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Part of the scenery
Part of the scenery from New Home volume 2709
Even with an expansive bush-clad site, there is often only a small area that can actually be built on. However, such limitations can lead to an inventive design that makes the most of the attractive outlook.
This house sits on a secluded site at the end of a verdant, tree-lined road. The owner asked architect Darren Jessop to design a clean-lined residence in the spirit of an earlier project that Jessop had created. The house had to connect to its setting, be architecturally interesting and work well on the relatively constrained build area on the sloping property.
The house has a fairly economical footprint made up of two connected blocks – essentially, a public wing and a bedroom wing, says Jessop.
"Within this simple, intersecting form, there are several architectural features that give the house a lively personality and ensure it responds well to the environment," says the architect. "The public wing has a monopitch roof that rises towards the north – clerestory windows set below the roofline allow for maximum solar penetration from above the trees. In addition, this roof shape provides 4.5m ceilings for the kitchen, dining and lounge area."
An outdoor room in this wing was created by taking a square bite out of its rectangular shape. In this way, the architect was able to introduce an outdoor living space without expanding the floorplate. The roof over the entire wing also shelters this cut-out space.
"Outdoor gas heaters and the overhanging roof ensure this area is a comfortable place to be all year round. Sliding glass doors pull back the corner of the living area to connect with the outdoor room," says Jessop.
The bedroom wing is shaped like a long black box, and cantilevers out over a knoll at one end. While the roof on the public wing has a steep 10º incline, a 1º gradient on the roof of this wing is sufficient for water to run off. This area of the home contains the master suite, two other bedrooms, and a two-car garage at the approach to the residence.
The cantilevered master bedroom looks out to private bush views through a wall of glass. This bedroom also opens to the landscape.
"One enjoyable feature of this design is that due to the sloping land, the window-wall view of the scenery remains private until you are right at the front door. The approach to this side has only one low window and a band of clerestory glazing that excludes the curious gaze but lets in light from the south," Jessop says.
The material palette is kept simple – the two intersecting boxes are built in the simple architectural vernacular of corrugated iron and glass for the public wing and dark-stained weatherboards and glass on the private wing. A concrete base structure underpins the design.
The solid base also helped address another important request from the owner – for a green, sustainable design. Besides being made from renewable resources, the concrete absorbs the warmth of the sun that penetrates the expanses of glazing. This heat is released overnight, passively warming the home. In-concrete water-pipe heating is an additional, relatively inexpensive heating source. Rainwater runoff is collected for drinking water and irrigation.
"The beauty of this house is its all-round sense of privacy, although it opens up completely to the environment on one side," says Jessop. "The cut-out outdoor room allows the owner and his guests to feel they are part of the lush surroundings, even when they are safely indoors in inclement weather."
The timber deck on the private side of the home includes an outdoor dining area – accessed by sliding doors from the adjacent indoor dining space. The timber-clad bedroom wing also opens to the deck and outdoor room.
This contemporary house combines a sense of privacy with sustainable architecture. Materials such as concrete, glass, timber and corrugated iron feature in a design that optimises passive heating. The residence occupies a relatively modest footprint and mature trees were retained as far as possible to intensify the sense of immersion in the natural surroundings.
An initial architect's drawing shows how the cantilevered master suite ends in a large window wall. Cantilevering this space also helped address the issue of a limited buildable area.
The simple colour palette echoes the natural surroundings. High-end Italian furniture offsets the simplicity of the interiors.
Views are revealed only on entering the house. Inside the front door, the bedroom wing is to the left, the outdoor room is straight ahead and living spaces and kitchen are to the right.
Areas of the open-plan living spaces are demarcated by changes in flooring levels and materials. Wood is used for most of the floors in the public wing, except for the elevated kitchen and dining area, which is in concrete aggregate. For architectural interest, the cantilevered fire surround supports the fireplace and the bookcases on both sides. The outdoor room can be seen to the rear of the living spaces.
Timber latticework lamps over the kitchen island bring a playful, rustic feel and chime with outlooks to extensive bamboo groves. A long, low window above the kitchen bench allows the owner to see visitors approaching, while retaining relative privacy on this side of the house.
Tongue-and-groove ceilings add a rustic touch to the interiors. Sheltered by the main roof, the outdoor room is usable all year round. The step up on the decking corresponds to the step up from the living room to the kitchen and dining area indoors.
Timber decking and the stained wood facade on the bedroom wing connect with the treed outlook and the outdoor room.
Credit List
Architect
:
Darren Jessop, NZIA,
Jessop Architects (Auckland)
Cladding
:
Zincalume, corrugated; weatherboards in Wattyl Charcoal stain
Roofing
:
Plumbdek in Sandstone Grey
Flooring
:
Single-plank oak, stained white
Doors
:
Front door in vertical-groove cedar, painted in Resene Pravda
Window and door hardware
:
Nulook
Kitchen cabinetry
:
Veneer cabinets and bookcase are in Laminex Allure Oak, lacquered in Dulux Half Haast
Story by Charles Moxham
Photography by Jamie Cobeldick
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