The Pole House

The house was first conceptualised by architectural engineer Frank Dixon in 1963, who dreamed up the idea after a surfing accident that prompted his imagination across a six-week period of injury.^[1] By 1965, Dixon and his wife Aileen had purchased the land upon which the house would be built.^[2][3]

Dixon was inspired by the Chemosphere, and designed a building of similar grandiosity that took full advantage of the location's natural beauty.^[4] He began work on the house in 1972 and completed it in 1978.^[5] The house fell partial victim to the Ash Wednesday bushfires of 1983, which caused the rear of the building to be rebuilt a year later.^[6]

Originally constructed as a wooden house perched upon a 15-metre pole, the building grew fragile due over the decades due to its exposure to the elements.^[4] Dixon sold the house to new owners Kathi and Ray Adams for A$1,750,000 in 2005.^[7] The following year, it was made available to the public as a holiday rental for the first time.^[8] In June 2012, Kathi Adams announced that the house would be demolished and replaced, planning a new design that would "take advantage of the million-dollar sea views".^[5]

One month later Dixon made an application to the Victorian Heritage Council to have the building included on its register, thereby preventing its imminent demolition; the application was subsequently rejected.^[9] The original dwelling was demolished in January 2013 and replaced with a new build designed by Franco Fiorentini, who utilised glass and steel alongside floor-to-ceiling windows for the new structure.^[10] It was unveiled in February 2014.^[7]

The house, which is accessible via a 23-metre floating walkway, sits upon a 70-centimetre-thick slab which supports the building atop the pole.^[11][10] The structure is designed to sway in the wind, and can move as much as 15 centimetres each way.^[11]