Beached House by BKK Architects

  BKK Architects have had a long- standing interest in the sequences of unfolding spaces that define the experience of an entire building. In Beached House they take on board the key moments that define a family’s annual holiday to create a home that is as in tune with its setting as it is with its occupants.

To BKK, the journey through Beached House begins long before its front door. Starting instead within the very moment the clients decide to leave the city, the house’s energy and experience is derived from the long car journey to follow, the stop off for provisions in the neighbouring town, the approach towards the property, and finally the ceremonious unchaining of the gateway and the drive towards the site.

This almost rhythmic build up of anticipation followed by a pause defines each moment of the family’s journey towards Beached House and carries through the essence of their summer home, where the structure’s many corners, edges and planes constantly offer new perspectives and glimpses of the previously unseen.

The final drive towards the site teases the family with glimpses of the house’s folding form and the ocean beyond, before denying the views with a large wall. Beyond the wall, the family is met by Beached House’s open-armed timber clad entrance before being rewarded with a wide living space and expansive views to the ocean.

According to BKK, the house’s dynamic folding form was considered an “exercise of volumetric origami,” a “folding of spaces over and upon each other” that would eventually define the house’s unique external and internal spaces. As the house’s zinc, Colourbond and timber forms fold above and into the earth, spaces are layered and entwined so that the house appears as a huddle of dwellings rather than a singular form. These dwellings are organised around a masonry wall that functions as the spine of the home, binding the folds and defining the house within the wider landscape.

Inside, the folds create unique sequences of spaces that are divided into vistas, at times hiding views beforerevealing unexpected angles into the landscape. The spaces frame character- istics of the landscape to surprise and entice the interest of the occupants.

  Within the immediate landscape, the house’s form also responds to the site’s terrain and climate, with external spaces situated according to wind conditions and the angle of the sun. The varying scales of the external spaces welcome the possibility of different outdoor activities – from a picnic to asoccer match – with all the comforts of thoughtful climatic considerations, so there are always alternatives for occupation depending on the prevailing weather conditions and the time of day.

For BKK, the house seems to be, “Washed ashore and then embedded into the terrain, anchored against the elements.” There is certainly a sense of timelessness about the building, like it has always been a part of the landscape, despite its contemporaryfeel. This sense of time is paralleled in BKK’s hopes for the future of Beached House. For BKK, “It is intended that living in the house will be an unfolding series of moments, linked closely to climate and site that will continually delight and surprise.” Beached House is the perfect setting for such a series of moments and delights; a building that is perfect for the beauty of the landscape, which serves to emphasise the house’s own myriad charms.+

PHOTOGRAPHY Peter Bennetts

1. A series of folded timber planes rise out of the land, bounded by a single masonry structure that unites it into a much anticipated beach home.

2 and 3. Washed ashore by the vast ocean beyond. Beached house's angled form divides the home, resulting in various vistas into the landscape. The house is defined by the climatic conditions and natural formations

4. Spaces interact with the landscape rather than give in to it. The home's pool appears to stretch out from the bathroom before fading to the ocean beyond.

5. Visitors are halted at the angled entrance before entering the main living space which opens up to ocean views.