Back to Nature
Set in a beautiful rural oasis, the clever design of this home embeds it in its surrounding environment. Rich wooden materials create a warm atmosphere and hark back to the natural context, while the layout helps seamlessly connect the interior and exterior spaces. The result is a lovely place that is part home and part retreat.
The Point was originally all farmland, thanks to its quality peat soil, subtropical microclimate and regular rainfall. In 1947, local landowner Mr Wells subdivided his 50 acres into quarter-acre blocks, creating the Point Wells neighbourhood. The first shop opened in 1960 – and the area has remained a small, tight-knit community ever since, despite only being a one-hour drive to Auckland, and close to Whangateau Harbour.
It was the quiet, rural nature of Point Wells that attracted the owners of this stunning home (designed by architects Steven Lloyd and Aaron Peterson) to the site. They wanted to create a place that was part home and part retreat. They also wanted their new build to complement the rural surroundings.
“The owners were interested in a gabled form that suited the rural context while providing a home with comfort and an appropriate scale,” explains Peterson. “The home also needed to provide space to display and enjoy a highly interesting collection of art and artefacts.”
The house is located on an estuarine tendril of the Omaha River. It was undeveloped land with a beautiful northern aspect, some mature trees and some simple farm sheds. “The design of the new home is influenced by the scale and form of the vernacular farm buildings – but also the way they’re clustered,” says Lloyd. “Instead of repeating these, however, we have looked to abstract the detailing of a traditional gabled barn and arrange a cluster of forms to take advantage of the sun and provide shelter from the wind.”
ROOMY BUT INTIMATE
The modern farmhouse features three structures, which allows the home to adjust to its ever-changing number of visitors, and also to take advantage of the beautiful natural environment. “The home is large but personal,” says Peterson. “Each space is tuned to be intimate and scaled to the human form. The result is that while the house can cope with the extended family and large gatherings, it is also intimate enough for just two people to live in comfort.” A pitched-roof garage is found at the front of the home,
with a generous guesthouse located above. Behind this structure are two long wings connected by a boardwalk, with courtyards and sheltered decks between the buildings. One wing has the lounge room, dining room, kitchen and laundry. The other wing includes the bedrooms, office and living area.
Lloyd explains, “Breaking the form into three structures allowed us to create courtyards that frame the exterior space and mediate the transition between the interior and exterior. The combined form allows for different experiences through the day, as the sun moves and gradually fills each courtyard with light.”
The building is naturally warm in winter and cool in summer, thanks to the use of a mixture of shading and passive heating design techniques. It is also naturally ventilated and has been designed for maximum cross ventilation and air flow. Floor-to-ceiling casement windows along the side of the house allow for this air flow, and also frame the incredible view.
Peterson and Lloyd appreciated the opportunities the site presented. “For instance, it was broad enough for not only the planting of orchards … but also the inclusion of a cricket pitch and pond. The estuarine ecology and geology was very interesting, too, both from the perspective of understanding how the architecture could contribute to the landscape, but also from the technical perspective of achieving viable foundations and wastewater solutions,” says Lloyd.
MARVELLOUS MATERIALS
When it came to choosing materials for the home, timber was the obvious choice. “This whole project is about timber – its varied colours, textures and uses. It’s a beautiful material and at every juncture we were looking to bring its warmth and honesty to the experience of the home,” Peterson says. Alongside the timber, powerful concrete chimneys were cast for the fireplaces, and the edges of the roofing were displayed wherever possible. The result is a timber home that’s anchored around concrete elements and lightly draped in roofing iron.
The engineering of the in-situ concrete forms did produce some challenges, as a result of the ground conditions, but the engineering team found solutions to these issues which have made the form stronger.
“The timber detailing and joinery are really delightful when you are in the home – they provide a feeling of longevity and craftsmanship like few other elements can. The exposure of those timber details meant that each one required significant consideration, but the result is fantastic,” says Lloyd. “There are also small decisions like increasing the weatherboard size towards the top of the wall. This visually elongates the form and creates an uplifting effect.” pacstudio.nz
“Breaking the form into three structures allowed us to create courtyards that frame the space.”