Hollowed Log Sprouts from High Dune: Cape Schanck House

Improbable, gravity-defying angles span across a cloudless sky – this striking architectural beauty is the Cape Schanck House, built by Jackson Clements Burrows, in Cape Schanck, Victoria, Australia. The Melbourne team of architects designed it for a retired family and their children, grandchildren and many other relatives, who frequently come to visit. Nothing extraordinary – except the idyllic family scenes take place in the Australian wildfire area. When first visiting the site, all undulating dunes and vast expanses of Ti-tree shrub, the design team discovered a hollowed out burnt log. Its warmth, organic shape and protective interior stood as the primary inspiration behind the project.

Essentially, the Cape Schanck House is a log on a dune. Clad in wood, with an upper level expanding away from the main body, much like a branch, with vast glazed surfaces which embrace the spectacular view, but are also shaded from passive heating. Although the interiors feature a pool, and minimalist, post-industrial, loft-like furniture and furbishings, the entire structure, in both form and design, enhances the beauty of this vast green expanse down-under.

(Source: JCBA.com.au)