Liana found this intriguing Modernist house in Casterton while she was turning the car around and I was taking yet more pictures of the spectacular Electra House. So, of course, we we went back for a better look. For a start, it is a huge house on the fringe of a small rural Australian town, Casterton in western Victoria. Then it appears to be a Modernist, almost a brutal, house. Imagine how it would look painted white under a glorious blue sky.
This view shows the stepped concrete wall along the front garden, the flat roof, altough it may have a low-pitched roof behind the parapet, and large vertical fin bisecting the house behind the front door. Curiously that fin seems to hide the front door from people entering the property along the driveway. I wonder what the mysteries would be uncovered in the history of the fine house.
While I haven't been to Casterton, it isn't very usual to have a house like this in a country town. Great find.
ReplyDeleteThe house must have been even more startling in its day. Casterton may have been a lovely town in the 1930s, but hardly at the cutting edge of Australian architecture.
ReplyDeleteHi Dave The house is called Kadisha. It was built between 1950-55 for Peter Betros, a member of a Lebanese family who owned draper shops in Casterton. He ran an earth-moving business and prospered from working on the Rocklands Dam. The house is large, three-storey and the garden was originally laid out to complement the house. Cant find who the architect was but the builder was a local named McNamara who apparently altered the architects design when building the house. The information came from a heritage consultant in Casterton and ended up on the Victorian Heritage Database. Hope this helps Robin
ReplyDeleteAndrew - Didn't expect to find something like that in Casterton or Electra House for that matter.
ReplyDeleteMott: I agree it would stood out in Casterton but houses like this tend to stand out whereever they are.
Robin: Thanks for your information. I can always rely on you to come good with the background information.
I live in this house and my parents have owned it for the past 20 years, we have added an extension to the back of the house, we also know some of the history of the place, I can find some of it out and get back to you all.
ReplyDeleteThat would be fantastic Lisa_Jane. Great to hear it has been in the same family for two decades. Your family must love it.
ReplyDeleteMy father, Peter Betros, built this house with his mate (I was too young and can't remember his name), it's based on a traditional Lebanese house. The name of the house is Kadisha which is named after the valley where my father was born. He built it post WW2 after he served eight years in the Australian military. I grew up in this house, the basement level feature a wine cellar and cool room for curing meat.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the info. It confirms what Robin wrote and add some personal details from someone lived there. Thank you very much.
ReplyDeleteI am wondering if anyone has ever managed to confirm the architect?
ReplyDeleteNot that I know of.
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