Travis Walton, principal architect and interior designer at his own eponymously named studio, was averse to using materials typical of a coastal house in this brutalist Mornington Peninsula home.
“We adopted richer and more unexpected materials, such as concrete, stained timber, tumbled travertine, brass and oxidised metal accents,” he says. Ringed by what’s described as a “battlement castle wall”, Norfolk Residence is everything a conventional beach house is not.
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Stone steps lead up to the vault-like aged-brass front door. (Photography: Sharyn Cairns | Styling: Simone Haag)
The home opens into the centre of the house, where striking off-form concrete twists like a “pleated ribbon”, according to Travis. Giovanni Offredi ‘Paracarro’ table for Saporiti. Gubi ‘Seine’ table lamp from Criteria. Collection of ceramics from Ma House, Freedom and Trit House. Tumbled travertine flooring from Better Exteriors. Stairs in ‘Peppercorn’ French oak from Made by Storey (Photography: Sharyn Cairns | Styling: Simone Haag)
The effect is a bunker-style structure based on the concept of “reverse living”, where the communal living areas sit on the first floor while the less utilised spaces (such as the laundry, gym and guest quarters) are tucked underneath.
“Having the more habitable spaces on the top floor created an undercroft that we concealed by building a solid perimeter wall with no penetrations. It’s like a private fortress,” Travis explains. “On approach, even the top level is not visible as it sits recessed behind the infinity-edge pool.”
Owner-occupier Bear Agushi is a big fan of concrete and has used it extensively throughout the home. At the back is a grass-floored tennis court. (Photography: Sharyn Cairns | Styling: Simone Haag)
Travis took advantage of the land’s grassy knoll and natural fall, suspending the glazed top floor among the treetops and pre-existing Norfolk pines and Moonah trees.
To maximise the top-floor views, he elevated the house, amplifying vistas across to Sorrento golf course, Bass Strait and the Melbourne city skyline.
Corridor from the study to the kitchen. Paul Evans ‘Cityscape’ plinth from Den LA. ‘Who Cut Your Hair?’ vessel by Megafauna Studio from Craft Victoria. Vintage wall sculpture from Vintage Hoarder. (Photography: Sharyn Cairns | Styling: Simone Haag)
Through a vault-like aged-brass door, the “controlled entry” lands right in the centre of the home, where a striking off-form concrete staircase twists like a “pleated ribbon”. The execution was a collaboration between Travis and the owner-builder, Bear Agushi of AGUSHI. They’d worked together on projects before, and Bear has a predilection for using concrete in residential settings. Elegant yet robust, the brutalist staircase floats through a central void that washes the ground floor in a shadowplay of light and dark.
“Its delicate spiral form encapsulates the home’s unique intersection of rawness and refinement,” says Travis.
The kitchen island and splashback stone is a combination of Negresco quartzite in a honed finish from Fum Australia and Black Forest in a flamed finish from Aldo Brodic. Custom brass finish designed by Travis Walton Architecture and AGUSHI. Mogg ’Donut’ stools from Cober Studio. Chair near window from Bieëmele. (Photography: Sharyn Cairns | Styling: Simone Haag)
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Emerging into the atmospheric top floor, there’s a generous kitchen, dining and living zone in a palette intended to patina.
“We didn’t want something polished, so opted for aged brass that would wear in, something that could weather over time,” says Travis.
A custom table in Opus Rosso stone by AGUSHI defines the dining zone. Vintage chairs from The Feelter. Driade ‘Flo’ chairs from Designed Consigned. Flos ‘Toio’ floor lamp from Living Edge. (Photography: Sharyn Cairns | Styling: Simone Haag)
The kitchen features tumbled travertine underfoot and a restrained palette of midnight black Negresco quartzite and deep, emerald-green volcanic marble with aged-brass joinery in the kitchen. Rich, chocolatey timber floors run elsewhere along the level and white plasterboard is nowhere to be seen.
Rounding out the living space is a La Chance ‘Snow’ sofa by Note Design Studio from Living Edge, upholstered in ‘Nobilis’ from Redelman Fabrics. Saba Italia ‘Sitar’ chair by Enzo Berti from Bachli. Vintage coffee table from Angelucci 20th Century. Cappelen Dimyr ‘No.8’ rug from Tigmi Trading. Ceramics from Ma House. (Photography: Sharyn Cairns | Styling: Simone Haag)
The living room, overlooking the raised infinity pool, landscaped terrace and alfresco area, is anchored by a curved sofa from La Chance in Paris, selected by Simone Haag, who curated all the furniture, objects and art throughout the home. While the house’s minimalism offers up brutalist gestures, its harshness is mitigated by textural furnishings, including a number of rugs and carpets.
The spectacular elevated pool looks out to established Norfolk pines and moonah trees. (Photography: Sharyn Cairns | Styling: Simone Haag)
In addition to the main ensuite and study, there are two bedrooms divided by a lounge room – mainly used by the adults – overlooking the tennis court and golf course.
Given that the property is used as a holiday house, Travis and Bear were conscious of using non-painted, tougher surfaces that could withstand the elements and wouldn’t need regular maintenance.
The sitting room features ‘Chirimoyo’ chairs from Mestiz. Jan Dranger and Johan Huldt ‘099’ armchair. ‘Bamboo Bracelet’ coffee table from Tigmi Trading. Brass shell vessel from Siglo Moderno. Stone plinths from En Gold. Lamp, vintage. Custom side table from Bieëmele. ‘Thunder Star’ side table by Kolbi. (Photography: Sharyn Cairns | Styling: Simone Haag)
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“We used rich and rugged materials that echo the coast’s weathered beauty and perpetuity,” says Travis.
A ‘Tapis Shaped #029’ wall rug by Hommés Studio hangs in the sitting room. Custom sofa in fabric from Redelman Fabrics. ‘Baobab’ side table from Lusso Casa Interiors. Old Yarn rug from Loom. Sculpture by Bieëmele. (Photography: Sharyn Cairns | Styling: Simone Haag)
On the lower ground floor, the rooms are enveloping and intimate. Deliberately lacking any outward-facing views, there’s a guest suite with a kitchenette, a rumpus room and a bunk room in addition to services.
The original treetops stretch to the top floor, so Travis worked alongside landscape architect Nathan Burkett on endemic underplanting to temper the shift from the natural to the built elements.
Light infiltrates the rumpus room. Sofa in fabric from Redelman Fabrics. ‘Theo’ side tables from McMullin. ‘Mushroom’ lamps from House of Orange. ‘Mountain’ rug from Hali. Curtain sheers in Mokum Textiles fabric from Home Pro. (Photography: Sharyn Cairns | Styling: Simone Haag)
According to Travis, the landscaping “weaves across the knoll and nestles into the architecture, softening transitions between the lawn, trees, stone pathways and meandering driveway”.
In the main bedroom, the bespoke bedhead is upholstered in ‘Nobilis’ from Redelman Fabrics. Custom bedside tables from Pépite. Wall light from Coco Republic. Chair from Bieëmele. ‘Peppercorn’ timber panels from Made by Storey. (Photography: Sharyn Cairns | Styling: Simone Haag)A skylight in the walk-in-wardrobe illuminates a tasselled ‘Allard’ ottoman from Rachel Donath upholstered in fabric from Redelman. Relief sculpture, vintage. (Photography: Sharyn Cairns | Styling: Simone Haag)The tapware in the powder room is from Par Taps. Like the kitchen, the stone is a combination of Negresco quartzite in a honed finish from Fum Australia and Black Forest in a flamed finish from Aldo Brodic. (Photography: Sharyn Cairns | Styling: Simone Haag)
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Ensconced in the greenery and surrounded by natives, the landscape contrasts with the sharp lines and strong materiality of the house. The result? “A sustainable, immersive and enduring work of architecture,” says Travis, “designed to settle into its coastal surrounds and gently cocoon the occupants within.”
Lawns and low-maintenance vegetation contrast with the house’s robust brutalist-style shell. (Photography: Sharyn Cairns | Styling: Simone Haag) Designed by architect Travis Walton, this home in Sorrento on the Mornington Peninsula is a bunker-style structure with an impenetrable base and a recessed glass box on the top level. (Photography: Sharyn Cairns | Styling: Simone Haag)
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