Blairgowrie Courtyard House, 2025
Blairgowrie Victoria, Australia

A coastal refuge set within a compact site on the Mornington Peninsula, reworking an existing dwelling through a series of layered internal and external spaces.

An interplay of brick, timber and planting defines the home, forming a sequence of thresholds that extend the building into its garden. Set back from the street, the architecture is composed through a series of blade walls, both solid and permeable, that weave through native landscape, mediating privacy, outlook and light. The existing fabric is retained and refined, with minimal structural adjustment, while a reconfigured roofline establishes a new street presence and internal hierarchy.

Spaces unfold through a calibrated relationship between enclosure and openness. The plan is reoriented toward a central courtyard, where kitchen, living and garden converge as the primary domain of occupation. Openings are framed and selective, allowing glimpses through the layered walls, while a circular aperture offers a moment of connection between street and courtyard.

The project balances restoration and extension, maintaining the original footprint while subtly expanding toward the street. Landscape is embedded as a primary architectural element, softening boundaries and creating depth along the site edges. The house and garden are conceived as a continuous environment, where arrival, occupation and retreat are interwoven.

Extending outwards, planting is invited into the architecture, shaping microclimates and providing passive shading. The predominantly indigenous landscape restores the site and contributes to the spatial experience, reinforcing a sense of seclusion within a dense coastal context.

Photography
Tom Ross