The house at 34 Fihelly Street, Fadden (also known as the Pepper House) was designed by Philip Cox in 1983. It is one of a small number of domestic scale buildings in Canberra designed by Cox, others being the Jerilderie Court Housing (1975) and the Embassy of Ireland (1975).

The house is sited backing the McArthur Hill Canberra Nature Park with views to the Brindabella Ranges. The form of the surrounding hills is echoed in the three curved roof pavilions of the house and garage.

Extensive glazing to the front and north of the house takes advantage of these views, while walls siding the adjoining properties (east and west) are largely without glazing to afford privacy. The glazing and massiveness of the walls provides a contrast with the extensive trelliswork on the balustrades.

The Pepper House displays aspects of the late twentieth century post-modern style, including references to vernacular architecture and materials with the use of trelliswork, bullnosed corrugated iron verandahs and double pitched roofs.

The house displays Cox’s characteristic concern with the relationship between the building and its landscape.

Sources and further reading

• Australian Architects: Philip Cox, RAIA Education Division, Red Hill, 1984
• The late twentieth century post-modern style
• Philip Cox’s Jerilderie Court Housing

Designed by Philip Cox in 1975, Jerilderie Court was the first non-suburban public housing project in Canberra. Located towards the Civic end of Ainslie Avenue in Reid, Jerilderie Court was commissioned by the National Capital Development Commission (NCDC) to provide accommodation for low income families in a medium density housing scheme. The development was awarded the C. S. Daley Medal in 1978.

Philip Cox is one of Australia’s most distinguished architects and has designed some of Australia’s most important and technologically sophisticated buildings, including the National Maritime Museum, the Sydney Exhibition Centre, the Sydney Entertainment Centre and some of the facilities at Homebush Bay, including the National Aquatic Centre, used for the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Cox has won many architectural awards in Australia, including both the Silver and Gold Medals from the Royal Australian Institute of Architects. He is regarded as one of the founders of the Sydney School of architecture.

Cox has designed a number of major buildings and smaller projects in Canberra. They include the Kambah Health Centre (1973), Bruce Stadium (1974), the Irish Embassy (1975), the ACT Family and Juvenile Courts (1977), the National Indoor Sports Centre (1979), the house at 34 Fihelly Street, Fadden (1983) and the National Convention Centre (1989).

Description

Sixty-two units are contained within the development in a variety of housing types, including three bedroom townhouses, single storey garden units and maisonettes. All units face north, creating oblique facades to the street frontage on Ainslie Avenue.

A large central communal space provides access to units, playgrounds and pleasant, leafy barbecue areas. To stay within budget, standard structural systems and materials were used. Staggered vertical and horizontal massing and the contrast of pitched and flat roofs provide visual interest within the limited palette of materials.

Source

• Australian Architects: Philip Cox, RAIA Education Division, Red Hill, 1984
• Cox Architects and Planners website
• The Sydney School of architecture