the Bahtabah clan of the Awabakal people
New South Wales
Regional
Swansea Heads House is a new home with a great view. Exposed to the southerly winds, the robust form draws inspiration from the surrounding landscape while addressing the harsh coastal conditions.
Overlooking Crabbs Beach, a 300m-long, curving east-facing sand and cobble beach with a weathered headland and extensive rock platforms that showcase the area's unique geological formation. These distinct layered seams of the landscape are reflected in the design through the use of horizontal datums, material selection and colour.
Guided by the simple principles of prospect and refuge, the solution to the site's condition involves the arrangement of two distinct pavilions enclosing a sheltered courtyard garden.
In its inaugural year, it is only fitting that the David Boyle Award is given to a tactile, innovative and beautiful home which entices you to stay and makes you rethink the rules of housing.
Facing east the house presents itself to the street as a portrait of a house. However, familiar forms and proportions soon stop and the delight begins. In lieu of a front veranda or balcony full height windows span the length of the building and propel daily life of the inhabitants onto the street. Internally a split living level and built in furniture provide privacy without the need for curtains or walls impeding the view to Swansea Beach.
The play between private and the interaction with public is controlled throughout the house. A bench seat is integrated into the street façade offering a perfect place for a morning cuppa and a casual neighbourly chat; a subterranean sauna provides a relief from the overwhelming sea view; and, the main bedroom is placed across the large central courtyard and at the furthest point away from the view, delivering a garden sanctuary. Every decision is masterful and executed to perfection.
Swansea Heads House is aptly named. It is a house embedded in this place; the material palette beautifully references the coastal cliffs and the exquisite details belie the robustness required of a house in such an exposed location.
Swansea Heads House is a joy to inhabit. It celebrates sweeping water views, an oversized courtyard for entertaining is the hero of the plan and quiet pockets of garden provide refuge. This is a project where the considerable skills of the architect have been deftly applied to produce a home which should be a template for coastal living.
The default response to the beach-side sites tend to an external balcony attached to the house. The harsh easterly coastal weather conditions are sheltered from, and the expansive ocean view exploited, via a solution procured through the arrangement of two distinct pavilions enclosing a sheltered courtyard garden and acting as a windbreak for the occupants.
The material response is brick and double glazing, protecting the courtyard over three distinct height levels. Any cumulative heat gain in winter is harnessed and dissipated in summer through cross ventilation and a fully openable shaded pavilion. An enclosed walkway links the front and rear pavilions along the courtyard. Both solid and flyscreen doors at either end enable the pavilions to be separated or connected to suit seasonal changes.
Exposed to the southerly winds, a sheltered sanctuary is achieved. Nonetheless, throughout the home, the horizon, ocean views and surrounding landscape are framed and visible.