Surf's up!: beach houses are making waves

Often larger and more comfortable than their predecessors, today's beach homes nevertheless celebrate the great outdoors and a more informal way of living. The architecture of contemporary beach houses often emphasizes views of the sea, a snug setting in the landscape and the use of sustainable materials and technologies.

The Suttons, a beach home by RX Architects in Sussex, England, is designed to make the most out of its environment. The fully-glazed, open plan living area faces the sea, while the building's form is fragmented to create shelter from the wind in its small entrance patio and large upstairs balcony. The concrete structure of this beach house is partly exposed at the datum line, and partly clad with natural cedar, creating a robust, natural appearance inside and out.

Further up the English coast in Dungeness, Kent, interior architecture practice Johnson Naylor have converted an old military structure into a beach home. The Pump Station features thick, concrete walls, which have been insulated on the outside and rendered in pebbledash – reflecting the shingle expanses nearby. Inside, the concrete walls and ceilings have been left bare and act to keep the house cool in the summer. A number of smaller windows frame views of the outside, but the house's great appeal lies in its snug interior which contrasts with the splendid vastness of the coastal lowlands.

In Australia's southeastern state, Victoria, Austin Maynard Architects have designed a low-impact home on Saint Andrews Beach. The two-storey circular St Andrews Beach House stands in the middle of the dunes and features an exposed timber structure. The compact plan eschews corridors and creates an informal and flowing interior space with views to the outside, as well as access to an internal, double-height veranda. The beach home also features double glazing, solar panels and a rainwater tank in order to ensure the owner's easy-going lifestyle is equally easy on the planet.

For the design of the Beach House in New Jersey, RAAD Studio takes cues from the site's natural history. Restoring the dune that was once on the site, the architects have positioned the two-storey beach home – comprised of two different, stacked volumes – at its summit, with an entrance that cuts through the mound towards the sea. The open-plan lower storey features panoramic sea-views, while the upper storey contains two large en-suite bedrooms.

© Architonic