Like life, the Research House is a forever-evolving project.

John Henry worked tirelessly to become an architect; an aspiration he inherited from his father – a builder with a keen interest in construction design. What started off as the rather black-and-white pursuit of a determined and hardworking student became a field – an opportunity – for John to explore his creative mind.

John’s home, otherwise known as the Research House, is a conceptual playground: an extravagant, colourful display of iconography and timeless keepsakes. In every appliance, bed sheet, cupboard, canvas and house plant exists a unique story, tying John intimately with the furniture he shares his voluminous space with. Like life, the Research House remains a forever-evolving project.

The story goes that my father hurt his back. He was a very good footballer, and a very good cricketer, but he got sandwiched in a game. He had to go into hospital, and one of the [orthopaedic] surgeons said, “You’re getting to the age where, instead of playing cricket, why don’t you think about playing golf?”. And so my mother and father took up playing golf! I went out with them one day and got a lesson. I am a left-hander, and I thought, I could warm to this. I then worked at a pro-shop cleaning clubs, and in exchange of [the owner] paying me, he’d give me a lesson a week. I’m a bit of an obsessive person, and so instead of going home and studying, I’d go to the golf-course.

I failed Year 11 twice, which was a big disappointment to my parents. They asked me to get a job and said, “You better learn what life’s about.” My father said, “You better come work with me, so I can guide you. I want you to work in the office, but at the same time I want you to go back to school and finish Year 11.” That’s what I did. I got the message that I needed to do something with my life academically. And then he said, “Now, why don’t you go back and do Year 12?”. Instead of going to secondary school, I went to a tech-school and studied first year engineering where I studied applied mechanics, physics, chemistry and art. I was quite good at art, and then won a Commonwealth scholarship. It was a huge turn around. My father said, “You’ve shown some interest in being an architect.” He used to show me books; he always wanted me to be an architect. He taught himself how to draw. The tragic part is that my father – being a big smoker – developed lung cancer and died at 63. He never saw me mature into a developed architect; only in the embryonic stages of learning.

We purchased this property at the end of 1998. Over the next three years, we lived together in the top bungalow. My wife originally said, “I don’t know if I can live in there.” But we stripped the whole thing. She helped me. We re-enameled the bar. Painted every wall white. Brought some paintings in, and made it a home. This house embodies me. It totally encapsulates my love and passion for architecture.

You have to get a feel for their character. It’s fundamental. You have to listen to them. Listening is very important, and a lot of architects like to tell – they don’t like to listen. It’s important to respond and engage with them, as well as bringing them along on the journey. You cannot go away in isolation and work from your ivory tower and say, “That’s my design, we’re not changing anything.” I often find that clients can add great value by critiquing what you’ve done, and saying why not to do something. The end product is a better finish. They value it, and they have ownership.

Yes. My idea was to create a big, completely open space. I didn’t want any rooms. The space was to be subdivided by cupboards only. The black box is the only room in the house that’s enclosed; it’s the only room. To make the black box recede we painted it a black that had a lot of red in it. It’s not a sharp black. The rest of the house consists of spaces within a big volume. The idea is that when you come in you have different platforms, so you can go to different areas and have different experiences. The genesis of the idea was the space, and the light, and the effect that those things have on one another, and that has marvellous effects on human nature. When people come into those spaces, when they see the light it lifts them.

It is a social space! When people arrive, they always migrate toward the kitchen. My wife’s a great cook! She loves to be in the kitchen. Because of the layout, from the kitchen platform she can be a part of it all. We have lots of Sunday lunches here.

Growing up, it was an enclosed kitchen. It was an old-fashioned house, it would’ve been built in the 1940’s. The kitchen was one of those cottage kitchens with the table in it. So, you ate in the kitchen. As I grew up, my parents started to evolve, and they opened up the kitchen into the dining room. The dining room was then an extension to the kitchen, and then they opened the dining room up into the lounge room: they put double doors and things. The whole thing started to evolve into an integration of spaces rather than closed off boxes! Much like my home now. To design a good kitchen, the fundamental premise is that you design it on a triangular basis, so that you move in diagonals from one area to another, or along the length of the kitchen bench.

Being an older guy and learning in the ‘60s and ‘70s architecture was quite revolutionary, it transformed from being traditional. The whole architectural scene, and even design itself had changed. It was quite refreshing. Since then, however, I have seen architecture in general go on the slide. I have to ask myself, why is that?

It is becoming more traditional and conservative again. Most architects are copying one another. They understand what fashion is, and aren’t developing their own style, nor are they learning from how architecture has evolved and developed.

You don’t build a building from the roof down, but from the base up. That’s what I drill into my people when they come and work in my office. You have to think about how you put it together. How does it work? Imagine yourself walking through your design, and what you’re going to do when you come across this, and that. They don’t guide the students or mentor them nowadays. I, however, had to learn things like the science of concrete.