The Boyd Baker House located in Long Forest, Victoria, and named after architect Robin Boyd and its original owner Dr Michael Baker, was devised through a mutual love and understanding of geometric calculations.
Baker, a senior lecturer in mathematics, gave Boyd a loose brief, merely asking for ‘as much space as possible’. And, the resulting design (which was one of two original proposals), showcased a home built around a central courtyard, rigid in its geometry through the use of a ‘perfect square’.
The Boyd Baker House is now listed as one of Australia’s most important and iconic residential buildings.
Set among beautiful native bushland, the 35-acre property holds a collection of three dwellings; the main house, a smaller ‘Dower House’ – also designed by Boyd as an apartment for Baker’s mother-in-law –, and the ‘Sir Roy Grounds Library’, which was designed by Roy Grounds and built to house Michael’s large collection of books.
These heritage-listed buildings are considered excellent examples of mid-century design and architecture, and remain relatively untouched bar a few internal renovations to the kitchen and bedrooms.
As with all Boyd’s projects, the materials used in The Boyd Baker House are warm and robust with Bacchus Marsh stone used prolifically throughout for internal and external walls.
The property, which has just hit the market, offers up an excellent opportunity to own a heritage-listed mid-century gem by, arguably, Australia’s most influential architect.
Those interested have the option to purchase the Boyd Baker House (on approximately 19.23 acres), or Dower House and library (approximately 11.66 acres) separately, or together.
The Boyd Baker House and the Dower House at 305–307 Long Forest Road, Long Forest is listed with Jellis Craig. Expressions of interest close on April 13, 2023 at 5pm AEST. See the full listing here.
