An individualistic project
The site is located on a clifftop in Beachlands, Auckland, which is a neighbourhood of many 50s and 60s baches, and has access to the central city via a ferry.
It is a long, narrow site with a beautiful sea outlook over the cliff to the North East, and a neighbourhood street view to the South West.
On two side boundaries it is constrained by close neighbouring properties.
When building new, there is a tendency to disregard history, to reinvent the wheel to the latest going 'style'.
In this context the owners wanted a sustainable, contemporary home that had the character and quality of the original cottage.
They also wanted a simple exterior, yet with a complexity of interior spaces that were rich in light, different outlook levels, and texture.
The architect was asked not to present them with a cold, lifeless modernist box – instead, they wanted something that had soul, a memory of the old cottage and heart but with a fresh approach to a classic, simple construction methodology that could be seen in boat sheds, and other beach side areas around the globe.
Lisa Day then designed spaces that fitted the owners' lives, the site and the New Zealand climate.