Plus Minus Design was established in 2007.
The focus of the practice is building design. We are not interested in specialising in particular building types, rather we’ve found that thinking through ideas at one scale can productively inform work at another. Projects to date have varied from garage lofts through to high-rise, tower developments and this range of scale and type reflects our breadth of design interest and experience.
Urban design, landscape design and interior design are subjects that are happy distractions. While we have skills in these areas, we understand the limits of our expertise and gladly propose and welcome collaborations with other design and construction professionals when appropriate.
We decided to call the practice Plus Minus Design for a whole bunch of reasons. Wikipedia, at times, defines plus-minus as “the precision of an approximation” and we like the sound of that. We like thinking about approximation and tolerance in building. Some times things need to be precise or luxurious, other times it is not so important. Our first priority and objective for each project is to find an appropriate response.
Phillip lectures frequently and has taught architectural design, history and interior design at the University of New South Wales, the University of Technology in Sydney and Western Sydney University. He is an Adjunct Professor at Western Sydney University.
Phillip is a registered architect in NSW (NSW ARB 10101) and is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Architects.
20 Arthur Street
Surry Hills NSW 2010
Sydney, Australia
Alterations & restoration of a heritage property
This significant house was designed in the Queen Anne Style by Harry C Kent in Sydney and Maurice B Adams in London and was constructed in 1886 for Charles Burton Fairfax. It is appropriately listed as a heritage item by Woollahra Council. It is also listed on the Register of the National Estate and the Jubilee Register of the National Trust of Australia.
A large part of the project concerned the restoration of the home, but new work was carried out where original fabric had already been altered. The original configuration of the kitchen and associated rooms had been disturbed and so this area was converted to a kitchen and family area to meet contemporary expectations. The garage and pool area have been rebuilt to reduce impact on the original house. New openings connect the kitchen and family rooms and the pool area. Upstairs, servant quarters have been re-organised to provide rooms for teenagers.
Interventions are polite, ideally not conspicuous, and of a standard appropriate to the house.
We worked happily and productively with the client, interior designer Sally Beckley and the builder. Landscape designer Will Dangar completed the gardens.
Interior design, Sally Beckley
Heritage advice, Weir Phillips Heritage, James Phillips & Alice Fuller
Landscape design, Dangar Barin Smith, Will Dangar
Structural Engineer, SDA, Andrew Simpson
Built by Sandlik Constructions, Peter Moore & Carl Burt
