RM House
Designed by Adelaide-based firm, Design by WBL, this contemporary farmhouse pairs sculptural concrete with clean linear forms, creating a home that feels timeless, personal and connected to its setting.
RM House draws from the rugged beauty of the Australian landscape, shaped by a close connection to its Barossa Valley setting. The home’s smoky black timber, washed grey concrete and dark metal cladding create a restrained, monolithic exterior, softened by ivy, garden creepers and expansive views. An infinity pool extends toward the rolling hills, drawing the landscape further into the architecture.
Inside, the palette takes its cues from the surroundings. Soft timber recalls the dry grasses of the hills, while limestone paving echoes the rocks scattered across the land. Light marble, golden-brushed tapware and washed-out tones of blue, green and ochre bring subtle references to sun, water, foliage and terrain. Layered with the clients’ vintage furniture, sculpture and art collection, these elements give the home a sense of warmth and timeless authenticity.
A Pilbara Dreamtime marble island anchors the open kitchen and living areas, paired with Eco Outdoors’s Seafoam Cotto Zellige tiles across the splashback. Their glazed surface catches and refracts light, carrying soft mauve and aqua tones through the room while complementing the marble’s subtle colouring as well as the custom timber veneer. A vertical Wolf oven stack and Perrin & Rowe brass tapware complete the space, balancing warmth with everyday function.
The interior plays with texture and light, bringing softness and drama to the home’s restrained brutalist setting.
The interior plays with texture and light, bringing softness and drama to the home’s restrained brutalist setting. Much like the glazed kitchen tiles, whitewashed Tasmanian oak ceilings reflect light through the living spaces.
In the dining area, the clients’ Metropolitan Opera pendants punctuate the timber ceiling, elevating the social heart of the home with a sense of theatre and luxury. Also found in Paris’s Palais Garnier and New York’s the Metropolitan Opera, the pendants lend RM House some splendour.
The bathrooms offer moments to retreat and reset. In the ensuite, ceramic white wall tiles brighten the space, grounded by the natural texture of Eco Outdoor limestone. A willow green Rockwell bath from The Water Monopoly introduces a nostalgic farmhouse sensibility, while pastel tones and muted finishes provide balance and a gentle connection between old and new.
RM House frames the raw Australian landscape in its purest form, drawing the outside in while reimagining the farmhouse legacy with a brutalist edge. Inside, vintage furniture and collected pieces sit alongside raw materials and craftsmanship, creating a home that feels grounded. It’s a contemporary expression of Australian living – rugged, refined and connected to place.
