Burnt Earth Beach House by Wardle

Burnt Earth Beach House by Wardle is grounded in a material palette that beautifully embeds the home in its landscape.

Located in Anglesea on Victoria’s surf coast, Burnt Earth Beach House is architect John Wardle’s holiday home, grounded in an enduring love of terracotta, a fascination with ceramics and the unique beauty of bricks. Strikingly, it reflects the hues and tonality of the ochre-coloured cliff edges of Anglesea just beyond. “It was very important that we do something here that would transcend time but do so in a way that is completely different from our homes in Melbourne,” says Wardle, founding partner of the eponymous architectural practice. The home is built from a brick developed with brickmaker Krause Bricks. The process involved extrusion and hand tearing the brick surface prior to cutting which exposes a raw, uneven surface, making every brick unique.

Wardle’s relationship with Artedomus and Italian maker Cotto Manetti was foundational to the design of Burnt Earth Beach House.

Approaching the home, a courtyard acts as an informal living zone and is bordered by the kitchen, which houses a vast, square, central, terracotta-tiled island bench. The space then bends around into the dining area, where a reading nook overlooks the courtyard. Upstairs, a study appears to float overhead, enveloped in hand-knitted netting made in Vietnam. At the top of the stairs is a smaller living space where large windows welcome natural light deep into the centre of the home.

Notably, Wardle’s relationship with Artedomus and Italian maker Cotto Manetti was foundational to the design of Burnt Earth Beach House. Cotto Manetti’s terracotta tiles both bind the home to the clay hues of the area and allow for temperature regulation. The burnt reds of the terracotta are complemented by spotted gum timber and robust natural materials – all chosen for their durability and ability to patina over time.

“It gets me out of Melbourne on a Friday afternoon for time devoted to everything else that doesn’t exist in our life in an urban realm.”

“The Arrotato Da Crudo extruded terracotta tiles from Cotto Manetti are used in the kitchen, along the floors and the benchtop, relying on manufacturing techniques that have endured over eight generations of makers,” says Alice Blackwood, editorial director at Artedomus. “They are great for kitchen bench applications – they are robust, high resistance and are a beautiful colour, produced from clay sourced in the Tuscany region.” In the bathrooms, Agape’s Petra basin adds tactility and warmth through its colour-enriched concrete. “Its form emulates that of a stone, which encourages the water to run over the basin almost as if it were running over a stone,” says Blackwood.

“It’s quite unlike any house I’ve designed,” reflects Wardle. “It gets me out of Melbourne on a Friday afternoon for time devoted to everything else that doesn’t exist in our life in an urban realm.” A beautiful contemplation of place and natural materials, Burnt Earth Beach House connects its inhabitants both to the landscape and each other.

Architecture and landscape design by Wardle. Build by Spence Construction. Landscape construction by Brett Essing Landscapes. Engineering by PJ Yttrup & Associates. Tiles by Artedomus.