Composed of three textured brickwork pavilions, Wildcoast House by Pandolfini Architects balances openness with retreat.
Guided by its location on the ocean side of the Mornington Peninsula, surrounded by national park, the home’s three defining curved walls are carefully set out to screen the house from exposure. With its orientation facing directly into harsh coastal winds to take in heathland views, the plan introduces a series of sheltered breaks to frame outlook and allow for controlled northern light where the aspect is more suburban than hinterland due to a new subdivision.
Describing the home’s configuration Pandolfini Architects director Dominic Pandolfini says the form follows the land’s “natural contours, leaning into the neighbouring parkland and stepping subtly across the terrain”. Each blade wall, he continues, “bounds a separate wing of the home and converge to form the central circulation”—a split-level area that softly references walking through sand dunes.
Throughout the interiors, the residence is open to light and landscape. Distinct pavilions, unified by a consistent materiality including “freeform travertine floor tiles” and “warm timber-lined ceilings” call to mind the nearby sandstone cliffs and wooded shrubland. These conceptual elements inform the selection of finishes in the main living and guest wings. Flexible spaces that accommodate additional family and friends or contract when needed—offering future multigenerational living while being equally suited to occasional visits.
The open plan kitchen. Pictured: American oak veneer joinery and Artedomus natural stone and tiles, vintage chairs and bar stools sourced by Lisa Buxton, Jardan custom dining table in solid oak, custom banquet finished in Thomas Maxwell Sage leather and HAY bistro table.
Above the living space is the main bedroom suite, accessed by a beautifully detailed staircase with timber treads, handrail, and vertical linings with curved white rendered wall adjacent. Off the bedroom, the en-suite bathroom clad in handmade tiles with oak veneer joinery and natural stone offers refined amenity as well as a continuity of materials. This selection is repeated in the open plan kitchen with additional tactility in the woven pendant lights and upholstered bench seating as well as neutral fabrics in the living room and sculpted timber side tables.
Outside, the starting point for the new garden was local vegetation. “Regenerating the landscape from former farming land back to its original state was paramount by reintroducing native plants” Pandolfini says. Here, planted gardens form a bank of grasses with dynamic pockets of burnished red groundcovers—a visual connection to the coastal bushland beyond. The local habitat informs every aspect of Wildcoast House. In all configurations, the home frames landscape generously, blurring the boundary with the national park and connecting it to its coastal location.
The interiors take in views of the surrounding landscape and national park beyond. Pictured: Jardan sofa and Articolo Flare side tables.
The main ensuite. Pictured: Zellige tiles and Artedomus Carrara marble are paired with Rogerseller tapware.
Curved exterior walls are designed to protect the home from harsh coastal winds. Pictured: An off-white render sits over heavily textured brickwork constructed using irregular recycled bricks.
