At Yowani, architects design a brick and timber home above the ocean, creating a sanctuary that responds to the wild beauty of the NSW South Coast. Located in Rosedale, the coastal home by Atelier Marks Gaal is shaped by its dramatic clifftop setting, where changing light, coastal winds and passing clouds become part of everyday life. Rooted in an understanding of place, the architecture balances exposure and protection, allowing the surrounding landscape to inform the experience of the home.
For architect Joshua Marks, whose lifelong connection to sailing has shaped his appreciation of the natural environment, Yowani represents an opportunity to bring the sensory qualities of the coastline into domestic life. Before beginning the design, Atelier Marks Gaal spent time camping on the site, observing the movement of light, wind and weather. These early observations informed how architects design a brick and timber home above the ocean, ensuring the building remains connected to the changing conditions of its surroundings.
Designed for a family of four, the home was conceived as both a coastal retreat and an enduring residence for generations to come. As architects design a brick and timber home above the ocean, the relationship between building and landscape becomes central to the spatial experience. Two descending roof forms follow the natural slope of the land, while the arrival sequence introduces a deliberate sense of compression. From the entrance, a low ceiling draws the eye towards the water before the interior opens into an expansive living space overlooking the coastline.
The interior design is defined by two substantial stone walls that divide the plan and establish a hierarchy between communal and private spaces. At the heart of Yowani, a limestone fireplace anchors the living room, providing warmth against the exposed coastal setting. A secluded library, study and daybed offer opportunities for retreat, while a shared bathroom, sauna and outdoor shower extend the home's connection to its surroundings. Throughout, the interplay of brick, timber and natural stone reinforces a sense of permanence. Positioned on a naturally occurring plateau, the main living area is nestled into the existing rock shelf. This relationship between built form and natural topography demonstrates how architects design a brick and timber home above the ocean while preserving the character of the coastal landscape. Large openings dissolve the boundary between inside and outside, allowing the ocean's presence to shape the atmosphere of the home. This balance between shelter and exposure is fundamental to Atelier Marks Gaal's approach to Australian architecture.
Recognised at the 2026 Emerging Designer Awards, presented by Artedomus and The Local Project, Yowani received the Residential Architecture award for its considered approach to design. The recognition celebrates the practice's contribution to contemporary Australian architecture and its sensitive response to place.
In this house tour, Yowani reveals how architects design a brick and timber home above the ocean with an emphasis on longevity, connection and everyday experience. The result is a home that embraces the shifting conditions of the NSW South Coast while offering its inhabitants a lasting sense of refuge.
0:00 - Introduction To Yowani By Atelier Marks Gaal 1:06 - Understanding The Land And Its History 2:43 - An Architectural Journey Towards The Water 3:56 - An Intimate Retreat Within The Landscape 4:36 - Returning To A Place Of Lasting Meaning
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Video Summary
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Designed by Josh Marks of Atelier Marks Gall, Uwani House is a sanctuary located on the wild south coast of New South Wales. The home is crafted to harmonize with the exposed coastline and the natural rhythms of the environment, serving as an enduring family legacy that balances dramatic openness with a sense of protection and primal connection to nature.
I've been sailing for most of my life
and when you're out on the water exposed to
these elements of wind and light and passing patterns of clouds,
you are really in tune with the environment
and what's going on around you.
When you come back to land a lot of those elements
are evaporated in a lot of buildings and for me I
think there's something special in capturing
that as part of everyday moments and that's
really what this home is. It's a way of living
on this exposed coastline and feeling and sensing all
of those moving patterns of the environment around you.
My name is Josh Marks, I'm a co-director of
I'm the director of Atelier Marks Gall, and this is Uwani House.
We're sitting here on the far south coast
of New South Wales, on Yuin Country.
The house is called Uwani,
which means Northern Point in the Wubanjal language.
It's one of the more isolated
and wild parts of the East Australian coast.
This site, it's a particularly exposed part of the bay.
There's this bedrock of granite and underlying shale,
and there's this intense verticality that you experience.
But also there was this presence of the 2019-2020 bushfires.
This whole headland was quite desolated
with some remnant spotted gum trunks that were still charred.
There's emotion within that and you could feel that on this site,
But also the immense...
Natural beauty.
Camping on site, for us, it's a really
integral part of our initial design phase.
Taking that time is a really significant level of understanding
of all the patterns of the site, the movement and mapping those out.
The brief for this home was for a family of four.
Initially as a coastal escape but more as a long-term
home for them as a family.
An enduring legacy for generations beyond just them and a place
that really was a sanctuary for them. Arriving
at this site you notice the falling nature of the
site and there's two single roofs that fall with the land
and are quite sympathetic there.
Coming to the front door
and opening the front door you sense this moment of compression which
as you walk in the ceiling line draws you down immediately
to the water without any horizon line
and as you go down the stairs this crescendo of the volume opens up and
coming into the living area you really sense the beauty of this site.
Sitting on this plateau on the top of the cliff, the living space
really reflects those initial site learnings. The living room is
on that naturally occurring plateau
and it tucks back into the rock shelf.
On a planning level the building is really defined by two stone walls
which splinter the plan and give
a hierarchy to the arrangement of the spaces
and there's a balance at play between feeling
and sensing that dramatic nature
but also feeling protected to it and not just exposed to it.
Central to the living room is the hearth
and the fireplace within that limestone wall.
Adjacent to the living room and hearth is a really intimate
retreat which functions as a study and a daybed and a library wing.
As you recede back into the plan you come back into a shared bathroom
and an adjacent sauna
which connects you to an outdoor shower.
From that the downstairs bedroom splinters off
on the other side of the blade wall and has a really
calm deliberate connection to the beauty
of the plateau on the cliff top here.
Coming back to this home and spending
a drawn-out day here really brings an immense amount of joy.
We're incredibly grateful for the trust the clients put in us
and also working with the
builder Pip Smith.
We're really proud of the way you feel and the energy of the space.
Walking down those steps
and feeling the water come towards you is an immensely calming thing
and it reminds us of when we took those days to spend camping here.
When you pull the doors back
and there's that threshold between the natural beauty
and that living room is
almost primal and that sense doesn't go away
and we're incredibly proud of that.
