Contemporary House Styles of New Zealand

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05 May 2020

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6 min read

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Understanding New Zealand’s contemporary house styles is useful for anyone planning to build a home, working within any aspect of the built environment, or just interested in the architectural world around us. Architect Gerald Parsonson talks us through some of the typical styles that relate to different regions and climates, and offers an insight into how they’ve come about.
Moetapu Beach House by Parsonson Architects sits at the bottom of a steep, winding driveway and looks out to Pelorus Sound.
Its roof form helps ‘fold’ the house into the shape of the land around a small central courtyard area. Photograph by Paul McCredie.
House on a Ruin by CoLab Architecture was built in response to the Canterbury quakes, when the previous heritage Seager-designed house was destroyed but its foundations retained to create a new type of Christchurch home. Photograph by Stephen Goodenough.
Poured Pleats by Jack McKinney Architects is a heritage villa with a traditional gable that has been mimicked in its striking new addition that reflects the gabled rooflines of its Ponsonby neighbourhood. Photography by David Straight.
Noel Jessop Architects' Floating Boxes are two interconnected boxes that appear to hover off the ground, cleverly angled to take in the local mountain view. Photograph by Amanda Aitken Photography.
Courtyard House by SGA spreads out across the landscape, located high on a hill with expansive views from Manukau Heads through to the Gulf Islands and the Coromandel. Photograph by Simon Devitt.
The form of Dorrington Atcheson Architects' Kawau House, hunkers into a steep manuka-clad site, following the contours of the hillside. Photograph by Emma-Jane Hetherington.
Patchwork Architecture's 100m² 10x10 House is supported on steel poles, with killer views of Wellington city. Photograph by Simon Wilson.
The Robertson House by Bonnifait & Giesen Architects has an elongated folding roof that relates to the surrounding hills and vineyards. Photography by Russell Kleyn.
At Rawene House by Stevens Lawson Architects, timber-panelled walls merge into ceilings and floors, creating beautiful warm and flowing spaces―a peaceful haven in the city. Photograph by Mark Smith.
Te Horo Bach by Parsonson Architects is a small economically planned fibro and batten-clad building that has its design roots partly in the New Zealand bach tradition, with an explorative use of form, colour and material. Photograph by Paul McCredie.