On the ocean side of Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula, amongst the sand dunes and paperbark melaleucas, Pandolfini Architects has seen their vision for Wildcoast House completed. Constructed on Bunurong Country of the Kulin Nations, the site-responsive family retreat has been completed with passive design principles, a PV array and eye to protect and enrich its unique coastal environment.
“Wildcoast House is a study in rugged elegance-three intertwined pavilions grounded by a reductive material palette that accentuates its sculptural form in the shifting coastal light. It is a home that settles into its site with quiet composure, offering a place of retreat, connection, and enduring coastal living.”
— Pandolfini Architects
Location
The home is located at the edge of a new subdivision in the town of Portsea. One side backs on to national park and the other towards residential properties. The views are to the south, across the roaring Bass Strait and directly into prevailing weather. The challenge was to create a space that made the most of these views, while remaining sheltered from a sense of suburbia and the wild southern winds.
Floorplan
The architects have achieved this through a building with three wings and a series of curved masonry walls, which together create a series of spaces for different uses with a range of different views. Externally each wing reads as a distinct pavilion, and internally each is capable of operating independently—giving space for multigenerational use.
One wing houses guest bedrooms and bathrooms, one holds the main living space with the primary suite above, and the third—designed for the clients’ adult children—features bedrooms and a second living area. These areas are defined by sliding doors and a series of courtyards, which allow the house to accommodate different kinds of occupancy without forgoing a sense of intimacy and comfort.
Materials
The building is constructed from rendered C-grade recycled brick and untreated timber that will weather to grey over time. The brickwork references the sandstone cliffs of the area, and the wood the grey-brown trunks of the local flowering myrtles. Inside, the textured brickwork continues and is complemented by contrasting travertine floors, rendered walls, and warm, timber-lined ceilings.
Sustainability
The recycled bricks, graded “C” due to their rough, uneven surfaces and irregular shapes, would typically be destined for landfill. Here, their reuse helps reduce the property’s embodied carbon footprint, while their thermal mass moderates temperature fluctuations throughout the year. By organising the house into three wings, each with a narrow floor plate and carefully positioned windows, the architects have also enabled excellent cross-ventilation, supporting passive cooling during the summer months. The house is also equipped with a solar array, further reducing its reliance on grid-supplied energy.
Landscape
The curved form of the home follows the natural contours of the land and its landscape design features extensive native planting intended to regenerate the property to its original state—before subdivision, it was used as farming land. The masonry walls frame views that focus on this natural landscape while excluding those of neighbouring properties.
