Cliff House, a contemporary classic in Ocean Grove, Melbourne, Australia, was designed by local Architecture and interior design studio Auhaus Architecture. The house sits on a steep, windswept dune that drops precipitously into the ocean below. It is a strong response to harsh coastal conditions, but it is also open, permeable and a sensitive expression of its environment and inhabitants.

The family split their time between this property and their farm, and consist of a couple with 2 grown children, very elderly grandparents and future grandchildren in the picture. The house then has been designed as a response to site and weather conditions, a response to views and surrounding vegetation, and a response to multi-generational living and the kind of spaces that entails. Materials are rustic and low maintenance, and in situ concrete shells warmed up with Australian hardwood timber.

Inside, the split level plan sets the house over three main levels, with a sculpted central atrium linking the layers. This void gives the living area a feeling of airy lightness despite its robust concrete shell. As one moves through the house, the formal geometry relaxes and becomes more expansive, reflecting the transition from the public to the private realm. The sculpted curves of the void and helical stair carry through into the set down carpeted living area and kitchen joinery, and shaped openings through the concrete. 

The organic lines are a natural fit with the rugged native surroundings, creating an easy flow between spaces and reflecting the windswept beauty of the natural environment beyond the house. The plan wraps around the site, enclosing an elevated, tiered central courtyard, pool, and roof garden with views straight through the house to the ocean horizon beyond. Living spaces are on the beach edge, kids’ bedrooms to the far side of the courtyard, parents above on the ocean edge, and grandparents on the bottom level.