Fox Johnston Architects designed this house in the Mosman neighborhood of Sydney, Australia.

With a view over national parkland and across the ocean to the horizon, this house is designed for easy living and to please the senses. Yet it is also practical – built with solid, durable, tactile materials. Bluestone, Anthra-Zinc, glass and wood are combined externally and internally in an environmentally responsive manner.

Visit the website of Fox Johnston Architects – here.

External walls and screens open and close, providing the rooms with privacy or shading. The narrow width and orientation of the building maximises cross ventilation and sunlight filtration throughout each space.

The building as a whole is designed to create private living spaces away from the street with a central focus on the outdoor living areas. It takes the form of a series of platforms, responding to the rhythm and topography of the site. The main living, sleeping and entertaining areas are contained in the long linear form to the west. An elongated pool bounds this form and transects the building through the entrance hall, forming a shallow pool in the entrance courtyard. The east wing encloses a living space that serves the barbecue and pool deck, with a separate bedroom and bathroom above.