Breaking up volumes to adapt them to the shape of the land, putting the interaction between what is built and what is natural to the test to obtain a fully immersive experience: this is New Zealand architects Lance and Nicola Herbst’s goal for Castle Rock Beach House.
New Zealand architects Lance and Nicola Herbst recently designed a summer home in Auckland. The lot faces the sea to the south and the mountains to the east; the architects’ goal for the design concept was to test the limits between what is built and the nature around it so that the home would feel truly immersed in nature: a complex challenge that had to take into account comfort and form, materials and the limitations of the site.
The solution they came up with was to break up the building into two main blocks dividing the bedrooms and the living area on either side of a gap in the hill, which serves as the central corridor. The difference in the height of the volumes ensures that there are panoramic views from every room in the home.
In the living area the rooms are arranged in a circle: a sitting room, a kitchen and two covered patios. From here a staircase leads to the lower floor, where the bedrooms are, and then down to the sea, connecting the house with the beach.
The whole building is covered with wood, left natural on the inside without any colouring, while on the outside vertical slats painted black provide shelter from the rain and wind as well as privacy for the people inside the house.
Francesco Cibati
Location: Auckland, New Zealand
Year: 2014
Design: Lance Herbst, Nicola Herbst
Photos: Patrick Reynolds
herbstarchitects.co.nz
