Jeff Lee believes that living spaces should be created with a deep respect for nature. Emphasis is placed on energy efficiency and ecological sustainability, whilst highlighting natural geographic beauty. His use of materials reveals a preference for lightweight construction although this does not dismiss the use of thermal mass to enhance energy efficiency.

Jeff’s work captures the fresh simplicity of beach life and is counted amongst the nation’s best. He incorporates twenty-five years of experience into his unique award winning building designs and his work has been featured in a number of publications. Twenty-three of those years were spent in Queensland, Australia developing an artistic philosophy described as “a distinct Sunshine Coast style”. This has led Jeff to an understanding of the “Beach Shack” culture so revered by Taswegians.

He remains a sole practitioner by choice and believes that to truly design well and respond to the needs of the client, one must be intimately involved in all levels of the design and documentation process for quality assurance. This has led to Jeff receiving many prestigious state and national awards from the Building Design Association of Australia [BDA].

After graduating from the Sydney Technical College in 1963 with a Certificate in Structural Engineering, Jeff began his career as a design draftsman / engineer with several major consulting firms in Sydney and Melbourne, before establishing an independent business on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast in 1979. 

In 1980 he became a partner and director in the architectural firm of Hurst & Harris where design teams were involved in a variety of developments in the Noosa resort region. One particularly notable project was the award winning Catholic Church in Tewantin (Hon. Mention  RAIA, QLD).  After several years, Jeff left Hurst & Harris and set up the independent practice “Jeff Lee + Associates”. He has since completed a multitude of independent contracts and has consulted for many of the leading Australian architectural firms, which include Gabriel Poole, John Mainwaring & Associates and Lindsay + Kerry Clare. Today he is a well respected building designer accredited with the BDAA.

Jeff has now relocated his design studio to Carlton Beach, Tasmania, a small coastal village east of Hobart.  He continues to be actively involved in projects on the Australian mainland and maintains professional relationships with Queensland architectural businesses.