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At the western end of this classic Coromandel holiday township is an area known as The Pines, where a simple way of life ensues beneath stands of mature trees and adjacent to Matarangi Beach. 

Here, holiday makers and locals alike traverse paths and tracks that meander through properties and lead to the sand. There are few fences or overtly defined property boundaries; rather, a more relaxed series of sites defined predominantly by the homes on them rather than the fencing around them. While privacy is important, so too is openness and it is in that dichotomy where the design for a building flagged as both a holiday home and a retirement pad began to unfold.

“It’s an interesting area because in contrast to the other end of Matarangi that was completely cleared, this end was developed later and was selectively cleared with sites laid out amongst the trees so you have a really different feel. Here, houses are nestled between the trees in what really remains a wooded area. I think that has lent itself to the casual nature of the area,” architect Chris Holmes says.

To the east of this particular site, a golf club allows for surety that the outlook can never be encroached upon, a fact that further increased the opportunity to design a unique lifestyle property here.

“The functional requirements of the brief were fairly straightforward but it was in the pictorial brief we were presented with that really defined the scope for this house, and from where the idea of the cabins originated. The client had spent time in Canada and had an affinity for the cabins in the woods traditional to that country. That vernacular was borrowed and reinterpreted for the New Zealand beach-side context.

“From the beginning, we were playing with this idea of two cabins and how we would treat the spaces between them. The way we formulated the cabins themselves was a result of both a climatic and a social response.”

There is no formal front door or entrance to the house; more, a sense of meandering in from any of various possible points. “In a way, it’s more like an encampment, which is a reflection of the way the clients wanted the house to function socially,” Chris explains.

Two cabins are interlinked with a structure that can be opened completely on both sides, while in the cooler months it can be enclosed, shielding indoor and outdoor living areas from the elements. This linking form is central to the design. Here, a sheltered space dances the line between indoors and out and houses a large outdoor fire whose chimney punctuates the cedar-lined roof. 

To the south, shoji screens provide shelter for this area and complete what appears to be a relatively blank facade when approached from the road. “It’s not meant to be an open house in that direction, however, if the screens are open, they act as an invitation to wander in. Closed, though, it offers little beyond its gabled form.”

On the other facade, a sense of openness prevails. Here, the home opens out to the main deck and a belt of pine trees that screen the neighbours and sand dunes to the north.

“The 45-degree pitched roofs are a literal response to gabled-roofed cabins in the woods. They are very clipped; there are no eaves and the flat the materials create a refined feel. It is an exploration of the traditional cabin, typically a rustic form, while creating a modern, slick aesthetic,” Chris says.

“Two more decks flank the outward facing sides of the cabins, extending the buildings out into the site. Generous openings are provided around the sides and north ends of both cabins, opening the interiors out to the surrounding trees, offering a relaxed flow around the building of interwoven interior/exterior spaces, covered and open to the sky above.”

The eastern cabin houses the living/dining/kitchen areas along with the main bedroom, while the western cabin contains the guest bedroom and bunk room. This allows a couple to live in a single cabin, or for a larger group to inhabit both cabins (and lawn camping) as necessary. 

Inside, a material palette of robust, straightforward and direct materials presides. “It’s quite raw, with a simple exposed concrete floor, white painted grooved ply walls and ceilings, and black roof trusses arrayed above. When you step out onto the central timber deck, the mid-toned cedar ceiling of the enclosed area acts as a link between the lighter interior palette and the dark-stained cedar of the exterior.”

The cabins have clarity in form and structure, clipped geometry, and dark cedar cladding and roofing, enabling them to sit quietly but firmly against their green surroundings.

Words: Clare Chapman

Photography: Dave Olsen Photography

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The two gabled forms are connected by a central linking building that houses a sheltered courtyard.
The two gabled forms are connected by a central linking building that houses a sheltered courtyard.
To the south, shoji screens provide shelter for this area and complete what appears to be a relatively blank facade when approached from the road.
To the south, shoji screens provide shelter for this area and complete what appears to be a relatively blank facade when approached from the road.
On the other facade, a sense of openness prevails. Here, the home opens out to the main deck and a belt of pine trees that flank the sand dunes.
On the other facade, a sense of openness prevails. Here, the home opens out to the main deck and a belt of pine trees that flank the sand dunes.
The 45-degree pitched roofs are a literal response to cabins in the woods. They are very clipped; there are no eaves yet the materials create a refined feel.
The 45-degree pitched roofs are a literal response to cabins in the woods. They are very clipped; there are no eaves yet the materials create a refined feel.
The cabins have clarity in form and structure, clipped geometry, and dark cedar cladding and roofing, enabling them to sit quietly but firmly against their green surroundings.
The cabins have clarity in form and structure, clipped geometry, and dark cedar cladding and roofing, enabling them to sit quietly but firmly against their green surroundings.
The eastern cabin houses the living/dining/kitchen areas along with the main bedroom, while the western cabin contains the guest bedroom and bunk room.
The eastern cabin houses the living/dining/kitchen areas along with the main bedroom, while the western cabin contains the guest bedroom and bunk room.
Inside, a material palette of robust, straightforward and direct materials presides.
Inside, a material palette of robust, straightforward and direct materials presides.
Exposed beams accentuate the gabled form, while a simple exposed concrete floor is combined with painted ply walls and ceilings.
Exposed beams accentuate the gabled form, while a simple exposed concrete floor is combined with painted ply walls and ceilings.
When you step out onto the central Vitex deck, the lighter cedar ceiling of the enclosed area acts as a link between the raw, robust interior palette and the dark-stained cedar of the exterior.
When you step out onto the central Vitex deck, the lighter cedar ceiling of the enclosed area acts as a link between the raw, robust interior palette and the dark-stained cedar of the exterior.
The central sheltered living area extends to a generous open-air deck. 
The central sheltered living area extends to a generous open-air deck. 
The house can be completely opened on both sides, allowing for relaxed, summer living. 
The house can be completely opened on both sides, allowing for relaxed, summer living. 
Here, a sheltered space dances the line between indoors and out and houses a large outdoor fire whose chimney punctuates the cedar-lined roof
Here, a sheltered space dances the line between indoors and out and houses a large outdoor fire whose chimney punctuates the cedar-lined roof
Visitors can enter the home by any one of various entry points, none more profound than the other. 
Visitors can enter the home by any one of various entry points, none more profound than the other. 
There is no formal front door or entrance to the house; more, a sense of meandering in from any of various possible points
There is no formal front door or entrance to the house; more, a sense of meandering in from any of various possible points
The exposed concrete floor creates a raw, relaxed aesthetic. 
The exposed concrete floor creates a raw, relaxed aesthetic. 
Timber and concrete combine to create a refined material palette. 
Timber and concrete combine to create a refined material palette. 
All rooms open up to the outdoors, connecting the home from every area to the surrounds.
All rooms open up to the outdoors, connecting the home from every area to the surrounds.
The various entries to the home help to define the relaxed, holiday feeling. 
The various entries to the home help to define the relaxed, holiday feeling. 
Light colours and simple materials create a calm, relaxed asethetic. 
Light colours and simple materials create a calm, relaxed asethetic. 
A bunkroom allows for additonal guests to stay.
A bunkroom allows for additonal guests to stay.
Simple yet robust materials ensue throughout the interiors. 
Simple yet robust materials ensue throughout the interiors. 
Light and shadow dance across the shoji screens. 
Light and shadow dance across the shoji screens. 
Heralded by the outdoor fire, this sheltered courtyard provides the perfect place for year-round entertaining.
Heralded by the outdoor fire, this sheltered courtyard provides the perfect place for year-round entertaining.
The main living area and kitchen are framed by the trees that define the site and its boundaries.
The main living area and kitchen are framed by the trees that define the site and its boundaries.

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We are a young and energetic practice focused on delivering creative solutions tailored to our clients’ needs. We believe good architecture comes from a process of open collaboration between client and architect which responds to a broad understanding of the project brief and context.