Overlooking Avalon Beach, north of Sydney, a new house designed by Casey Brown responds to the rugged landscape with raw materials and dramatic design.
The rising monolithic headland of sandstone and shale where the house is located juts out into the Pacfic Ocean and is surrounded by three collossal Norfolk pines and flame zone bushland.
It's no surprise that for the clients, this incredible piece of land was central to their plans. Their brief to the architects for the house was to ‘do the site justice’, ‘be part of nature’ and to ‘last 100 years’
Casey Brown's ‘topographic response' involved using the landscape as a tool and a guide. The journey starts at a Corten and copper vaulted entry canopy which is supported by a natural sandstone column found on the site. Opening up the front door reveals the view of the coastal headlands for the first time, framed by a double height space.
Five staggered pavilions, set naturally alongside existing boulders and twisted tea trees, align their openings to the southern coastal view and the beach view to the west. The façades feature cantilevered terraces and balconies, exposed hoods and deep recessions that bring light into the house.
Living spaces are distributed across the pavilions – the top floor is the private master suite, the garden level blends dining, cooking, living and working, while the lower space is a sheltered guest suite tucked into the rocks.
The heavy natural materials of the house rise in balance with the landscape. The concrete skeleton engineered by Ken Murtagh reflects the layers of the cliff face below. Large bricks by S. Anselmo feature inside and out. A smoky burnt colour has been used on the exterior to blend with the weathered sandstone, while inside, white bricks reflect light and the sun that filters through the house over the day.
Caroline Casey was responsible for the highly crafted interior details that continue the refined material choices. Stone floors, vaulted timber ceilings and brass railings are complemented with detailed joinery, and central to the house is a finely crafted floating concrete stair connecting the three levels featuring a brass sculptured screen.
INFORMATION
caseybrown.com.au
-
A contemporary retreat hiding in plain sight in SydneyThis contemporary retreat is set behind an unassuming neo-Georgian façade in the heart of Sydney’s Woollahra Village; a serene home designed by Australian practice Tobias Partners
-
Join our world tour of contemporary homes across five continentsWe take a world tour of contemporary homes, exploring case studies of how we live; we make five stops across five continents
-
Who wouldn't want to live in this 'treehouse' in Byron Bay?A 1980s ‘treehouse’, on the edge of a national park in Byron Bay, is powered by the sun, architectural provenance and a sense of community
-
A modernist Melbourne house gets a contemporary makeoverSilhouette House, a modernist Melbourne house, gets a contemporary makeover by architects Powell & Glenn
-
A suburban house is expanded into two striking interconnected dwellingsJustin Mallia’s suburban house, a residential puzzle box in Melbourne’s Clifton Hill, interlocks old and new to enhance light, space and efficiency
-
Palm Beach Tree House overhauls a cottage in Sydney’s Northern Beaches into a treetop retreatSet above the surf, Palm Beach Tree House by Richard Coles Architecture sits in a desirable Northern Beaches suburb, creating a refined home in verdant surroundings
-
Year in review: the top 12 houses of 2024, picked by architecture director Ellie StathakiThe top 12 houses of 2024 comprise our finest and most read residential posts of the year, compiled by Wallpaper* architecture & environment director Ellie Stathaki
-
A monolithic house in rural Victoria celebrates 50 shades of greyAdam Kane Architects’ monolithic house in rural Victoria, Grey House, is ‘a testament to the power of simplicity and harmony’
