|

Architect Designs a Hidden Home on a Remote Island in New Zealand (House Tour)

On Waiheke Island, New Zealand, an architect designs a hidden home. Offering a distinctive New Zealand experience, Mawhiti House was created for two sisters who were in search of a unique holiday dwelling where they could peacefully retreat to. A place of restoration and rejuvenation, an architect designs a hidden home that evokes a sense of calm. Built on an expansive plot of land, the Mawhiti House is surrounded by native bushland along with expansive views of the ocean, which can be accessed from the kitchen, bathrooms and living spaces within. Stephens Lawson Architects has designed the form to feel welcoming to the owners and their guests all year round. As seen in the house tour, Mawhiti House combines utility with a deep spiritual atmosphere. Another inspiration for the design was the idea of a rural barn.

Accompanying the Waiheke Island residence is a gateway pavilion, a structural addition that is made out of timber and enhances the living experience. Formed out of raw, natural pieces of wood, the structure offers a unique way to experience the surrounds of Waiheke Island. The house tour also reveals that the home and pine wood gateway are in constant dialogue with each other through the triangular forms and materiality of the timber architecture. Broken into three pavilions, the dwelling is spread across the site and seamlessly blends into the landscape as if it has always been a part of it. Between the pavilions are micro courtyards positioned off the bathrooms. As an architect designs a hidden home, each courtyard is differentiated from one another to enrich the experience of the owners and their visitors alike. For example, one courtyard features a Japanese-style bath, which is then complemented with extraordinary views of the surroundings.

For the interior design and architecture of the home, the architect has imbued a soulful feel through tactile and earthy materials. Avoiding the use of shiny and reflective materials, the architect ensures the occupants feel a sense of restoration instead through warm pine ceilings and burnished concrete floors. The house tour unveils walls lined in a pale white hue, enhancing a soothing and restorative atmosphere. With expansive views of the New Zealand surrounds, the abode’s interior design, spanning from the kitchen to the to the bedrooms and bathrooms, is crafted to facilitate moments of relaxation. An architect designs a hidden home to provide inhabitants with a secluded sanctuary for solitude and retreat.

00:00 – Introduction to the Hidden Home
00:43 – Designed for Two Siblings
01:49 – The Form of the Home and its Influence
02:28 – The History of the Gateway Pavilion
03:31 – In Conversation with the Home and the Landscape
04:00 – The Layout of the Home
04:45 – Incorporating A Soulful and Earthy Feeling
05:36 – Proud Moments

For more from The Local Project:

Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/thelocalproject/
Website – https://thelocalproject.com.au/
Print Publication – https://thelocalproject.com.au/publication/
Hardcover Book – https://thelocalproject.com.au/book/
The Local Project Marketplace – https://thelocalproject.com.au/marketplace/

To subscribe to The Local Project’s Tri-Annual Print Publication see here – https://thelocalproject.com.au/subscribe/

Photography by Sam Hartnett.
Architecture by Stevens Lawson Architects.
Build by Tomik Architectural Builders.
Landscape by Jared Lockhart Design.
Engineering by Sullivan Hall.
Joinery by APL Window Solutions.
Artwork by Anton Forde.
Filmed and Edited by Cadre.
Production by The Local Project.

Location: Waiheke Island, New Zealand

The Local Project acknowledges Māori as tangata whenua and Treaty of Waitangi partners in Aotearoa New Zealand. We recognise the importance of Indigenous peoples in the identity of our respective countries and continuing connections to Country and community. We pay our respect to Elders, past and present, and extend that respect to all Indigenous people of these lands.

#HiddenHome #NewZealand #TheLocalProject

Similar Posts

  • Shaped by the Landscape: Sculptural Dune House with Amazing Views of North Sea

    There are a few homes that are shaped by the necessity of the homeowners; few that are shaped by the constraints of space and others that are created by the elements that surround them. Emerging as a stunning sculptural masterpiece in a landscape that seems distinctly rustic, the Dune House in Netherlands overlooks a sandy […]

    You’re reading Shaped by the Landscape: Sculptural Dune House with Amazing Views of North Sea, originally posted on Decoist. If you enjoyed this post, be sure to follow Decoist on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest.

  • Timeless Stone Structure Coupled with Wood Warmth to Create a Magical Irish Home

    The traditions of Ireland have been shaped by its rough weather and the rugged seas around it for many centuries. It is this environment that also gave shape to some of the best stone homes that you will ever come across. Created using locally sourced stones and withstanding the rugged coastal winds and keeping out […]

    You’re reading Timeless Stone Structure Coupled with Wood Warmth to Create a Magical Irish Home, originally posted on Decoist. If you enjoyed this post, be sure to follow Decoist on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest.

  • Creek House

    Set amidst a volcanic boulder field in a pine and fir forest, Creek House is a family retreat that inhabits an existing outcrop clearing at the edge of the spring fed Martis Creek. Near the base of Lookout Mountain at Northstar California Resort, the house is conceived in plan as three directional bars that slide between and alongside the boulders and trees. The largest contains the main living areas and sleeping quarters. A margin sized bar houses the entry and support spaces and connects the third bar that contains a tandem, drive-through garage to the house. A south facing, 140-foot long, insulated concrete wall demarks the spaces longitudinally and situates the house in the mountainous terrain.   A shift of the major bar to the west over the natural downslope of the site earns two requested rock gardens. The garden to the east is open to the sky and built into the void left by the displacement, with building height concrete walls retained to provide privacy for the master bedroom.  The gravel surface, set with site native basalt stones and framed with water, can be viewed only through a low, three-dimensional glass box that allows the garden to penetrate the room. A rectangular basin captures snow melt to create a protective and ephemeral pool of water around this most private area of the house. The second garden to the west lives under the cantilevered house that shields the lower level from the west sun and contains the largest boulders of the site. A glazed hallway floor above reveals a dramatic drop in the topography and car sized boulders. At the top of the slope, the one-story horizontal form presents a closed and secure face to the northwestern street exposure. Fire resistive steel rain screens and tempered glazing inhabit the territories earned by the concrete wall. The mass heavy house is designed as a long thin rectangle that faces the sun to maximize solar exposure during winter and minimize heat gain from the west and east in summer. The house is cooled by prevailing breezes that flow up and through the house from the west. Radiantly heated bluestone floors, solar assisted domestic hot water and LED electric light further reduce energy demands.