Separation Creek House, Australia, by Jackson Clements Burrows (JCB) Architects

Jackson Clements Burrows is a Melbourne based architectural practise with a strong design focus motivated by a desire to create sensitive and stimulating environments which achieve unique and successful solutions for all their clients, according to their design philosophy. It is no wonder then, that they took on this extremely difficult project.

Built on an impossibly steep site at Separation Creek, above Victoria’s Great Ocean Road, with a forty-five degree incline, this project was a challenge both for the owners but especially for JCB Architects. Furthermore, the site is only one hectare and just a few hundred square metres of space were deemed suitable  for building.

The house has a base footprint of seven by nine metres. Jutting out of a dirt landscape like a green rock, the rooms extend from a central core towards the stunning views over Bass Strait. From some angles it very much resembles a modern sculpture. But one with a great view nonetheless.

The edifice is essentialy a beach house for a family with two young children, with a simple, clean style. The rooms on the first floor extend three to six metres above the land. The rooms at ground level, have a separate access, and include two bedrooms, a bathroom, the laundry and storage space. The staircase is made from broad timber sleepers, much like the kitchen and living room areas. The main bedroom and bathroom are located between the two levels. Thus the architects managed to focus each room on a different part of the site.

The open plan living areas have few divisions, such as the one delineating the study, just by the entrance. Even so, the room remains almost transparent, with green louvres (a marked characteristic of the architects), to hold out harsh sun and see breezes. The area above the kitchen also has louvred glass windows,  so that hot air from the house is drawn out in warmer months, also attracting light.

The house is also focused on the children: Cantilevered rooms form areas for the children to play outside. There is also a nicely designed sandpit at the premises, directly below the sun room. The attractive feature here is that it is concealed by a timber deck when not being used. There are also built-in benches for parents to sit while their children are enjoying the sandpit.

The modest beach house (190 sq m.) is so discreet that from one side one can even miss it while passing by. But the family can enjoy not only the minimal but functional design but also (and more importantly maybe) the magnificent views all around.

Comments

[Anne]

Wow! I would love to live in a house like that. My only concern children wise are the windows and the blind windows that reach all the way down to the floor and seem a bit of a safety hazard for really small children.