Burrawang House

A beautiful isolated south coast community, flanked by a spotted gum forest & overlooking a serene beach.
It is a truly magical place. Peaceful and abundant with wildlife, birds, kangaroos, elderly eucalypts & endemic burrawangs.

A classic 1950s cottage. The clients wanted to retain the nostalgia & quaint scale of the existing fibro beach shack.
Tactfully replanning the interiors, adding a bunkhouse and an outdoor bath house…most importantly creating a place to connect with the environment, family & friends.

The most wonderful clients; a well known craftsman who has built award winning architecture for his entire career, and wife a beautiful spiritual naturopath. The house needed to intrinsically connect to the spirit of place.

The beach shack was transformed. The roof form twists & opens upwards to capture majestic ghost gums, and below stone terraces are extended like rock shelves on the coast.

Bushfire and flame zone requirements were hurdled, with the need to bunker down & yet the desire to open up to views, breezes & outdoor spaces.
The environment demands external materials to be robust, as does the threat of fire, some facades required to shutdown.
Internally the house is uplifting, with light filled spaces, comfort, warmth and cross ventilation particularly necessary in summer months… easy living.

It is a real transformation of an existing fibro shack into a piece of architecture.
The roof twists, and soars up to the sky. The rooms are protected by a sheath of cladding, with cleverly located picture windows that capture key features in the immediate landscape.

The bathhouse is an experiential delight, immaculately crafted & constructed. It is designed as a complete hardwood batten structure – no walls.
It has full operability by use of sliding & hinged batten panels to provide for various levels of privacy. Bathing discreetly in nature, blending into a bush garden.

Alterations & additions at its best – rip off the roof, envelope the old frame, & the all new beach shack emerges.
Strong in composition, yet tonally blended to subtly sit in nature.

Watch this space… more to come.

Under construction
Builder: David Watson – Watson Constructions
Engineer: Professor Max Irvine