Outtakes: The Onemana Bach by SGA Architects and Unitec students

<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Our current issue features a short Q+A with architect Dave Strachan of SGA Architects, talking to him about his work with students at Unitec to design and build social housing in collaboration with Auckland's VisionWest.<br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">This isn't the first time Dave and his students have worked together to build something remarkable - last year he and his team designed and built a thrifty bach at Onemana Beach on the Coromandel Peninsula that was a finalist in our 2012 Home of the Year award. (These photographs are by Simon Devitt). </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIAXnwOg-K564ioke93UMApcwT-d3kvzZ3qOgIOGPoZfX11o408P6y56ZGta8UeSu7BzFnBYzOwlLqgTrp-baIdUCtMPAdpM0_jeWiK7N08g1q9YMjDl2S28utBFhIUSEDIf5IPgN1oUz5/s1600/P0154.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="440" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIAXnwOg-K564ioke93UMApcwT-d3kvzZ3qOgIOGPoZfX11o408P6y56ZGta8UeSu7BzFnBYzOwlLqgTrp-baIdUCtMPAdpM0_jeWiK7N08g1q9YMjDl2S28utBFhIUSEDIf5IPgN1oUz5/s640/P0154.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Dave and his students at Auckland’s Unitec School of Architecture were assisted on this project by architect Marshall Cook and builder John Cocks. As a result, all of these students can claim they will leave university with real-world architectural experience: as well as collaborating on the design of the bach, they built it at the Unitec campus before it was trucked to its site on the Coromandel Peninsula.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This is a good point at which to add context to Dave’s remark in our original article accompanying the Home of the Year issue. In it, we quoted Dave as making an unflattering remark about architects in general, but what he was really trying to say was that there is a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">perception</i> that architects are regarded this way, and that the way students work with tradespeople in this exercise helps to close the gap between architects and the professionals they collaborate with. Our apologies to Dave for allowing this remark to run in the magazine in a way that made it seem like he was slagging off his own profession, when in reality he holds architects and architecture in the highest esteem.  </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGjPdb32XhUES2JGoAwqghRCg2DTz7x8krP7-u_GF0O0BGmADpoVB2yMjOOZBsGN8lbdpO8F0c1pVwT9cQ2aaRYft3tK_CcesS-DbP4j8TYAaOXk7jn8j9HkT0GwrKdVwFaDhIJi03WdmO/s1600/O9913.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGjPdb32XhUES2JGoAwqghRCg2DTz7x8krP7-u_GF0O0BGmADpoVB2yMjOOZBsGN8lbdpO8F0c1pVwT9cQ2aaRYft3tK_CcesS-DbP4j8TYAaOXk7jn8j9HkT0GwrKdVwFaDhIJi03WdmO/s640/O9913.jpg" width="640" /></a><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i><span style="font-weight: normal;"> </span></i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i><span style="font-weight: normal;">Above: Andrew Morrison relaxes on the deck in a cane-swing chair while Shiree and their daughters Rubie and Billie hang </span></i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i><span style="font-weight: normal;">out in the kitchen. Morgan Cronin from Cronin Kitchens advised the students on building the cabinetry. </span></i></span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk7-XfLFwTp7adOqUw6p6fr8gHCepM10-8_x8urQP1pUcwdRYHTlkozah0UPBZbLY7jqlIjH444gwvieGKraHyDgEsffVY4eE6kL7RMBiUiSO3wsJu8D9itvsC7Vbvi-6moO1zu_PIcX7M/s1600/P0092.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="430" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk7-XfLFwTp7adOqUw6p6fr8gHCepM10-8_x8urQP1pUcwdRYHTlkozah0UPBZbLY7jqlIjH444gwvieGKraHyDgEsffVY4eE6kL7RMBiUiSO3wsJu8D9itvsC7Vbvi-6moO1zu_PIcX7M/s640/P0092.jpg" width="640" /></a></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Above: The living room opens out to decks on both sides. Former Unitec student </span></i><br /><i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Tim Webber designed the table to match the Morrisons' Ikea chairs.</span></i><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Part of Dave’s mission in leading this project at Unitec is to encourage productive working relationships and good communication between these students when they graduate and the tradespeople they will work with on future architectural projects. Building the bach was a vital part of this process. The students, Dave says, might say, “oh, we just want a nice flat floor to go through there – well that’s wonderful, but how the hell do you do that, to document it and then build it? That makes it a useful part of architectural education”. </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />Dave was a builder before he became an architect and has the deepest of respect for both professions, as well as a keen awareness of how poor detailing and communication can compromise a project. “Design is what [students] are taught to do,” Dave says. “It’s what most schools of architecture focus on. But a lot of design decisions are made during documentation – everyone thinks it’s the boring bit, but really it’s very much about trying to keep the integrity of the design idea you had at the start.”<br /><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKszRWAPB9tm-4WIYEp58rDWtKh-jcsOsk0ZxbGCdRRpT4mlTnwRUMR1Hvqo5WG9iUi50ckPDRSRdEiY8fS8qYEUMfvw9CnVGHMy4axIsk37MA7U8GDJtUw7U5mA83e07KLEpPyvZpW-dl/s1600/P0160.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="420" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKszRWAPB9tm-4WIYEp58rDWtKh-jcsOsk0ZxbGCdRRpT4mlTnwRUMR1Hvqo5WG9iUi50ckPDRSRdEiY8fS8qYEUMfvw9CnVGHMy4axIsk37MA7U8GDJtUw7U5mA83e07KLEpPyvZpW-dl/s640/P0160.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Above: The ultimate in indoor/outdoor flow: a floor that continues almost seamlessly from the kitchen out to the deck. </span></i><br /><i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">The deck chairs, covered by Shiree, are from Nest.</span></i><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-BoFCmI6f83Ie2zbrjfZ2vKHxEKcz7CnacQ8GPEkocYbdD_OlyneA-loLzmp1lV_achQp3B9ksUw6Q4WKabJHVZ6yY_ROJM33u97ugJjlqki4MsK5SONxlYxZlpUXb8nTahVWfF3OvFcc/s1600/P0269.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-BoFCmI6f83Ie2zbrjfZ2vKHxEKcz7CnacQ8GPEkocYbdD_OlyneA-loLzmp1lV_achQp3B9ksUw6Q4WKabJHVZ6yY_ROJM33u97ugJjlqki4MsK5SONxlYxZlpUXb8nTahVWfF3OvFcc/s640/P0269.jpg" width="420" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span></i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>Above: A view of the dining area opening onto the second deck. In the background, the barbecue from </i></span><br /><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>The BBQ Factory echoes the strobe-like effect from the slatted roof</i>.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFlGSJwYNlbQxWUo3vKhd0q3nzfaa8cSEX7_5FptsXUkULthmlKFLipSN52M016hoxb8WP5ge7cmIIiyJ9zk4BVk8GhsXfaAUlDGkoihoZ1jWhE-BLUh2xdt_EMkfctgEPhtBSZzCEMBKA/s1600/P0278.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFlGSJwYNlbQxWUo3vKhd0q3nzfaa8cSEX7_5FptsXUkULthmlKFLipSN52M016hoxb8WP5ge7cmIIiyJ9zk4BVk8GhsXfaAUlDGkoihoZ1jWhE-BLUh2xdt_EMkfctgEPhtBSZzCEMBKA/s640/P0278.jpg" width="446" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span></i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Above: The barbecue deck is also the perfect place to relax in front of a little fire and watch the starry sky after sunset. </span></i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggzs4ZrkwUOKv8Dgj7YrY9OKfP98jAN-UWDfw0f56eTZTlKZzqgSsjb0GQL7slMlqlxJ6XJDXu0Gs0IyVfkRpZiZBgo1pneIUuUyH_UlxzBBkqBCRk_1vy0I4BblMnCc1NMx8UV-qV7_fO/s1600/P0070.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggzs4ZrkwUOKv8Dgj7YrY9OKfP98jAN-UWDfw0f56eTZTlKZzqgSsjb0GQL7slMlqlxJ6XJDXu0Gs0IyVfkRpZiZBgo1pneIUuUyH_UlxzBBkqBCRk_1vy0I4BblMnCc1NMx8UV-qV7_fO/s640/P0070.jpg" width="396" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Above: Billie and Rubie playing in the living area with the windows panels drawn back to enjoy the sun. </span></i><br /><i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Below: Dave and some of the members of Studio 19, his student design team. </span></i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipMj5G3KeDJNPo09s8DNhKAQSdEDfyf6DO6Zw-mwfa2lr8RX-q2ddKd_aPPgeTd-eyAeRApWqZgZqgQPLBmE_toXF4nTmn2ovE4VLDFXjvyGYBghRSMAbHOEaL_cVm1d3yYzKXhP-Mrj26/s1600/Q2084.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="436" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipMj5G3KeDJNPo09s8DNhKAQSdEDfyf6DO6Zw-mwfa2lr8RX-q2ddKd_aPPgeTd-eyAeRApWqZgZqgQPLBmE_toXF4nTmn2ovE4VLDFXjvyGYBghRSMAbHOEaL_cVm1d3yYzKXhP-Mrj26/s640/Q2084.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></div>

Outtakes: The Onemana Bach by SGA Architects and Unitec students

Our current issue features a short Q+A with architect Dave Strachan of SGA Architects, talking to him about his work with students at Unitec...

Read more »

The great bach debate

<img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5577113120074310914" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNk6XWnW869NqZwWzu1uDJxcteoTS0jXsk0LFSo22auAwsoHxckZXghE7RrOZn8MHEKzjhazchbSBLRZMLy6DmPlK2BLiGsF9sJgNgvTmNi9b0K0XcWbFWZhdJp8-rgPniEHdl58DJK_0j/s400/1012-HOME-Timms-Shot+7_079.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" />When is a bach not a bach, but a holiday home?<br /><br /><div><div><div></div><div>This is a question we've often pondered here at the magazine. Whenever we think we know the answer - that a genuine bach is indisputably modest - we run into the fact that the common usage of the term has expanded, and that it is now used to describe getaway homes that have all the bells and whistles we'd expect to find in a city pad. (A reader wrote in to complain that our use of the word 'bach' on our December cover was an abuse of the term, as the homes in the magazine were not truly baches. We reply that in some cases, this reader probably has a point - hence this post). </div><div></div><br /><div>This territory - the boundary between bach and holiday home - is something architects Lance and Nicola Herbst have been exploring for many years now, most recently in the bach that features on the cover of our current issue (and in the images accompanying this post, shot by Jackie Meiring). The fact that the bach is on Great Barrier Island helps, as all houses there are off the grid and subject to strict site coverage limits. </div><br /><div></div><div>Nevertheless, Lance and Nicky's design is determindely a bach in the modest sense of the word: two bedrooms, an outdoor room, and a simple combined kitchen and living space. No frills, but beautifully and thoughtfully detailed. </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div>What follows is our short Q+A with Lance and Nicola from our current issue, along with some outtakes from Jackie's shoot to give you more of a look around the bach. Please write in with your comments about the difference between baches and holiday homes, and if you think someone should take a stand to defend the 'proper' use of the term. </div><div> </div><div> </div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5577116140531254562" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZjPvJkXDWjHwgBInNeHN1FScHJH_uY0t62u3AiNMKjLmT9gq2l8G33n4f6Kzt2qksYfeHUJgMEAeysAA_JbvWRCJXPR3yNHnI6ADeD-9pDRY8uY6VVsdmREHk4QYi0eo_b6dotkXZlqvx/s400/1012-HOME-Timms-Shot+14_053.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" /><br /><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-NZ" style="font-family:georgia;"><em>HOME <!--xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" /--><st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">New Zealand</st1:place></st1:country-region>: What makes a great bach, as opposed to a beach home?</em></span></p><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-NZ" style="font-family:georgia;">Lance Herbst: It’s not about deprivation, but about consciousness, that business of being aware of how much water and electricity you’re using, and filling your day with rituals – you have to cut the firewood and go out and get the fish for dinner. This building has been designed to achieve rustic ideals, but there’s an enormous amount of detail in it to get to this level. That’s because we believe in style and elegance as well. You don’t have to compromise your sense of aesthetics.</span></p><br /><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5577115360533280658" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAfDlGQb7XhgKzVDtxul8TAu2-MErxhfbZJfv5VMdMaZVdTGbFr5hVW9IibsDKiD-wHQ82hsiVl7CT60qnCGYwZbqMNBpMvnCfDw0jYeiCw4-q-21ZGWOlbn8iXHfh2UcX5zeZh1xecQX6/s400/1012-HOME-Timms-Shot+10_163.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 260px; CURSOR: hand" /><br /><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-NZ"><span style="font-family:georgia;"><em>The main living space of this bach is really a covered deck, yet you also have a much more snug sitting area, too.</em> </span></span></p><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-NZ" style="font-family:georgia;">Lance: In baches, we try and make one warm, well-edged space for when the weather gets lashy. </span></p><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-NZ" style="font-family:georgia;">Nicola: We wanted this to have an intimacy, so we decided that we would have a fairly low ceiling with exposed beams – that’s given it a richess and makes this space operate in a calming and more inward-looking way.</span></p><br /><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-NZ"><span style="font-family:georgia;"><em>Your bach designs are well-known. Do you like doing bigger houses too?</em> </span></span></p><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-NZ" style="font-family:georgia;">Lance: I have no problem designing slick houses. It would be a lot of fun doing something really slick and sexy. It’s about context. There’s nothing wrong with that from an architectural perspective.</span></p><br /><span style="font-family:georgia;"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5577114906930348530" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixE3xcQbZ2dvdXLKfm6sZ7WAz7j6MXsJSEYdbXEuDPLC01vnEiEEaSJ_SgKV-SwKyOoyOOxNa-mj6Bwl25x0CmZeJjyS-dwUBg27hjoRqZjUkTwTA-PO2xqvfzRN3eET6HIqEvN2g3d4C0/s400/1012-HOME-Timms-Shot+1_017.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" /></span></div></div>

The great bach debate

When is a bach not a bach, but a holiday home? This is a question we've often pondered here at the magazine. Whenever we think we know t...

Read more »

Outtakes - Godward Guthrie in Omaha

The home on the cover of our December/January issue by Julian Guthrie of Godward Guthrie Architects is an exercise in blurring boundaries between inside and out. While the whole idea of 'indoor outdoor' flow has become a titanic cliche, this is a house that makes it still seem like a noble aim. An array of screens, doors and glass panels can be configured to make the house feel connected to the beach no matter what the weather. Here's a view of the house from the beach, with the main living area on the upper floor. All the photographs are by Patrick Reynolds.<br /><br /><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5568903519188301218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRrmYyRSlFbxXaHZgjG444Ik3fDvtbLbSpST9OCRNWdxc-Qcz1hEeUylKexUIMJXCxyUBAw68xNtHMVjNP_c1msa9mxq7bgIBTb4G_KVz3wcZpEaxHBQTPpuC1hrGcs-TitbRsnWReIZFN/s400/OMAHA+HSE+III_6633.JPG" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 267px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" /><br />The home's living area opens onto terraces on its northern and western sides. An exterior staircase behind the screen in the picture above leads from the living area down to the lawn.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwLthyphenhyphenZMUs5tgfrdNi9hoFzIb-ugBlybD9D6pLBSIX5kBShHqqMcBbhw2Vnhq5rX1UoP6xjzudkKv85WQdO4giS4MQQPQ2foEzyq-TP_OpHWHnCI4L9rOIqgJw7tJyuPwWRo3BnhiSsTIB/s1600/OMAHA+HSE+III_6781.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5568903552051548242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwLthyphenhyphenZMUs5tgfrdNi9hoFzIb-ugBlybD9D6pLBSIX5kBShHqqMcBbhw2Vnhq5rX1UoP6xjzudkKv85WQdO4giS4MQQPQ2foEzyq-TP_OpHWHnCI4L9rOIqgJw7tJyuPwWRo3BnhiSsTIB/s400/OMAHA+HSE+III_6781.JPG" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" /></a> This view (below) from the street shows how the doors of the hallway can be opened onto the pool area (the hallway is also a very effective collector of solar heat in winter). At left on the upper floor is the terrace, which can be sheltered from the wind with moveable glass screens.<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4JqhWpCvTgg_kfPgZLm1ITK4sFY7BWizNQCCQgD-WXyCYbXIzJ0rSXf2NZkWX8plIgCJHSAcvJgZpGfKnqKCA6GiyWsqCLxoFK5oaSoBoEa2D8hgmtxiKpBQBObfvMm1g9cQgwIBaYCev/s1600/OMAHA+HSE+III_6763.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5568903544710465586" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4JqhWpCvTgg_kfPgZLm1ITK4sFY7BWizNQCCQgD-WXyCYbXIzJ0rSXf2NZkWX8plIgCJHSAcvJgZpGfKnqKCA6GiyWsqCLxoFK5oaSoBoEa2D8hgmtxiKpBQBObfvMm1g9cQgwIBaYCev/s400/OMAHA+HSE+III_6763.JPG" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 267px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" /></a><br />Below is a view from the sheltered pool area towards the beach. The rumpus room downstairs can be fully opened up to the weather, or closed down behind glass doors and cedar screens. In this photograph, it reads as a totally outdoor space. </div><div><br /><div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilKEqBIz4FfhJSJoGtnGwNEA4Hl-hqBBHGYX9hO-qdsgOpZoo1BhL20ZupbXvP5ELwgjcO693lYwH0B0N17MrK7M1j9uuACg-fqHdv6_7bWIKAQu0Zrrr8CtjwSM3kfElz4HEMK-Tc4mdl/s1600/OMAHA+HSE+III_6664.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5568903520173412578" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilKEqBIz4FfhJSJoGtnGwNEA4Hl-hqBBHGYX9hO-qdsgOpZoo1BhL20ZupbXvP5ELwgjcO693lYwH0B0N17MrK7M1j9uuACg-fqHdv6_7bWIKAQu0Zrrr8CtjwSM3kfElz4HEMK-Tc4mdl/s400/OMAHA+HSE+III_6664.JPG" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 267px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" /></a></div></div></div>

Outtakes - Godward Guthrie in Omaha

The home on the cover of our December/January issue by Julian Guthrie of Godward Guthrie Architects is an exercise in blurring boundaries be...

Read more »

The new bach

Beach homes these days tend to present architects with a bit of a dilemma: clients want all the bells and whistles, but including them all leaves little chance of retaining any bach-like modesty of scale. Many a charming beach community in New Zealand has been monstered by the arrival of overly grand holiday homes. That's why we're so keen on the home on the Kapiti Coast on our April/May cover, designed by Max Herriot of Wellington's Herriot + Melhuish Architects.<br /><br />The goal for owners and architect was to create a place that still felt like a bach, which meant the design process was all about identifying the essential qualities of the New Zealand holiday home, rather than transplanting a city home to the beach. The end result is a simple two-bedroom home with an open-plan living space under a monopitch roof. Here are a couple of Paul McCredie's shots of it:<br /><br /><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322181014429388370" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiga7IUQ-zR4xZyBdDWIalRJQk_qowZ_0QjKukCJ52uK2qYJBtNrCfhLQRCt0zd7168sDNXQxEtSE9FPed3MZFIawYhyphenhyphenPAXdQH211ZuDLTYytHfdxuVCsMRGsQbLqzxm9wrMayLKlm9ifpp/s400/Rosetta+exterior.jpg" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 264px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" /><br /><br /><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322181025558429570" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpK5xsaKXqxabpXTt0MgsU3wBYt2QVE1Rfea39kNltUnL5-xiEH9FwQMtBUqBedbPGFA-ptMbMXIunrISZrZrGTVscIt6NAKnWAvqlJQ44f6fENJlAxjPTjfBvAh1GBaOtmUNQrklnBYyu/s400/Rosetta+interior.jpg" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 266px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" /><br />Building this new holiday home involved knocking down an old one on the site, a difficult decision for the owners. The old bach was crumbling and was going to have to be relocated further back from the high tide line anyway; renovation options eventually became as expensive as building anew. The success of this project lies in the lessons that the owners absorbed from the old bach, which they had liked and stayed in for many years. The home shows that modest ambitions can create great results, for the owners of the home and the beach community as a whole.

The new bach

Beach homes these days tend to present architects with a bit of a dilemma: clients want all the bells and whistles, but including them all l...

Read more »