Laced beneath the tree canopies of Castlecrag is a network of meandering pathways that find their way along the rocky platforms and outcrops of the peninsula. Places to linger and be drawn to the views across fingers of green water. It was this experience of walking the site that inspired a house designed to encourage pause and reflection- a continual discovery of and connection to place. The house prioritises the elemental qualities of prospect and refuge while balancing the requirements of a young family. Establishing a strong, grounded connection to the site and its intimate native garden, the house opens to the distant horizon, intermediating between these two opposing aspects.

Simple strategies allow the home to temper its internal environment passively. The form of the house is arranged to gain morning sunlight, while also turning its back to shield and shade from afternoon sun. Thermal mass is used to warm in winter, while carefully located operable hatches allow the house to be adjusted, harnessing cooling sea breezes to cross ventilate irrespective of weather. A green roof insulates and the sleeping quarters are cocooned in a reverse brick veneer skin. A photovoltaic array allows the house to be operated off grid.

Photography: Clinton Weaver