Project Name: The Seat House
Architecture: Atlas Architects
Location: Tuerong, Mornington Peninsula, Victoria, Australia
Area: 350 m²
Year: 2021
Photo Credits: Tess Kelly
This 1980s brown-brick farmhouse nestled in the rolling hills of Mornington Peninsula, turned its back on some of the best views in Victoria.
The Seat was not just affected by the global pandemic, it was born of it. Our clients, a semi-retired couple who bought the property on a whim, were seeking a weekender on the coast with room to breathe – a safe place for their grown family to escape, gather and relax. When the pandemic hit, the couple found themselves unexpectedly spending more and more time at their new retreat, and decided they needed a home to match the stunning coastal landscape.
Spurred on by their son’s impending wedding in March 2022, our clients wanted a one-of-a-kind family home that could also serve as a stunning wedding venue, designed and delivered in a constricted timeframe and budget. They entrusted the project to Atlas following a string of successful previous projects and a valued, longstanding relationship. Conceived in 2020 and completed in 2021, The Seat met the brief in spades.
Looking back at the house, the wedding was hosted in the hills − a tree-lined esplanade connects the two locations. The Seat house became a stylish yet unpretentious reception venue. The front paddock (which used to house horses) became the temporary car park for guests. The tiered lawns hosted cocktails. All elements of The Seat, from the built fabric to the landscape, enable the house to transform from a cozy family home to a private wedding venue, a breathtaking events space set on a picturesque coastal farm.
