Merricks Farmhouse: A Contemporary Reimagining of the Australian Rural Homestead

Nestled on a striking 50-acre hilltop estate in Merricks, Victoria, with panoramic views across vineyards to Philip Island and Western Port Bay, the Merricks Farmhouse by Michael Lumby Architecture and Nielsen Jenkins is a masterful response to site, climate, and heritage. Conceived as a modern abstraction of the traditional Australian farmhouse, the design balances openness with shelter, landscape immersion with privacy, and large-scale living with adaptable intimacy.

A Home Defined by Landscape and Climate

Perched on elevated terrain, the farmhouse captures expansive coastal and vineyard vistas while contending with the region’s exposed climatic conditions. The architects counter this through a clever spatial layout organized around a central courtyard garden, transforming it into the conceptual and climatic heart of the home. This inward-facing oasis offers a calm refuge, balancing the intensity of the surrounding landscape and anchoring the home with a meditative focus.

Flexible Living for a Multigenerational Family

Although generously sized at 640 m², the farmhouse is tailored to the needs of just two permanent residents. Designed for dynamic use, it seamlessly expands and contracts to accommodate visits from their four adult children and their families. Up to three-quarters of the house can be shut down when not in use, transforming the layout into a compact one-bedroom pavilion. This modular approach allows for energy efficiency, spatial intimacy, and a personalized living experience regardless of occupancy.

A Roof that Collects, Walls that Frame

The architecture is both monolithic and poetic. A single, sleek roof hovers above thick, 1-meter-wide planted walls that extend into the landscape. These walls choreograph sightlines, circulation, and thresholds, while occasionally curving back to form secluded courtyards. Every room is deliberately framed with floor-to-ceiling views of gardens and greenery, making nature a constant visual and emotional presence.

Architectural Minimalism Meets Agricultural Vernacular

True to its rural context, the building integrates farming motifs throughout. The roof serves a practical and sustainable function, collecting all the site’s domestic water, which is then stored in circular concrete tanks. These utilitarian elements—commonplace in rural Australia—are reimagined as sculptural garden features, serving as birdbaths, ponds, and even a firepit. The result is a site-specific language that merges agricultural identity with architectural refinement.

Designed Around Trees and Memory

Landscape played a pivotal role in the design narrative. Existing vegetation—such as an avenue of elm trees from the old driveway and a stand of lilly-pillies near the pool—was carefully preserved and integrated into the experience of approach and enclosure. These living elements frame views, define transitions, and create soft, leafy boundaries that blur the line between architecture and garden.

All Photographs are works of Tom Ross