Open and Outstretched – Aireys House by Byrne Architects

Elevated and outreaching, Aireys House optimises its lofty positioning through funnelling its views toward the ocean, with the architectural form gesturing the same notion. Byrne Architects uses angled planes and a clear connection outward to create a home deeply embedded in its site, immersed in its landscape.

Refreshingly, despite being in close proximity to such a saturated coastal township along Victoria’s Great Ocean Road as Torquay, Aireys Inlet offers a reprieve from the congestion. Located high up on a cliff, Aireys House reaches out towards the ocean and the idyllic placement of the nearby lighthouse and embodies a sense of disconnection from neighbouring properties as a result. Taking influence from the lifted and outward motion of sightlines, the architectural response follows suit and boldly tilts upward at both the base and the roof, offering a sculptural experience from within. Byrne Architects embraces the act of experience to inform the physical resolve of the home, allowing an engagement to its enviable siting and expansive views.

Both in its location and how the architecture is a destination along a journey through the landscape, there is a responsibility to embed and connect with the natural with deliberate intent.

Sitting along the ocean, the response captures elements of fluidity and movement, integrating paths that connect the site up to the cliff top and down to the beach. Both in its location and how the architecture is a destination along a journey through the landscape, there is a responsibility to embed and connect with the natural with deliberate intent. Built by Michael Leake Constructions, Aireys House concentrates its connection with the earth in a contained manner and stacks its amenity over three levels. The upward mobility both encourages movement within the home while also visually connecting over several levels, emphasising a connection to place.

The home is approached from various angles with no distinction between a traditional front or back. This dynamism encourages a similar engagement with the surrounds, allowing for the unexpected.   The large and expansive use of glazing ensures the internal spaces are filled with natural light and the curation of spaces purely to engage with the surrounds further facilitate that. Various species of natural timber are used to warm the home, while polished concrete offers a level of robustness for the lower garage level, ensuring a low level of maintenance is needed.

Various species of natural timber are used to warm the home, while polished concrete offers a level of robustness for the lower garage level, ensuring a low level of maintenance is needed.

Aireys House heightens the experience of being within the home, as much as it encourages an engagement beyond. Byrne Architects has crafted a home that captures the essence of its unique siting, conjuring a sculptural addition that sits welcomed in the landscape.