Coast Modernist

An innovative build for a family who relocated to Perth has enabled them to take full advantage of their new place in the sun.

- Anna Flanders

Colour cred

The last item Dylan and sonja approved for the build was the sunny yellow colour that features indoors and out. From the front door to the main bedroom, it adds impact to an otherwise neutral palette and forges a direct visual link to the sand dunes across the road. “We were unconvinced to start with,” says Dylan, “but then we thought, if anything could tie into the coastal setting, it would be that yellow sand colour.”

When this family relocated from inner-city Melbourne to Western Australia’s capital, they didn’t try to recreate the urban hipster vibe of their former home. Instead, they decided to fully embrace what Perth does best: the beach side lifestyle. Dylan and Sonja packed up daughters Lucy, now 11, and Scarlett, eight, and moved to Perth in late 2010. But after their son Marc was born in 2011, followed by daughter Astrid in 2013, the couple knew it was time to buy or build a bigger home for their family.

Fortuitously, Sonja discovered this 900m2 block for sale in a beach suburb in mid-2014. At about the same time, Dylan happened to walk past a house that caught his eye, inspiring him to knock on the door and chat to the owner. The house, it turned out, had been designed by a former colleague of iconic Perth architect Brian Klopper – information that eventually led them to the work of Brian’s son, Sam Klopper, and Matt Davis, of Klopper & Davis Architects.

“I did a lot of research and couldn’t find anyone who was doing what I liked. But when I googled Brian Klopper, I also hit on Sam and Matt and thought, these guys are the ones for us,” says Dylan. “We had a good feeling based on our first meeting and didn’t look at anyone else.”