An Intentional Experience – Bellows House by Architects EAT
Constructed using block and stone, Bellows House emerges as robust and fortifying. Designed by Architects EAT as a holiday house for the clients, the bold form is layered with intricate interior details, valuing engagement above all else.
Located in the Victorian seaside town of Flinders, Bellows House was immediately conceived as a permanent structure. “There is something noble about creating things that last,” explains Albert Mo, Director at Architects EAT. The name Bellows was inspired by the pyramid shapes within the interior, similar to that of a bellows of a camera lens. “The concrete pyramid is a craft in itself,” Albert says, giving credit of the laser cut concrete – which he describes as “perfection” – to CANNON Built. The surprising and dynamically layered concrete forms add depth and height to the interior spaces, appearing as a refreshing animation of space.
“Once an idea has germinated, I have a tendency to be quite obsessive,” Albert muses. The bellows pattern is replicated throughout the family holiday home through joinery handles, the kitchen benchtop or the external window shrouds. “Everything becomes a subsequence of that initial decision,” he notes. Similarly, concrete and blockwork is hailed in the home’s material palette – white concrete block is used both internally and externally. Whilst these robust and hardwearing materials form the base of the structure, timber is used throughout the interiors to soften the textured palette.
The materials for Bellows House were chosen to accentuate the natural beauty of ageing, as well as appreciate the dynamic interplay of light and shadow through space. “We care a lot about how light comes inside buildings – quite often the material choice is an extension of that,” says Albert. “In this case, concrete is used internally to condition the light.” Here, light and shadow emerge as a crafted extension of the architecture, controlling the internal mood and tonality.
The landscape, designed by Jim Fogarty Design, is filled with native plants and brings another layered element to the site. “Jim has a house in Flinders,” Albert explains, “so he actually understands the micro-climate of Flinders quite well.” Likewise, the landscape plays an important role in bringing the inside out, as the brick floor from within Bellows House extends out to the gardens, reinforcing a blurred boundary between indoors and outdoors – a significant virtue of a holiday house. Albert’s favourite moment within the home is the drying rack for the family’s wetsuits – “it actually epitomises the idea of a holiday house.”
The floorplan of Bellows House is oriented to provide privacy for the clients. Its long façade is punctuated with articulated blockwork, which allows the space to feel intimate whilst also giving Architects EAT the opportunity to carve out internal courtyards within the space. “When the whole thing is curtained down or locked up – we call it the defence mechanism – that provides the privacy to the client. This creates a dialogue, creates interest so that people can actually engage and talk about this house.”
In a similar vein of engagement, the entryway into the home is purposefully drawn out. To enter the space, the clients and their guests need to travel through a path before reaching the front door, which allows for the material and shape of the home to be deliberately experienced. “That was done intentionally,” explains Albert, “and designed to make you explore the entire house slowly and appreciate what we’ve done.”
