WILKINSON AWARD FOR RESIDENTIAL ARCHITECTURE – HOUSES (NEW)
PEARL BEACH HOUSE POLLY HARBISON DESIGN Siting and configuration of the Pearl Beach house deliver delight, retreat and a fulsome, private appreciation of its bush setting. On a standard lot adjacent to a dense forest the spatial arrangement invents a personalised experience with landscape elements – bush, sky and tree canopy – while solving the perennial suburban problem of shielding from the imposition of neighbours. From afar the austere tower-like form conceals a finely crafted home. A noteworthy terrace achieves that rare architectural moment compelling one to pause, relax, exhale and admire – the sense of ease it generates is disarming. Clever configurations, intelligent base materials, and the distribution of budget to unexpected areas such as the off-form concrete roof deliver a whole that imparts much more than the sum of its elements. Achieved to a budget that is relatively attainable, Pearl Beach House is a masterful manipulation of the tension between severe, hard materials and finely-crafted detailing that transcends what might otherwise be cold and brutal. Polished concrete floors, exposed concrete blockwork, judicious use of timber and the application of a cementitious skim-coat render to plasterboard and joinery give the building a tactile and cohesive quality. All in all, it is a modestly sized home that engages at a human scale.
PHOTOGRAPHY BRETT BOARDMAN
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