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Home on high

Projects | For those who spent their childhoods kicking around quarter-acre sections in suburbia, it might be difficult to imagine family life in a New York loft. According to American architect David Howell, wh...

Of the earth: Californian retreat

Projects | This family retreat stands on an old ranch property covering 200 hectares of farmland and hills in Central Valley, California. An expansive central living area forms a meeting space for extended famil...

Gold standard: Freemans Bay Apartment

Projects | It makes sense to live in the suburbs when you have children at home. There is space to spread out and family-friendly amenities abound. However, when the nest empties, the possibility of being closer...

Permanent holiday: Omaha House

None | City living has its drawbacks so many urban folks have dreams of retiring at the beach or somewhere far away from the hustle. Omaha Beach is a popular holiday destination for Aucklanders, thanks to it...

Houses revisited: Grey Lynn garage

Projects | It took vision – and perhaps a dash of desperation – to see the potential for what was previously a dilapidated mechanic’s workshop in Grey Lynn to become what you see in these images, a vibrant New Y...

The secret garden: Pilkingtons

Projects | Walking up the stone staircase to Pilkingtons on Shortland Street in Auckland’s CBD is like entering a secret garden. Elevated above the busy street and with the AIG building towering overhead, Pilkin...

Houses revisited: Point Chevalier house

Projects | Point Chevalier is now well and truly in the ranks of Auckland’s real estate top dogs, so it is not surprising that any site in the beachside suburb is worth building on, even if, like this one, it ha...

Inner-city haven

Projects | Despite its location – nestled behind the bustle of Parnell Rise – this apartment is like an oasis of calm. This might be in part due to the view; from the living area it takes in the landscape of bea...

Flexible space: AW Architects

Projects | Those who have remained in Christchurch since the 2010 and 2011 earthquakes are a resilient bunch. Many Cantabrians testify that the sense of community in the area is stronger than ever, and a lot of ...

Feminine perspectives: part one

People | Why do women dominate in this field? One of the attractions of interior design or interior architecture as a career is its openness and flexibility. This applies to both the kinds of project interior ...

Sharing is caring

Practice | We’ve come a long way from the offices depicted in the TV series Mad Men. Not only are mid-morning whiskies, never-ending cigarettes and ‘friendly’ bottom pats frowned upon but we have also seen workp...

Through the looking glass

Projects | It’s been three years in the making and Tantalus Estate in Onetangi Valley has finally opened its doors to customers. I arrive just before lunchtime on a Thursday and a few keen punters are there to t...

Making buildings smarter and safer: the Facilities Integrate trade show

Review | Those who attended New Zealand’s first Facilities Integrate trade show could be forgiven for thinking they’d stumbled into a technology symposium. Automation and digitalisation were key themes of this...

Architects in Profile: Assembly Architects

People | Camille Khouri met with husband-and-wife directors Justin and Louise Wright to talk about the firm’s beginnings and their design process. Camille Khouri (CK): You met while studying architecture at Vict...

Black mirrors: part two

Review | Q&A: Justin Wright of Assembly Architects, Queenstown / What system do you use? / Justin Wright (JW): We’re using Oculus Rift for the VR with Revit and the thing that connects them is Enscape, which ...

Creative capital

Projects | As machines increasingly take over humanity’s more traditional and mundane tasks, creative thinking could be our last bastion against unemployment, poverty, and general malaise and boredom. That is wh...

Golden glow: Rhodes House

Projects | Art is the driver behind this highly detailed and shining new home in the Christchurch suburb of Merivale. Built to replace an historic double-storeyed villa demolished after the Canterbury earthquake...

Sweet isolation: Wyuna hideaway

Projects | Wyuna Preserve near Glenorchy is “at the bottom of the world and the end of the road”, says Mason & Wales architect Hamish Muir, and that is one of the main appeals of the development for clients who ...

The eco-ethical house: case studies

Review | Case study 01: Maison Marly / Known as Maison Marly, this home in an historic suburb of Paris contrasts with the traditional peaked roofs of the surrounding neighborhood, creating a Passive House cert...

Capital character: Deloitte Wellington

Projects | Offices within the new Deloitte building on Wellington’s waterfront enjoy front-row views across the harbour as well as some eclectic vistas of the city and the western hills beyond. For Deloitte’s of...

On a good buzz: B:Hive Smales Farm

Projects | Touted as the biggest purpose-built co-working facility in the Southern Hemisphere, the B:Hive covers 11,000m2 over five floors and can cater to businesses ranging in size from a single person to tho...

In focus: Alterations and additions

Review | New Zealanders love to renovate. We spent almost $2 billion* on consented housing alterations and additions in the last year, up $76 million on 2017. The reason for altering or adding to your home is ...

Well grounded: Oliver’s Ridge

Projects | “Modern informality; comfortable rustic elegance; sustainability; sense of permanence; textural warmth and richness; low maintenance; bespoke.” / It’s not often that an architect is given such an elo...

Refreshing the Inn: Auckland Airport hotel

Projects | "We nicknamed it 50 shades of brown,” laughs Designworks senior spatial designer Erini Compton, referencing the dated and shabby state of the Holiday Inn before she and her crew took hold of it. The t...

Mountain living: Roys Peak House

Projects | Traditionally, a New Zealand back-country tramping hut has a modest profile with a subtly pitched roof and, while often painted in bright colours to stand out in a storm, it seems at one with the land...

Elemental: Jack’s Point house

Projects | The Queenstown neighbourhood of Jack’s Point is spoiled when it comes to views. The Remarkables show the full reason for their name: postcard face to the east, and other peaks and hills in all the glo...

Landing place: West Meadows house

Projects | This Wanaka home expands and contracts when needed, making it a cosy refuge for the home-owner couple while also providing space for visitors. Their lives have been predominantly based in Christchurch...

Inward gaze: Heartland

Projects | Take the lift one floor up from the bustle of Westfield Newmarket and you arrive here, at the new corporate offices of Heartland Bank. There is concurrently a feeling of calm and a sense of buzzing ac...

Buon appetito

Projects | It’s Wednesday night in Auckland’s Britomart, and Amano, the newest restaurant on Tyler Street’s hot row, is buzzing. This is just as well, because the restaurant and its adjoining bakery of the same ...

Sleight of hand

Projects | It is hard to think of a more apt name for Whoa! Studios than the moniker it has been given. The initial reaction when entering the complex is one of astonishment – even for someone a couple (ahem) of...