The clients’ brief was simple: “Dad, we want somewhere where we can run around the house, even if it’s raining, with the dog.” The clients, aged 4 and 6, didn’t have a dog (yet) but what they did have was an architect and former Jasmax Christchurch associate principal who was prepared to take their request seriously.

Ken Powrie, founder of South by Southeast Architects, and his wife Sarina bought their 1650m² site on the side of the Port Hills in 2014. “As a family who spends a lot of time mountain biking, surfing and surf lifesaving, we had developed a strong connection to the surrounding landscape, from the Pacific Ocean below to the Port Hills above, and we were keen to develop a design that reflected that connection,” explains Powrie. “The unique cues derived of place were used to drive the layout, materiality and form of the house.”

One of the key drivers – some might say “obstacles” – behind the design was the large seam of volcanic rock that ran through the centre of the site, dating back to volcanic activity some 11 million years ago. While the elephant was not quite in the room, it was not far from it and certainly not going anywhere, so the wise decision was made to engage with it. “As we exposed the rock on the site, the design changed around it,” says Powrie.

What transpired is an organic, undulating build made up of three curved pods: home to bedrooms, bathrooms and a garage. A generous, open, fully glazed living area set between these pods houses kitchen, living and dining spaces and the entire house is bounded by a floating deck, with, yes, the clients’ non-negotiable sheltering roofscape.

“The form of the roof and deck is taken from the topography of the site,” explains Powrie, “taking both horizontal and vertical relationships into account.” The result is a building form that sweeps down at the back to meet the hilly landscape behind and opens up to the north as it moves towards the ocean. The eaves of the roof provide specific orientated shading to achieve passive solar gain and various outdoor living areas are designed to offer shelter from the prevailing winds and capture sun throughout the day.

Materials, textures and colour are driven from the natural context: largely golden brown hues and tones of green and blue. The exterior cedar cladding carries through to the interior and recycled brick in the pods offers a sense of warmth and enclosure.

“Material selection for our house was discussed and debated at length,” says Powrie. “The different timber cladding used on the soffits, walls and deck was carefully chosen to work with the colours found within the surrounding landscape and to provide a sense of contrast within the spaces.” Timber textures and colours were also selected based on their ability to change with the play of light throughout both the day and the seasons, “creating surfaces with an inherent dynamic nature”.

The internal brick cladding accentuates the curves of the pods and offers a handcrafted aesthetic to the finish. It also provides for a depth in the wall cavity, which enabled the joiners to craft deep timber reveals for the windows and doors, creating a strong sense of transition between spaces.

Powrie is particularly happy with the “strong communal feeling” generated by the central living area. “We wanted spaces that we could inhabit easily and gather together in because we like to entertain,” he says. “The materials offer good acoustics and thermal properties.”

It’s not surprising that this family home was a 2021 Interior Awards finalist, an NZIA Local Award winner and is in the running for a Best Award. The unique design is driven by place, people, passion and a large rock. While Powrie concedes many different perspectives fed into the project, one cannot help but feel that the original ‘brief’ from two small clients went some way to determining the overall response and, at the same time, facilitated the arrival of the fifth member of the family – the girls’ four-legged friend.