Located within a native beech forest on the edge of Nelson Lakes National Park and near Lake Rotoiti, Te Whare Raku is conceived as a series of pods, carefully layered throughout the landscape to minimise ecological impact while offering varied spatial experiences of the forest environment.
Each pod serves a distinct function and is sited to engage with a different stratum of the forest. At the forest floor sits the boatshed; nestled among the trunks is the guest accommodation; and elevated within the canopy are the main living areas and primary bedrooms
The pods are elevated above ground on dark, trunk-like columns and clad in dark seam-folded aluminium, allowing them to visually recede into the blackened verticality of the beech forest. Internally, they are lined with native beech timber, reinforcing a sense of material continuity with the surrounding landscape.
Structure is provided by prefabricated panels of locally sourced Nelson Pine LVL, assembled off-site using Potius construction methodology to reduce on-site disruption.
Corner glazing wraps each pod, visually dissolving the interior boundaries and immersing occupants in the surrounding forest.
JTB Architects is an award-winning NZIA Registered practice, founded in Nelson in 1986. We now work from studios in Auckland, Wellington, Nelson, Christchurch and Wānaka, on projects around New Zealand. We design beautiful contemporary buildings of all sizes and across a broad range of project types.
Design-led
We are a design-led practice which is committed to understanding and responding to our client’s needs with professionalism, energy and creativity. With each project we aim to find the optimum balance between sustainability, value and design quality, based on our client’s priorities. We design robust and durable buildings without compromising aesthetic quality.
Committed to sustainability
Innovation forms a central part of our approach in relation to materials technology and energy use. We are members of the New Zealand Green Building Council, and our business is also EKOS Zero Carbon for Business Operations.
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