed-mates.  Clients can demand luxury and a palatial attitude to projects.  Commercial clients are rarely motivated by community welfare, rather the number of cars and commercial floor space.  Detailed accurate and economical consideration of the way we construct our thinking to construct architecture all contributes toward the refinement of process.  A shearer is paid per sheep so every blow must be accurate, co-ordination and refinement increase efficiency up to a point beyond which waste occurs. 

Refinement of ‘economy of means’ = ‘respect’.

As we gather our means on respect, we begin to comprehend the human contribution.  We are intelligent animals in a world of living resources.  Ego and false wealth are foreigners; if we choose to participate in a realistic survival we need to revive respect.  Humans are becoming detached; the refinement of the longhouse is replaced by the unashamed display of wealth and possession. Temporary pleasure rather than future planning, survival being distorted by desire. We have lost touch with our instincts.


The Storytelling Room, Ilha de Mare, Salvador, Brazil - 2019 Peter Stutchbury Foundation is an educational branch of Peter Stutchbury Architecture, which collaborates with the University of Newcastle each year to complete design-construct projects in disadvantaged communities, Brazil. In its 5th year, the ‘Storytelling Room’ represents the most recent project completed by PSA Foundation, located on the island of Maré. A beautiful outcome; a shaded structure for retreat from the harsh sun, 2000L of rainwater collection, a playground from salvaged materials, Atelier Vivo endemic bird mural, veggie beds and compost bins, dentistry, integrated health and an art project. Photography – PSA Foundation


Indian Head House, Avalon, NSW, Aust - 2019 Indian Head sits immediately adjacent to the power of a vertical cliff, also a location of weather extremes. This specific location demands a response of significant resistance - a building of extreme durability that clings to the clifftop and bunkers down against heavy winds. The site enjoys prospect toward the horizon within an amphitheatre of land overlooking a valley floor. Designed as a minimal footprint with maximum land, Indian Head House engages with the characteristics that define the place. Photography – Michael Nicholson.



Bay Guarella House, Guerilla Bay NSW, 2018. The small house sits within a windswept forest 30 metres from the rugged continent edge. The trees are stunted and leaning, the land is weathered - the wind plays an active role in the character of this place. The house is aligned toward an isolated sacred rock, the land falls diagonally the length of the building. In rugged landscapes such as these, bushfire is a concern. Photography – Michael Nicholson.


Joynton Avenue Creative Centre, Sydney NSW Aust- 2018. The Joynton Avenue Creative precinct brings a union between landscape and built form. The Joynton Avenue Creative Centre (JACC) and Banga Community Shed, both of heritage significance, have been modified to allow the ambitious program of new uses. The additions to these buildings, draws on the original structural form and are transformed to bring a new and aspiring architecture, resting in an urban landscape. Respect of the original built fabric is remembered and reinterpreted to give a new architectural language. Photography – Michael Nicholson



Night Sky House - Blue Mountains, NSW - 2019. Rarely is a project more considerate of night than day. Night sky is a residence for an astronomer who has qualifications in aeronautic engineering and architecture- he also holds amateur rocket altitude records- In a nutshell; a gentleman who understands sky. This building sits connected to land and sky with fragile rigidity. Night Sky come inside and become the poet. Photography – Michael Nicholson