Assemblage House Suffolk Park

The house is designed to be a robust and functional house for a family of 6 and their many friends and guests. The proximity to the beach and connectivity of the living spaces with the garden and pool mean that the house needs to be robust and easy to maintain. The house embraces the diversity of activity within the family by providing generously proportioned living spaces and smaller spaces to retreat to for work and relaxation.

The house is situated on a corner site with sand dunes to the east and a road with nature reserve to the west. Two timber clad bedroom volumes and a steel and glass living pavilion are arranged around the garden to provide visual privacy from the street, protection from southerly storms and shade from late afternoon sun.

The house presents a fairly solid form to the street using locally sourced rock and timber set deep in a concrete frame. The concrete wall at the entry leads into the interior of the house, towards a view of the garden framed by the external portal structure of the living pavilion. The living area is off-set from the entry to maintain visual privacy from the street and allow the long garden view from the entry. The portal frame, detached from the fully glazed walls, allows a generous visual and physical connection between the interior and landscape, befitting this sub tropical beach house.

Through the combined processes of getting to know the family and undertaking thorough design studies the house evolved to incorporate many features that enable the smooth operation of family life: A concealed breakfast station to ease the kitchen morning rush; storage concealed from the road so bikes can be easily accessed throughout the day; a drying court that is not seen from the garden and a homework area and roof terrace at the top of the stairs for study and relaxation.

Assistants: Alfonso Duran, Juliana Moreira & Matthew Wadham
Structural: Westera Partners
Planning: Planners North
Bushfire threat: Bushfire Certifiers
Contractor: MRB Constructions
Photographer: Andy MacPherson Studio