"Designed to give the same carefree relaxing ambience as a bach - step in and kick your shoes off, grab a glass of wine." - Young Architects
You had me at wine...
The site just out of Christchurch, New Zealand is extremely exposed to the weather (and cold, New Zealand weather, at that), being situated on the top of a spur. This exposure was embraced, with the building lifted above the ground so that the landscape could be planted in native grasses, allowing the floor to be level with them as the wind whips through.
The building is predominantly clad in vertical cedar, which has been oiled and left to grey. The natural cedar palette has been carried on through the surrounding decking and board walks, ulitising heart macrocarpa.
This timber cladding has been framed with black fascias, giving an appearance of strength. Where the building isn’t clad in cedar, the expressed form of the garage is clad in black aluminium siding, following the same material conversation, with minimal maintenance.
Full height glazing allows the views to be seen from all main rooms, while the large roof overhang prevents these spaces from overheating. The sloping ceiling also draws the heated air towards the clerestory opening windows for passive venting.
The pared back materials and symmetrical construction allowed for a very cost effective build and gave the home a sense of that traditional, warm minimalism that New Zealand has made its own.