Balfour Street Studio

Mornington - Wellington, NZ

Jason Mann came in one day to tell us he wanted to create a workspace for his photography practice at the bottom of his garden in Vogeltown. As an architectural photographer he was keen to create a space which reflected his love of beautiful architecture. The studio had to respond to the site – to take advantage of the amazing views looking north east along the Vogeltown green belt and to sneak inside the height plane on a site that slopes away dramatically to the east. To this end the studio is set partially sunken into the site, level with the ground plane. The roof form slopes up  from the east sneaking in under the height plane but still creating a dramatic high ceiling inside. The other factor which played a part in the design was the need to control the glare from the western sun through the entry slider – which for a photographer proofing on screen is crucial. The solution was to create a slatted screen which slides over the sliding door which also doubles as a ventilation louvre in summertime. As a finishing touch Robin from Moth Lighting got involved to help us create a halo of light around the aluminium eyebrow and an uplighter inside which washes along the skillion roof creating a warm, glare free ambience at night.