Signed with a crown

Another of our future Waterbrook Bowral Residents is the enormously talented Maria Kroon, who lives here in the Southern Highlands. Born and educated in the Netherlands, Miel, as she is better known, started her career as a pre-school teacher. But art was never far from her mind, and her creativity with the little children encouraged her to pursue her studies in art.

During 30 years in Australia and 10 years back in the Netherlands, Miel painted and studied with many professional artists, including Alvaro Castsgnet, Helen Cottle, Lucy & Barry McCann, Charles Sluga and many more. As such, she has developed a great variety of themes and styles as well as the ability to create using many mediums. Miel has exhibited many times in the Wollondilly Shire, Macarthur region and, of course, the Southern Highlands. Many people who visit her showings can’t believe the same artist is responsible for all the works, so diverse are the styles. Miel always signs her surname on her artwork as a crown, which is what “Kroon” means in Dutch.

Once a year, Miel and a friend go to her home in Sydney to paint – “We put tarps throughout the entire living space of the apartment, we get up in the morning, paint, have lunch, paint, have dinner, paint and then go to bed. We do this everyday for the week, and we absolutely love it” says Miel.

As in previous years, Miel will participating in the very popular Southern Highlands Art Trail, which will be held over the weekends of 7^th-8^th and 14^th-15^th November 2020.

Wondering what it is really like to live at a Waterbrook?

We asked past Waterbrook Greenwich Resident Rosalind Beavis or “Buzz” as she prefers to be known, about her experience.

For seven years, Buzz was a Resident of Waterbrook Greenwich, before relocating to the Southern Highlands three years ago to be closer to family.
“Resident drinks on Friday evening was a wonderful way to meet neighbours, and because it was weekly it was a great way to stay in touch with the community” says Buzz, who regularly returns to visit her friends at Greenwich.

“My other favourite things included art classes, the weekly discussion group, exercise and aqua aerobics classes, the book and film clubs and the monthly health matter talks. I also enjoyed the travel talks, and even went on one of the trips, a cruise, with fellow Residents, an amazing opportunity that I would never have had otherwise.”

“The restaurant at Waterbrook was of a very high standard, delicious menus for lunch and dinner or a great place to catch up with Residents or family for a coffee.  There were also special celebration events, like Melbourne Cup lunch Christmas, Easter and Valentine’s Day, always beautifully themed by the staff,
I will always remember these occasions.”

When Buzz heard the news that Waterbrook had acquired a site in Bowral, she was overjoyed, and contacted Joanna and Liane to let them know that she would be a future Resident. “Amongst other things, I have missed the 24-hour Concierge, it was so wonderful to know there is someone there to call, especially at night. The maintenance team were incredible, if I had trouble with a window or hanging a picture, the team were always there, such a wonderful service, one I would appreciate now in my own home.”

If you have any questions about the 5 star service that Waterbrook is synonymous with, and which will be a very big part of living at our Bowral Lifestyle Resort, Buzz would be pleased to chat about her experience to any new Resident. Contact Lizzie if you would like to meet Buzz and have a chat.

Through the photographer’s lens

“I have been a photographer for most of my life. In that time, I have always worked from an intuitive perspective rather that from an intellectual one.”

Ashley Mackevicius discovered photography at the age of 15 while still in high school. With a darkroom set up in the laundry and a hunger to experiment and learn, this newfound ‘hobby’ soon overtook more mundane pursuits such as homework.

In 1975 he enrolled at Prahran College of Arts majoring in photography, where he studied under icons of Australian photography such as Athol Shmith, Paul Cox and John Cato.

Needing to make a living Ashley Mackevicius turned his skills to commercial photography where a career spanning 40 years blossomed. Gaining numerous awards including ‘Australian Photographer of the Year’ his commercial work ran in parallel to his artistic work. “My aim is to challenge the viewer to see beyond the object as a ‘thing-in-itself’ through the  manipulation of scale and the abstraction of recognisable forms.”

Ashley recently spent a day photographing inside and out of the old school buildings at our Waterbrook Bowral site. The results are an array of tonal emotions that are atmospheric, melancholy and invite contemplation of the past lives of the buildings and the people that inhabited them.

The images are available as large, framed prints (as seen above) or as a collection in a hard-cover book of which we have a copy of at the display residence.

Ashley has a permanent gallery and studio at the SHAC in Robertson and it is well worth the visit!  Please contact Lizzie at Waterbrook if you are interested in viewing or ordering the book.  hello@waterbrook.com.au

It’s all in the detail

We have listened intently to our Residents over the past 20 years and we ensure our design teams are familiar with these conversations in order to create spaces that work for our Residents, now and into the future; perfect synergies between form and function.

Our residences are comfortable, elegant and spacious, ensuring Residents have plenty of space for family and friends when they come to visit. Practicality is an equal driver; ensuring ease of living by fully equipping each kitchen, bathroom and laundry for functionality.

A variety of floorplans are available offering a wide range of options to suit most needs. Secure lock-up garages, CCTV monitored systems and visitor parking provided.

Waterbrook believes luxury comes from functional spaces and intelligent design, rather than opulence and excess. This philosophy enables us to focus on delivering the sort of details that make life easier and more comfortable, spaces become places of inspiration and aspiration.

Our residences are calming and understated, yet warm and inviting. There is room for everything that is important to our Residents.

Retirement just got exciting!

Home in the Highlands

When you visit our beautiful new display residence, your eyes will be immediately drawn to the amazing artworks adorning the walls. A great number of them are the works of renowned local artist, Elizabeth Young who has called the Southern Highlands home for the past 13 years.

Elizabeth says, “My art represents my feelings for the constantly changing natural environment of the Southern Highlands. The dramatic changes brought about by four very distinctive seasons, as well as the different moods and feelings created by these transitions of nature in the Southern Highlands, have inspired these works. I particularly love the starkness of the Winter landscape with silhouettes of naked branches against the sombre greys, the beautiful colours of trees dressed in their Autumn glory and the beginning of nature’s new life in Spring. The sight of the magnificent mist descending like a veil over the landscape, creating an ethereal and romantic atmosphere, is the most wonderous joy that I experience living here in the Highlands.”

When creating her artworks, Elizabeth uses her eyes as a camera, and her emotional responses to capture whatever she sees. The result shows the dramatic impact that the local landscape has on her in a variety of different styles, from impressionistic and abstract through to linear and realistic.

All of Elizabeth’s artworks on display are for sale, please speak to Joanna when you visit for a pricelist, or contact Elizabeth directly through her website www.elizabethyoung.com.au where you will be able to view a full gallery of her stunning work.

Let us introduce you to Waterbrook Bowral’s
Head Interior Designer – Lorena Gaxiola!

 

Lorena Gaxiola is an award-winning designer with works expanding the globe. Some of the guiding principles of the Mexican American designer is the art of creating value, quality and beauty. Her Sydney-based creative agency manages work of varying scales, combining the disciplines of conceptual architecture, interior design, product development and branding for her international clientele.

About the Design

When Waterbrook Retirement Resorts retained my services, I was immediately enamoured by the Team’s incredible passion and in-depth market knowledge of their target demographic, the Luxury Retirement market. They wanted the interior architecture to represent the resident’s lifestyle whilst honouring the original charm of Bowral – A relaxed yet sophisticated country town.

The design focuses on celebrating a lively group of seniors and incorporating their lifestyle into every corner of the Retirement Resort. We understand that the residents are global travellers, they are family oriented and actively social. They enjoy fine dining, staying fit and incorporating wellness into their daily routine.  Once we established the basics, we focused our attention to the materials, textures, finishes and bespoke design aesthetic of the Resort by taking inspiration from the area’s native flora and fauna.  The colour palette needed to be elegant and timeless, so we steered away from trend-based solutions and turned our attention to something that would be long lasting and gentle enough to be enjoyed by many whilst still retaining a sense of surprise.

Without a doubt the standout is the space planning. It is easy to access, it is welcoming, it is sophisticated without being uber luxurious or intimating. The materials and products we specified are both durable and warm to the touch. We focused on displaying the artful essence of the community’s countryside and we made sure the large open spaces could feel cosy enough for a small party but able to open up to fit large crowds when needed. It is about the entertainment possibilities.

How are you trying to rethink senior living via a design lens?

The baby-boomers are the ones who invented pop culture as we see it today, they were the ones who innovated technology and they are the ones who gave us many of our cultural freedoms.

I am inspired by retirees who are young at heart, looking to live in comfort and in a place where luxury comes to them. Travel is exhausting and living in this resort-like-community gives them a top service experience within walking distance, where meals can be catered and serviced to their door. They can have their hair and nails done with people they trust whenever they want. They can have private personal trainers to help their fitness and can socialise at any one of the lounges, bars and restaurants whenever they like.

I have been designing in the residential sector for over 20 years and the 6-Star resort-living, especially for retirement living, is a fast-growing sector where we combine residential development and hospitality. The Waterbrook team is on the frontline of this sector and their devotion to pleasing their market is incredibly inspiring.

Seasonal transition

“In Bowral, the changing of the seasons is proudly marked” – The opening line of our Waterbrook Bowral video. Indeed, this is especially appropriate when the warmth of Summer makes way for the cool of Autumn. The mornings are misty, the evening air becomes chilled, and the deciduous trees, vines & shrubs of the Southern Highlands explode into a mass of colour; amber, gamboge, carmine, scarlet and auburn. The air carries the scent of woodsmoke, and if you take a stroll on dusk, you will see the glow of the many backyard firepits that have been being built up through the summer months.

We are so fortunate that the site of our future Waterbrook Bowral Retirement Lifestyle Resort already has extensive historic gardens, including many established European trees and shrubs. Each season brings new discoveries, and Autumn is a particularly beautiful revelation, especially this year after the late summer rainfall we so gratefully received. Due to this, the brown, drought-stricken growth has become the brilliant green for which this area is renowned
and complementing the stunning Autumn colour perfectly.

We look forward to restoring the grounds and gardens to their former glory for our Residents, their friends and families and wider Bowral community to enjoy, and as a magnificent living memorial to the forethought of the original planners and planters.

Uncovering pathways

Every week, something new is bought to our attention at our Southern Highlands Waterbrook site. Whether it be the roof going on our display residence which is currently under construction, or the uncovering of something from a bygone era, there is never a dull moment!

Recently, our groundsman uncovered a leafy pathway meandering along the front of the buildings, originally used to get from the school down to the bottom flats and creek. Along the length of it runs a beautifully preserved drystone retaining wall built from rock which was extracted from the Mount Gibraltar quarries known as Bowral Trachyte. This is special because “The Gib”, as Mount Gibraltar is commonly called, is clearly visible from our Retirement Lifestyle Resort site.

Even though the quarries were located locally, the rock was mainly shipped to Sydney for use in buildings that are now listed on the State Heritage Register such as the QVB, the ANZAC Memorial, Martin Place and Challis House. The quarries are no longer operational (production ceased in 1986 after 100 years of constant extraction) and are listed as historically significant sites due to the contribution of Bowral Trachyte to the built history of New South Wales.

We feel very lucky to be able to give this amazing rock a new lease of life within our landscaping plan.  Here’s to more discoveries!

Hebel you say?

Construction is well underway on the display residence at our luxury retirement Resort in Bowral. We are sourcing and using the highest quality products available, and one of these is Hebel which we are using for the walls.

Hebel has many qualities that impressed our construction team which is why we chose it. Some of these are:

It’s strength and solidity -Hebel panels are high-performance products containing steel reinforcement for added strength with an anti-corrosion layer on the steel for maximum durability.
It’s energy efficiency – Hebel panels perform well thermally, helping to keep your house cool in summer, and warm and cosy in winter.
It’s eco-friendliness – Hebel is an environmentally friendly choice of building material. Proudly manufactured in Australia, Hebel is made using readily available raw materials. Waste generated in the manufacturing process is recycled, even down to the steam that’s produced.
It’s noise reduction properties – A Hebel home is a quiet one because it reduces noise transmission. Compared to polystyrene and many fibre cement substrates, the use of Hebel for external walls reduces noise from external sources like traffic, meaning more peace and quiet. And when used for upper floors, can reduce sound transference between levels as well.
It’s fire resistance – Hebel is renowned for its fire-resistant properties and is a non-combustible building material. Hebel systems have been tested by the CSIRO and are proven to achieve fire resistance levels of 60 minutes through to 240 minutes and meet or exceed the requirements for all six bushfire attack level categories. This makes it an ideal choice in bushfire zones.

So, as you can see, Hebel is pretty impressive!

History on film

The refurbishment of the existing OLSH College buildings for our Waterbrook Bowral Retirement Lifestyle Resort will commence very shortly. Whilst we are all very excited about this, we’re also a little sad that we’ll no longer be able to take people on tours through the old classrooms, boarding house, bathrooms and chapel so they can appreciate fully the finished facilities when they are complete.

So, we decided to make a video!  Well known presenter, Dane Wheeler and cameraman, Damon Banning spent a day onsite in Bowral recently filming and recording the history of OLSH. A mini documentary of the spaces which are so special to not only to us, but all the boys that attended school there, and to so many members of the Southern Highlands community.

They had a great time exploring and working out the right camera angles to make the most of the lovely late summer light, and like almost all who go through the buildings they were also awed by the size and preservation of them.  We look forward to seeing the finished product and will release it to you all very soon!