Xuan McArthur Nguyen The clients’ house was built in the 2000s – it’s modern and clean, and the outside was basically untouched. The clients spend a lot of time outside and do most of their cooking there, so they wanted to incorporate a working kitchen.

Katrina Keshaw This is really low-maintenance – there’s no lawn. The owners have a holiday house and don’t want to have to maintain a garden when they come home.

McArthur Nguyen The design was driven by this low-maintenance approach, and to create something quite structured that felt connected to the city. It’s all set up on a natural axis pointing back at the city. 

Keshaw When we work on landscaping projects we tend to think of space in the same way we approach interior environments. They’re physically boundless, but we use materials to create the feeling of space or a sense of definition – it’s there for you to explore and make it your own, allowing for individual interpretation.

McArthur Nguyen We tried to be quite deliberate with our approach to materiality – with the hard materials gathered together, contrasted with areas of lush planting. The curved walls were already there, which we really enjoyed as it gave us a cue to work off. It also provided the structure on which to sit the roof. Instead of sitting on the ground, it floats.

Keshaw With the terrace connecting to access the side of the property, timber decking is used to imply circulation or movement, while the concrete pavers serve to define areas where you might gather.

McArthur Nguyen The owners like to entertain and a barbecue with integrated refrigeration was incorporated into the design of the outdoor kitchen. Having a useable space throughout the seasons was important and the louvred roof allows for this. The roof can close down, but we wanted to keep the feeling of it hovering above. 

Keshaw With most of our clients, we’re finding there’s a real need to connect with nature – maybe these types of spaces are going to become more necessary as we push towards greater density.