ABOUT
The Henry Project was founded by Meriam Salama.
MERIAM SALAMA is a registered and practicing architect and entrepreneur with nearly 20 years in the architecture and design industry. She has worked in Senior Architect roles in architectural practices, managing multi-million dollar residential and institutional projects from design through to construction. She understands what is required to bring architectural developments to successful completion, having led numerous teams of architects and consultants.
In recent years, Meriam has become concerned about the increasing isolation experienced by many households in the community. She has seen the decline in affordable housing in Australia and the growth of house sizes throughout the country. She has become increasingly aware of the cost of underutilised residential spaces, not just financially, but also socially and environmentally. Meriam founded The Henry Project with a conviction to address these problems.
She uses her architectural expertise to help people discover how our homes and shared spaces can improve our quality of life.
SERVICES are offered for design and documentation of Residential projects (whether that be Renovations, Alterations or Additions to an existing home, New Homes or Multi-Unit Developments); Institutional and Community projects. Services offered can be charged by the hour on an as needs basis, or can encompass the full span of a project from Design through to Construction.
All services can be tailored to suit each individual client, with a scope of works adjusted to suit each owner and budget. For an idea of typical services offered, please click through to the Service page below, or feel free to get in touch to discuss your project - we welcome the opportunity to talk with you!
who is henry?
HENRY DAVID THOREAU was an American author and philosopher living in the 19th century.
His belief in simplicity, living within ones means and self-reliance compelled him to leave his hometown of Concord and spend several solitary years in the woods adjacent to Lake Walden. There, he lived in a hut he built himself with materials he could readily afford. He subsisted off produce he either planted himself or hunted in the adjacent woods and lake.
Through these simple means, he freed himself from the financial burdens of shelter and food, and was able to spend his time pursuing what he believed a more meaningful and fulfilling way of life.
Thoreau has said: "The cost of a thing is what I will call life that is required to be exchanged for it, immediately or in the long run."
Australia has one of the most unaffordable housing markets in the world: we are locked into home loans for a 30 year period, making life decisions based on what can sustain those mortgage repayments. The currency that we as Australians exchange for home ownership is not just money -- it is quality of life. At The Henry Project, we ask: "Is that really an acceptable exchange?"
Our answer is a resounding "No!". And we use our design expertise to address these social, economic and environmental imbalances in the housing market.