Ramsay Open House – A Roy Grounds Hidden Gem

This rarely seen property offers visitors the opportunity to explore an intact 1930s Roy Grounds waterfront holiday house set amidst a faithfully reconstructed landscape of native coastal vegetation, located in the Victoria Heritage listed Ranelagh Estate designed by Walter Burley Griffin in 1924.

Curious about what lies at the end of this garden path? Not visible from the street and rarely open to the public, you will discover a modest beach cottage built into the cliff at the far corner of this property. In 1937 Betty Ramsay invited a rising star from Melbourne’s architectural arena, the young Roy Grounds, to design a simple holiday house on her small bush-covered block where she and her two little boys could spend carefree days on the beach. The ‘simple holiday house’ that Roy Grounds designed broke with tradition. This is arguably the first ‘Modernist’ dwelling in Australia and one in which Grounds was able to express design elements that were to be repeated throughout his 55-year career, culminating in the Victorian Arts Centre complex comprising art gallery, theatre and concert hall. The restored garden forms part of your adventure