Harbour Hillside
Residence.

A site that asked to be listened to.

Set on a steep waterfront block overlooking Sydney Harbour, this proposed six-level, split-level dwelling steps down through the site's natural fall — living areas, an infinity pool, and a private gymnasium each opening outward toward the water.

Rather than fighting the slope, the design works with it. Each level reads as its own quiet terrace, stepping further toward the harbour as it descends, with an integrated four-car garage and landscaped roof terraces keeping the built form settled into the hillside rather than imposed on it.

Steep, exposed, and unforgiving of guesswork.

A significant fall across the block ruled out anything built as a conventional flat-pad home. Every level had to earn its place in the section — resolving access, structure and privacy simultaneously, while keeping the built form quiet from the street.

The response was a split-level design that steps down with the land across six levels rather than cutting a flat platform into it, keeping earthworks modest and letting the topography carry more of the design.

A landscaped pause between levels.

A restrained, tactile palette.

Natural stone, aged timber and dark steel-framed glazing were selected to weather quietly against the hillside's greenery — materials chosen to feel inevitable on the site rather than imposed on it.

Concept drawings, in progress.

Formal architectural drawings are being developed as the project moves through design and council approval stages. A selection will be published here once the concept is finalised.