Kangaroo Valley Retreat

This rural retreat sits on the crown of a hill overlooking the Valleys beyond the Kangaroo River and is surrounded by state forest. The house has been designed as a series of pavilions that interconnect to form a protected entrance courtyard on the southern side and open up to the dramatic views across the surrounding landscape to the north. The house is designed to be low-maintenance and robust and uses passive environmental controls, such as solar boosted hydronic heating in the floor, cross ventilation assisted by ceiling fans, an abundance of natural light, LED lighting throughout, as well as 150 000 litres of water storage and photovoltaic panels capable of generating 5-kilowatt hours of electricity. The siting of the house allows each room to capture views and aspects and is linked around the centrally-positioned open-plan living room, with open fire, high ceilings and views across the pool to the valley beyond.