A home swimming pool that bridges modern design and nature

Pool owner John was also the builder of this HIA award-winning home, so he had some strong ideas about how the pool should work with the house. The family's favourite area is the large glass kitchen and living space to the back of the home that looks out across the yard.

"We wanted to look out through the glass onto the pool and not look through any fencing," said John. "We wanted the water to disappear into the landscape out the back (which is the state forest) and that's what we designed the pool around."

Clear glass fencing allows for uninterrupted views, but it's the vanishing edge with its uniquely curved finish that gives this pool a special touch. Bringing the forest reflection right into the pool, the curved wall is functional as well as attractive.

"It also worked as a water conservation technique," explains Robert. "Because when the water hugs the wall on the way down and it's not breaking free, it reduces evaporation."

The pool area incorporates the distinct hues of the native forest behind. Carefully selected materials, such as the natural sandstone surrounds, help to create a meeting point between architecture and nature. Deep blue tiles generate a rich water tone that's set off by a grand feature wall. John used the same khaki-coloured paint for both his home and the feature wall, complementing the murky green tinges of the gum trees.

The pool itself is spacious and uncomplicated in design. The rectangle shape is unpretentious and functional, offering an open and accessible feel. For a family with four young boys, Robert knew that a generous width was important, though at 4.5m wide and 11m long, the size is not too outlandish.

"It's just a really good family pool for everyone to jump in," says Rob. "When you're not crammed in, it makes it a lot nicer to play around and have fun."

Robert Guseli

Mediterranean Pools

What was the brief?

The pool needed to be very contemporary and formal in its design to be complementary to the house, but it also had to be sympathetic to the natural backdrop. It's formal in its look and yet by doing the vanishing edge on the end, it blended the natural environment with the modern building.

What is the owner's home like?

It's an award-winning home, actually; it won an HIA award and the client is also the builder. It's very contemporary, very modern – rendered with clean lines.

How did you complement the pool with the natural setting?

The natural stone around the pool added a natural element. Also the colour of the feature wall. It matches in with the home and also ties in with the surrounds, but it's still a nice contemporary colour.

How is the curved wall on the vanishing edge unique?

The way we did the vanishing edge was a little bit different. It has a curved wall so that the water hugs the wall on the way down. That brings the reflection of the state forest behind right down onto the pool, so it blends the natural environment with the contemporary modern building.

Were there any challenges in construction? 

There was nothing out of the ordinary. It was a slightly sloping site so there was a bit of levelling work involved, but nothing really unusual. It wasn’t the ideal site in terms of being flat. It'd be a challenge for someone who didn't know what they were doing.

John

What was your brief for this pool?

We've got a large glass area at the back of the house which is the kitchen and family area. We wanted to look out through the glass onto the pool and not look through any fencing. We wanted the water to disappear into the landscape out the back and that's what we designed the pool around.

Did you both design the wall and feature?

That side wall was a bit of an after-thought during construction. I told Rob what I wanted to do, he supplied me with three plastic water-feature outlets and I got my bricklayer to brick them in at a certain height. Rob then got his plumber to connect it all up.

How did you choose the colour for the feature wall?

It’s the same as the exterior of our house. The colour is called Old Khaki and it's got a tinge of green in it so it works with natural landscape.

What do you like most about the pool?

Probably the water flowing over the end; that gives us a bit more of a view while we're in the pool. We can look straight over the water into the bush, rather than just looking at the side of the pool.

Does your family enjoy the pool?

Yeah. I've got four young boys who are in it just about every day that it's over 25 degrees.