Places of Connection – Ocean Residence by FMD Architects

Envisioned as an occasional home for its semi-retired owners, Ocean Residence was designed as a place for entertaining, in which all aspects of the house are intended to act as an extension of the surrounding environment.

A home that engages texture, colour and its location, Ocean Residence is true to its name, standing overlooking its piece of Victorian coastline, yet firmly grounded through its weighted materiality. FMD Architects approaches the materiality and transitional spaces as an extension of the surrounding environment, encouraging a sense of flow and blurring the lines of the external envelope. Particularly when welcomed and encouraged by such an active and engaging landscape, the ability for functionality to spill beyond the traditional boundaries has been carefully considered and provided for.

Built by Jumbunna Pty Ltd, the home’s exterior takes form as a minimal and bold expression of materiality. Comprised of stacked sandstone blocks and long lines of timber, the façade expresses the unique coastal condition of a similar vernacular, with its comprising parts brought together with nuanced refinement. The palette of natural timber, local stone and textured tiles takes its cues from the colours and textures of the surrounding environment, while paint colours also mimic the deep ombre of the local stone and surrounding vegetation.

In consideration of the different people who will visit and inhabit the house, FMD Architects has tried to capture an array of cues in both the palette and textures in order to propose places of connection for each individual. Although owned by one couple, the home needed to appeal not only to them, but also reflect its identity as a place where friends and family come together. With entertaining as its primary function, colour and nuanced details are dotted throughout to engage visitors, while also referencing the rich and varied landscape that surrounds.

There is a casual calm to Ocean Residence that is simultaneously purposed and intentional. As a that destination offers a sense of escape, the not only the architecture but the curation of furniture and objects needed to allow for a variety of functions and appeal to many while also acting as a facilitator to the incredible surrounding views. In doing so, Ocean Residence allows captures a calmness that only being so fully immersed within the coastal landscape can afford. FMD Architects has cleverly taken inspiration from the home’s context and proposed a home that acts as a sensitive extension of its location, embracing its connection to nature and allowing many iterations of space to transpire.

There is a casual calm to Ocean Residence that is simultaneously purposed and intentional.