RICHARD THOMAS

Shellgrit studio



This building was constructed between 1996 and 2000 approximatly 1 mile from the beach in Southern Australia. It is entirely constructed of recycled or second hand materials.

The beams and columns are sleepers from a railway yard. The windows are from an old bank and were found in a skip. The walls are constructed from the subsoil on site, which was a part of the sea bed only 6000 years ago.



The material is a kind of shellgrit, with a high limestone-gravel content. It features thousands of tiny shells which give the wall a rich colour and texture. The walls were built using the 'poured earth' technique.

The building has a hand made wood burning stove, solar electricity and 20,000 litre watertank which collects rainwater from the roof.