First Lessons House

First Lessons House is conceived as a social retreat. A place where the clients can counterbalance their urban lives with the slower rhythm and natural beauty of the lagoon-side landscape.
The design is an exercise in getting the fundamentals right: creating a home that responds thoughtfully to its context and brings joy to the everyday moments in this beautiful setting.

Type: New Build
Location: Portsea, VIC
Status: Completed, 2017
Builder: Mark Southwell
Engineer: Perrett Simpson
Landscape Architecture: Fiona Brockhoff Design
Photography: Peter Bennetts

To balance budget and brief, the roof and rear portion of the house were kept simple, using standard timber framing and corrugated cladding. This allowed resources to be focused on the crafted northern elevation and its relationship to the view.
Charred blackbutt, concrete and corrugated iron were chosen as robust, earthy materials that are softened by the natural light and landscape. Large sliding doors retract completely into pockets within the walls, opening the interior to uninterrupted views and creating a seamless transition to the garden.

The L-shaped house is carefully sited to take advantage of the northern sun, tree canopy shade, existing contours, prevailing winds and views to the lagoon.

The clients envisioned the house as a shared retreat — a place that could be borrowed, inhabited and celebrated by family and friends. A setting for quiet escapes, barbeques and gatherings of all kinds. The five-bedroom home that emerged from the brief has already hosted family Christmas dinners, New Year celebrations, birthday parties and countless weekend get-togethers.
First Lessons House is, at its core, a social house: one that offers room for connection while allowing its inhabitants to counter balance their urban lives with the slower pace and natural beauty of the lagoon-side landscape.