The Retreat at Pumphouse Point by JAWS Architects

Architecture - by Open Journal

By definition, a retreat is a place that allows one to withdraw. To retire and move back. To escape. The Retreat at Pumphouse Point, a luxurious accommodation offering beautifully situated on Tasmania’s Lake St Clair – is designed to orchestrate and maximise the experience of ‘retreat’ in all these ways.

Designed by JAWS Architects, The Retreat is accessed through a discrete private pathway. On first glimpse the building presents a closed face of rough sawn vertical timber boards on a dark coloured plinth. The materiality and discrete design render the building beautifully harmonious within its wilderness aspect whilst instilling guests with a sense of privacy and peace.

The Retreat is hugged by native bushland and presents a closed face of rough sawn vertical timber boards on a dark coloured plinth

The oblique landscape path draws you down a gently burrowing path to the low and dark entrance where views are denied. Upon entering and removing outdoor gear, filtered light from the north facing windows above draws guests up the stairs.

Upon entry, guests are cocooned within the interior of The Retreat and drawn upwards to awaits.

The breathtaking view of Lake St Clair and the Pumphouse (an integral historic element of the site which once housed a hydro-electric industrial complex) is slowly and dramatically revealed when ascending. From the light-filled open lounge, dining and kitchenette, guests retreat by moving up gently to the more intimate bedroom area with softer furnishings, then more intimately again to the bathroom beyond.

The lounge at The Retreat with views overlooking Lake St Clair

View from the kitchenette to the bedroom.

Views are again denied from the bathing space, the most intimate place, where skylights and light-wells are employed to dramatically light and connect guests with earth and sky. The shower is the one exception, where the view is presented again through a frameless glass window.

Bathroom

Locally sourced timbers, furnishings and fabrics deliberately reference the natural surroundings to further enhance an exclusive guest experience. The use of these local materials sits neatly into the considered sustainability processes employed by JAWS, alongside the projects offsite construction and tactile qualities designed to immerse guests in their surroundings.

The interiors at The Retreat, by JAWS Interiors, were designed to be distinctly different from the other accommodation offerings available at the boutique hotel. Incorporating the works of local artists and artisans, the furniture and styling choices are wholly conducive to luxury and immerse guests into the embracing bushland where they can simply unwind at this highly successful Tasmanian enterprise.