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Architects: Eldridge Anderson Architects
- Area: 190 m²
- Year: 2024
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Photographs:Tom Ross
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Lead Architects: Scott Eldridge, Jeremy Anderson
Text description provided by the architects. The site for the Jan Juc House is set within a coastal suburban context; the sloping terrain gives way to distant views over Jan Juc toward the coastal scrub that lines the back of the cliffs and wraps around to oblique glimpses of the ocean.
The site was previously occupied by a simple, lightweight cement sheet house that typified the original dwellings in the area, and so the traditional Australian beach house became a reference for this project through its scale, structural clarity, unassuming materiality, and character.
The clients required a house more suitable for permanent occupation during their retirement years, and so the new house was envisaged as a quiet retreat, warm in winter and cool in summer, that would function well for a couple on the upper level or comfortably expand to house multiple guests with privacy on the lower level.
An elevated double height entry deck sets up a generous and uncomplicated approach, whilst introducing the simple timber and concrete block material pallet and ensuring privacy to internal spaces. Upon entry a circulation stair opens to a raking volume, with an elongated kitchen bordering the rear with living, dining and main bedrooms accommodated on the upper level. The lower level contains a contrasting sense of privacy through a flexible multipurpose office/retreat and guest bedroom areas.
A lightweight roof elevates north to allow sunlight deep into the living space while maintaining wide projected views south over the adjacent houses to glimpses of the ocean. The planning for the house provides a refined address to the streetscape, yet creates a sense of depth and privacy through the careful elevation and projected front deck.
