ARCHITECT'S OWN HOUSE AT DEEP WATER BAY
Architect: Mr. A. V. Alvares
Photograph of the house from the sea,
Every residence built specifically for The layman, looking at this striking an individual reflects the personality and attractive house, could never of that individual, but is modified by properly appreciate the difficulties the interpretation given to it by the and problems the architect had to designer. When, however, the owner contend with in order to utilize to its and the designer happen to be the best advantage the barren and un- same person, the completed building compromising rock which constituted should faithfully mirror the true the original site. This was a small characteristics of his personality, rough promontory about 75' wide and being very ordinary or very unusual 150' long rising steeply from sea level in proportion to the qualities of to the narrow strip that connected it originality and initiative he possesses. to Island Road at the 40' level. The "Arrowhead," the newly completed architect states that he realized that residence of Mr. A.V. Alvares the well-known architect, is situated on Island Road at Deep Water Bay; it is, in every sense, a building of distinc- tion and is a credit both to his imagination as an architect and to his abilities as a builder.
the house would have to be very long and narrow and that his problem was how to include in the arrangement besides the three bedrooms required for his family, a guest room, a study, a dark room, a large living room and a dining room.
How well he solved the problem is illustrated in the plans and photo- graphs. By careful planning, all the accommodation required was obtained with only one compromise the study and guest room had to be combined in one convertible unit; but this was more than offset by the very attrac- tive bar lounge which was added to the living room area.
The success of the planning was in a large measure due to the use of ramps in place of the conventional stairways and this may also be con- sidered to be the most unusual and outstanding feature of the interior design. Mr. Alvares had often con- sidered that a ramp could very suc- cessfully be used in the buildings he
Section through the house clearly showing the four distinct levels.
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