Sydney-based practice Common Office has completed Ramsgate House, a four-storey permanent residence adjacent to Bondi Beach. Commissioned by a young couple with a family, the project was born from a brief requesting a home that felt deeply "of its place" in Bondi, while simultaneously serving as a private, intimate retreat. The site’s proximity to one of Australia’s most popular tourist attractions became the project’s defining design parameter.
This villa responds directly to its site by balancing domestic privacy with its public surroundings. The project represents a complex and intricate planning strategy that involved multiple applications, modifications, and negotiations with the council. A key consideration was convincing the council that the building was appropriate for the local context. This involved detailed discussions regarding the rhythm and number of arches to ensure the best outcome for the streetscape.
The design reinterprets the classical loggia as both a formal and spatial device, drawing reference from the Palazzo della Civiltà Italiana and the loggia’s history as a ubiquitous architectural tool from classical antiquity to modernism. Introducing a series of arches, the design establishes a thickened, inhabitable threshold between the streetscape of North Bondi and the interior.
“We conceptualised the home as situated somewhere between Bondi and Miami,” notes the practice. “We wanted to portray a sense of street-facing ornament that was simultaneously pared back to speak an Art Deco language.”
The building is constructed using traditional double (and in some instances, triple-skin) brick. Along the primary facade, these arches are formed naturally through the masonry and operate as load-bearing structural elements. They frame views, light, and quiet moments of occupation, mediating visibility between the house and the public realm. The loggia operates as an intermediate condition, offering shade and spatial depth while addressing the climatic demands of the coastal setting.
Internally, the curved geometry of the arch unfolds into a sinuous four-storey stairwell that draws natural light through the house. This vertical sequence culminates in a copper-clad pavilion at the upper level, where the client can gather and entertain, with elevated eastern views toward the beach and ocean. This upper volume’s copper cladding is designed to be dynamic, constantly changing in its texture and appearance over time.
To the rear, the arched motif reappears to frame articulated steel windows within a stucco facade. Northern light fills a double-height living area that opens onto a pool and garden planted with native species.
Designed in collaboration with Handelsman + Khaw, the interiors amplify the spatial and atmospheric qualities of the architecture through a carefully calibrated palette of muted, sun-washed finishes, selected for durability and responsiveness to the coastal climate.
The project incorporates passive environmental strategies through the use of deep reveals and thickened thresholds, which mitigate solar gain and reduce overheating. Native planting further supports the local ecological context, while the spatial configuration promotes natural light and ventilation.
