Tucked into Victoria’s Surf Coast, About Time by Studio Goss is a bathhouse where architecture, light, and landscape converge to create a space that invites stillness and connection.
Receding into the natural surroundings of Victoria’s Surf Coast, About Time is a contemporary bathhouse by Studio Goss that embraces slowness and a quiet connection to place. Drawing inspiration from the coastal setting, Studio Goss employed a material palette defined by texture and tactility. Principal and architect David Goss explains, “We didn’t want the space to feel overly polished; rather, we wanted it to gently blend into the local environment,” reflecting a desire for the bathhouse to sit quietly within its surrounds rather than compete with them.
Shaped by light, water, and tactility, the space invites restoration through a sequence of grounded, sensory experiences. This ethos continues throughout the design. Rooted in the practice of slowing down, About Time fosters stillness at once physical, psychological and spatial. “We wanted to put people at ease as soon as they walk in,” Goss shares. On arrival, guests are met with a pared-back reception that sets the tone for what follows: three carefully considered pathways, yoga, bathing, or skin treatments. Each unfold as a curated sequence designed to guide the body into deeper states of awareness.
A strategic use of concealed up-lights and graphic wall sconces bring a sense of drama that further enhances the tranquil environment.
Inspired by the Japanese concept of wabi-sabi, the bathhouse blends Brutalist architecture with notions of imperfect beauty. “The robust material palette celebrates imperfection and the beauty of natural patina,” Goss says. Flamed granite underfoot, curved stucco walls and coir matting soften transitions, while monolithic timber and stone elements ground the space with a sense of permanence.
Lighting is used with intention. Concealed uplights and graphic wall sconces add rhythm and drama without overwhelming the senses. Their placement supports the architecture’s gentle arcs, curved walls and ceilings that blur edges and create a sense of cocooning. Water, central to the experience, influenced both palette and surface choice, “particularly in the bathing space in terms of slip resistance, longevity and the ability to keep them clean,” Goss notes. Materials were selected for how they respond to moisture, with tiles reflecting the tones of water, deep turquoise for outdoor pools, and inky, reflective finishes indoors.
As bathhouses are inherently communal, yet offer moments of social connection and quiet reflection, sound played a vital role in the spatial experience. Acoustic considerations guided the layout. “We wanted some of the spaces to feel more social and other spaces to feel more quiet and introspective,” Goss says. The lounge is separated from the main space, while sculptural water features were introduced at each main pool, primarily to add the sound of running water and gently mask conversation. These subtleties of tone, texture and sound reinforce the bathhouse’s core intent.
Water influenced several of the material choices, particularly in the bathing space in terms of slip resistance, longevity & ability to keep them clean.
Lighting plays a critical role in setting the tone of each space.
The dark interior turns the window into a mirror that reflects the landscape and skies to extend the sense of space.
Drawing inspiration from the sculptural forms of brutalist architecture and the Japanese concept of wabi-sabi, the robust material palette celebrates imperfection and the beauty of natural patina.
To each of the main pools, we designed a sculptural water feature, primarily to introduce the sound of running water.
Nature is embedded in every decision. The exterior is clad in rough-sawn timber battens designed to silver with age, while the dark, textural interior lets light and the landscape become the focal point. Expansive windows frame the garden and sky, dissolving boundaries between inside and out. Landscaping designed by Melbourne-based practice Florian Wild reinforces this connection, shaping views through vegetation and supporting the bathhouse’s environmental ethos. Flamed granite flows from interior to exterior, dissolving into native plantings and rocks. In this final gesture of immersion, architecture yields to atmosphere, offering a place where body and environment meet, and stillness feels both natural and necessary.
We kept the material palette dark (flamed granite & charcoal render) so as not to compete with the colours of the landscape beyond.
Monolithic timber and stone elements further emphasise a connection to nature and convey a sense of permanence.
Upon entry, subdued lighting creates a quiet, calming atmosphere that encourages visitors to slow down and focus their senses.
The original building was entirely clad in rough sawn timber battens that are encouraged to age and silver off, almost like driftwood
The rest of the external palette was also deliberately monochromatic and textured, chosen to act more as a textured backdrop to the surrounding garden and landscape.
