Bondi House, Bondi

For Kent, this was a personal opportunity to see how far he could push a home's ability to react to its environment.

"The home is primarily a study in lightness, expressed through its suspended structure, materiality and relationship to its site,” he says. 

“From the outset there was a desire to test materials and structural systems to achieve a sensitive, adaptable response to the site's microclimate."

The floor plan of Bondi House is intentionally open and adaptable. The ground floor is dedicated to family life, featuring an open-plan living area that flows directly into a native garden. Moving upstairs, the house becomes a workspace and a sanctuary, with three bedrooms and a dedicated studio space. To maintain a connection with the street while keeping a sense of retreat, a screened terrace faces the front of the property.

Inside, the home feels incredibly spacious because it doesn't rely on traditional walls to hold everything up.

"The expressed steel structure allows horizontal floor slabs to hover freely above a newly planted native landscape,” explains Kent.

“The building is without any load bearing walls, each facade a direct response to orientation and programme... with the long term potential for internal spaces to be re-configured as occupants needs change."

To balance the industrial feel of the steel and glass, the interior design focuses on texture and continuity. While the building's exterior uses "sombre" metals and polycarbonate, the inside is softened with carefully chosen furniture and lighting that echo the home’s structure.

"The design seeks to unify all elements within an overarching aesthetic, with continuity between external and internal finishes throughout the house,” says Kent. 

“In contrast to the sombre language of the building envelope, furnishings and furniture bring a softer texture and colour to the rooms."

Selecting Sun Shading

The most significant challenge for the upper-level pavilion was managing the intense western sun on a narrow block. Traditional wide eaves were impossible due to the tight site boundaries, requiring a shading solution that could sit flush against the building while providing heavy-duty heat protection. Nick integrated Warema external venetian blinds from Shade Factor to act as a flexible "operable skin" for the home.

"Often we use wide eaves for solar control, however in this case we had a very narrow site... along with a west facing facade. This resulted in the need for a flexible shading solution, built flush with the facade,” says Kent. 

“By utilising Warema retractable external venetians we established a consistent detail for all facades. This allowed us to completely shade the building during summer, while still allowing ventilation through the louvres."

These venetians do more than just block heat; they provide privacy from neighbours and allow Kent to tailor the natural light to minimize glare throughout the day. The effect is most striking in the master bedroom, where the architecture seems to dissolve.

"Within the master bedroom space the glazed doors slide away leaving just the shimmering aluminium blades as the only separation to the garden beyond,” he says. “Having operable louvres over the large glazed skylight is essential in Sydney to prevent overheating. In the evenings we open them fully for an unobstructed view of the night sky."

The success of the project relied on the technical coordination provided by Shade Factor. Because the home was built on a precise steel grid, the shading systems had to be integrated with millimetre-perfect accuracy.

"Apart from the quality of the product itself, the design support and co-ordination offered by Shade Factor is outstanding. Due to the steel structure we had very particular, precise details that needed to be resolved... which Shade Factor patiently assisted us with through site meetings and detailed shop drawings, to ensure everything went according to plan."