Bilgola Beach House in Sydney, Australia by Olson Kundig

Article source: Olson Kundig

Nestled in the sand dunes of Bilgola Beach, this 9,400-square-foot family home is located on the northern coast of Sydney, Australia. Passing through palm trees and Norfolk Pines, the site’s entrance leads through the solid volumes of the home’s main and guest wings. Upon approaching the front door, the view opens up to the sand dune and beach beyond.

Image Courtesy © Rory Gardiner

• Architects: Olson Kundig
• Project: Bilgola Beach House
• Location: Sydney, Australia
• Photography: Rory Gardiner
• Project Team:
  • Principal: Kevin Kudo-King, AIA, LEED® AP
  • Architectural Staff: Motomi Kudo-King, Lindsay Kunz and Martina Bendel
  • Interior Design Staff: Megan Adams, Casey Hill, Maresa Patterson
  • Design Principal: Tom Kundig, FAIA, RIBA
  • Project Manager and Project Architect: Simon Clews

Image Courtesy © Rory Gardiner

• Consultants:
  • General Contractor: Bellevarde Constructions
  • Gizmo Fabrication: Advanced Design Innovations
  • Client Representative: Auric Projects
  • Planner: BBF Planners
  • Landscape Architect: CAB Consulting
  • Coastal Engineer: Horton Coastal Engineering
  • Geotech Consultant: JK Geotechnics
  • Gizmo Design: KB Architectural Services with Phil Turner
  • Lighting Design: Niteo Lighting
  • Civil and Structural Engineer: Partridge Engineering
  • Mechanical Engineer: RJ Air
  • Gizmo Fabrication: TILT Industrial Design
• Project Size: 9,382 SF (8,147SF interior conditioned + 1,235 interior unconditioned)
• Completed: 2018

Image Courtesy © Rory Gardiner

Image Courtesy © Rory Gardiner

Responding to the beachfront environment of its headland site, the home is designed to withstand Australia’s dramatic climate conditions, where harsh sunlight, high winds and flooding are common. The structure is set on concrete piles, allowing sand and water to move in and out beneath the building. At the same time, the design allows the family to connect with the natural environment, with shaded retractable window walls that merge inside with outside and provide passive ventilation. An interior courtyard brings filtered daylight into the core of the home, where a central water feature helps to cool the air.

The color of the home’s board-formed concrete walls references the color of the local sands, relating the architecture to its site and helping it merge with the natural condition of the headlands as it weathers over time.

Image Courtesy © Rory Gardiner

Image Courtesy © Rory Gardiner

“This was my first time working in Australia, and it was an honor and a privilege to be invited to design this special home. The house attempts to address the varied climatic conditions of Australia in the best way, allowing the owners to open or close it to the beachfront as the weather changes.” –Tom Kundig, FAIA, RIBA, Design Principal

Image Courtesy © Rory Gardiner

Image Courtesy © Rory Gardiner

Image Courtesy © Rory Gardiner

Image Courtesy © Rory Gardiner

Image Courtesy © Rory Gardiner

Image Courtesy © Rory Gardiner

Image Courtesy © Rory Gardiner

Image Courtesy © Rory Gardiner

Image Courtesy © Rory Gardiner

Image Courtesy © Rory Gardiner

Image Courtesy © Rory Gardiner

Tags: Australia, Sydney

Categories: House, Residential

This entry was posted on Monday, October 17th, 2022 at 8:00 am. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.