The new Marina Mirage has been conceived of as a Byzantine village made out of stone, risen from the waters of the Broadwater recalling the lost city of the Atlanteans – nestled into the great beauty of the littoral rainforest.
The entrance to the site is via a limestone cobbled porte cohere and grand Moorish doorway into a three storey interior rain forest. Bronze framed doors open to reveal seven low buildings clustered around a central palm garden housing a 50 metre pool and layered with an zoological display of diverse palm species, extending the great beauty of the littoral rainforest to the marinas edge. Architecturally the buildings recall an ancient Byzantine architecture, broad stone planks create a terraced square at the western marina interface with a small vaulted chapel for celebrations and weddings. Rhythmic vaults and horizontal roman blinds frame the views of the marina from the terraced restaurants that line the boardwalks.
The architecture and marina merge to celebrate the biodiversity of the intertidal zone in a location where the Kombumeri (the ‘saltwater people’ of the Gold Coast) have sustainably harvested oysters and other shellfish for millennia, returning the shells to the water to form new oyster reefs. At Marina Mirage we have embraced the oyster and layered the floors in limestones and the columns in rough oyster shell render. The effect is a sparkling white organic stone environment.
In the Yugambeh language one traditional name for oyster is Kinyingarra, the same name that refers to the native wild hop bush which blooms when the oysters are ready to harvest, the presence of both name sakes here celebrates the life cycle of the living dreaming. The western face of the project is lined with a continuous wharf timber boardwalk with oversized cannonball balusters and bronze anchor chain handrails. The East-West axis of the palm garden captures perfectly the setting sun across the broad water and the bronze glazed panels and screens come to life in the golden glow of late afternoon.
This is a romantic architecture, a material rich modernism made of the beach and the sea: a grand formal processional structure that houses the rainforest and erupts into life in the afternoon sun. The quarter floor villas and half floor penthouses at Marina Mirage enjoy high ceilings and broad dimensions, with simple layouts unfolding the interior spaces out into the viewlines of the broad water. Large format double glazed low emissivity bronze windows allow owners to enjoy penetrating daylighting whilst preserving solar comfort and privacy without internal reflection of mirrored windows. Deep terraces protect the living rooms from midday sun and foster inside-outside living all year round. Top floor residences open up to complete roofscapes for entertaining and relaxing in the cooling breezes of the broad water. Conceived in layered terraces and with direct lift access these elevated garden spaces enjoy the sunshine, views and breezes create a small cluster of generational homes. An intimate community in the sky, by the sea.
