Kitchens are built-in design elements that are at once highly functional and expressive: typically the ‘engine room’ of the family home, they must also work with the architecture of the building. We review three examples, made of humble materials, whose personalities reinforce the overall design. Photography Simon Wilson. Sayes Stock kitchen, Auckland by Henri Sayes […]

First appearances are deceiving for this Waiheke Island family home by Bull O’Sullivan Architecture, where sumptuous materials form a warm counterpoint to the utilitarian exterior. Text Michael O’Sullivan and Brad Bonnington. Photography Simon Devitt. From the street, this house looks like a utilitarian building, with its long, inclined and cranked corrugated façade and single window. […]

Converting a heritage kiln near Melbourne into a home has led to some dynamic and unconventional outcomes. Architect Andrew Simpson discusses the benefits of flexible and adaptive design. Text Andrew Simpson. Photography Peter Bennetts. This house is the outcome of a close collaboration with one half of the client team, artist and landscape architect Charles Anderson. […]

Joseph Hampton of Warren and Mahoney discusses sustainability in house construction, and how to reduce impact on the environment both during the build and for a lifetime. Residential architecture has delivered many sublime moments of spatial mastery to humankind, yet it can also be responsible for altering the natural landscape and sprawling into the green fields […]

Local farm buildings inspired the form and aesthetic of this house; long pitched roofs break down its scale and allow it to reach into the landscape. Photography Simon Devitt. Our brief was to design a practical family home that could accommodate visiting adult children, spouses and grandchildren. Our clients, Ken and Helen, had been living […]

Houses that reflect physical or poetic qualities of a place become more powerful and memorable. Here are three ‘buildings in the landscape’ that respond to the uniqueness of their environment. Photos Simon Devitt. Lake House by Stevens Lawson Architects On the edge of a South Island lake, the folding forms of this architecturally-designed house camouflages […]

The chiselled form of this courtyard house echoes a landscape of extremes. Architect Dominic Glamuzina discusses the need to address the cold, and embrace the warmth, of Central Otago. Text Dominic Glamuzina. Photography Patrick Reynolds and Sam Hartnett. Working to a thoughtful brief and rigorous budget, Aaron Paterson and I looked at old building practices […]

A common problem for many New Zealand gardens is drainage and the channelling away of excess water. But what about when landscaping is required for a dry climate where there is likely to be a lack of water for lengthy periods? Megan Wraight talks us through such a project in Central Otago in New Zealand’s […]

A duty of care to the environment is now built into every house plan. Dave Strachan takes a long-term view. Sustainable building involves designing a structural solution that meets desired living and occupancy needs whilst placing as light a load upon the planet as is possible. Buildings that are designed to be comfortable in all […]

New Zealand architect Marshall Cook writes about his approach to residential architecture, how site and context affect the design, and how a house must adapt as its users move through life. In any building design project, there will be limitations to what can be achieved on the site within the allowable budget. Our challenge is […]