Balnarring Retreat, Australia

From the very first discussion with the client it became apparent that this building would need to be specifically non-specific in its apparent program, a space that could be nothing one minute and everything the next, required to regularly and effortlessly switch between an empty nondescript shell of limitless possibilities to a fully functioning private residence,  - a knitting studio, a reading room, weekend drinks with the neighbours, yoga, christmas day lunch.

At the heart of it all was the idea of retreat, a slow moving space that would provide a haven from the hectic paces of modern life, a slow building for slow living.

The response to the open-ended brief for a non specific ‘studio and retreat space’ was to create flexibility through adaptability. the idea that the space can be divided or united depending on the requirements of that given moment.  (Photos © Peter Clarke)

Read the rest of this article @ Branch Studio Archtects »