Best of est | Australian Architectural Coastal Homes

These five homes on Australia’s coastline are a testament to architecture that’s led by and intuitively responds to its natural surroundings.

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Maitland Bay House by Studio Bright | Photography by Rory Gardiner

Maitland Bay by Studio Bright

Ku-ring-gai / Darkinjung Country / Central Coast of New South Wales, Australia

On a sloping site neighbouring Boudii National Park, Melbourne-based Studio Bright was approached to design a new home for a family relocating to the central coast of New South Wales. The home replaced a predecessor ready for demolition with a design that responds to the close neighbours, the ecology of the surrounding native bushland and unobstructed views of Maitland Bay. While its Roman brick exterior allows the home to blend with the surrounding Angophora trees, the material was chosen for high bushfire protection. The home’s deep windows also feature fire shutters, and other site-specific considerations include a water tank, solar panels and terraced garden beds that treat waste.

The home unfolds around the ocean outlook across two wings, sensitive to the surrounding vegetation and how to best capture sunlight. A central indoor-outdoor space acts as a breezeway and buffer zone between these wings, with the kitchen, dining and living on one side and the sunken lounge on the other. The home’s four bedrooms, study, and family bathroom are located on the upper level, with a rumpus room adding additional space for kids to play on the ground level. A smaller wing features a shed, laundry and a rooftop garden by Tim Nicholas, who also designed the home’s landscape, including the central courtyard.

Maitland Bay House by Studio Bright | Photography by Rory Gardiner

Ocean Grove House by Kennedy Nolan Architects | Photography by Derek Swalwell

Ocean Grove by Kennedy Nolan Architects

Wadawurrung Country / Ocean Grove, Australia

Drawn to the site’s proximity to the local beach and sandy dunes, the Ocean Grove House owners enlisted Melbourne studio Kennedy Nolan Architects to translate the coastal landscape into a modernist-inspired family weekender. The architects proposed a U-shaped home that considers the harshness of the environment, bushfire resistance, and privacy while still maximising natural light and views.

The home creates a sense of intrigue from the outside, with a high rendered ‘abstract’ wall and ‘turret’ that conceals an outdoor shower. Moving inside, the home is carved around a courtyard with a pool, with the children’s bedrooms, rumpus room and bathroom on ground level. The main living areas also lie on this level, segmented by bagged brick masonry walls that speak to the home’s textural materials, including masonry floors, render, terrazzo benchtops and tallowwood ceilings. Saturated colours contrast these natural tones, such as the olive greens that envelop the living space or the denim blue panelling in the dining and primary suite. A second level features the parent’s bedroom, ensuite and walk-in robe, a study, and a fourth bedroom, with views across the dunes.

Ocean Grove House by Kennedy Nolan Architects | Photography by Derek Swalwell

Copacabana by Polly Harbison Design | Photography by Pablo Veiga

Copacabana by Polly Harbison Design

Tudibaring Country / Copacabana, Australia

Located above Copacabana Beach on the Central Coast of New South Wales, Sydney architecture practice Polly Harbison Design has taken a steep, narrow site with close neighbours to create a private courtyard sanctuary.

The architects were challenged by the southwest orientation, making way for a northern courtyard off the living space that allows for larger gatherings. “The design of the external spaces is key to creating a habitable microclimate,” Polly Harbison says. “In winter, the courtyard acts as a suntrap; in summer, it provides a shady refuge from the afternoon sun. The secure walled courtyard leaves the house open to capture every available cooling breeze.”

The single-storey kitchen area is described as a ‘periscope’ that frames and enhances the impact of the beach views. Guest bedrooms are tucked underneath the living area and embrace the site’s lower bush area, while bathrooms are centred around their outdoor connection, including the open-air bath. “Carved into this very dense collection of neighbouring buildings, the courtyard, landscaped by Michael Cooke, is a pocket of serenity,” Harbison notes. “The lower garden is a seamless extension of the remnant bush.”

Copacabana by Polly Harbison Design | Photography by Pablo Veiga

Barefoot House by Madeleine Blanchfield Architects | Photography by Pablo Veiga

Ripple House by Marker Architecture | Photography by Simon Whitbread

Ripple House by Marker Architecture

Gadigal Country / Sydney, Australia

Ripple House by Sydney-based Marker Architecture is designed with three generations in mind, situated within the spotted gum forest of Pittwater on Sydney’s Northern Beaches. The clients envisaged watching grandkids catch crabs at the foreshore, referencing the need for the home to balance bringing family together and for “little ones to feel secure but unencumbered by the bush landscape,” Marker Architecture director Ben Nemeny says.

Respect for the native vegetation can be seen from the concrete vehicle bridge on entry, designed around the large gum trees to allow air and water for their roots below. Grass trees and banksias were selected to reference the home’s charred and natural timber exterior material palette. Marker Architecture also chose to separate the carport from the main house, so the journey to the front door was marked by the native garden.

The main house comprises two charred timber structures with a central wedge that houses the main stairs. The front pavilion features the bedrooms, bathrooms and laundry, while the rear three-storey structure features the social areas. “Internally, the living and dining spaces are open and flow onto generous deck areas that look out through the tree canopy and over Pittwater,” Nemeny explains.

Ripple House by Marker Architecture | Photography by Simon Whitbread

Kanagawa by Joe Adsett Architects

Yugambeh / Kombumerri Country / Gold Coast, Australia

Brisbane-based architecture firm Joe Adsett Architects was tasked with capturing ocean views through a three-storey off-form concrete family home. Each floating concrete plane is designed to embrace outdoor living, with deep terraces and low-height suspended planters framing views to the east and west—a defining feature of the home. At the same time, glass balustrades offer unobstructed views of the shoreline while shielding from the elements.

Inside, every space extends to the outdoors, and a suspended timber staircase connects the levels within a column of filtered natural light. The home’s centrepiece is a double-height fire pit space with internal planters, illuminated by an oculus and stacking glass doors leading to the external pool. Throughout the home, Joe Adsett Architects have balanced bold, commanding forms with intimate, inviting spaces that bow down to their beachfront outlook.