Our clients and their family have been holidaying in Wharetukura Bay in Queen Charlotte Sounds for many years. This is their special place, where they gather together with family and friends.

The small bay is fringed by steep hills clad in bush, with a beautiful beach and a cluster of houses and boats beyond.

In the beginning there was a small simple kiwi bach on the site, with a lawn that rolled down to the beach. Their three girls were little and Chester the Labrador was a puppy. As the years went by they dreamed of a new modern contemporary holiday house that could accommodate multiple family groups and many friends.

The new house is nestled quietly into the bush treading lightly on the land. It opens up to the lawn and the beach beyond. It is sunny, makes the most of the beautiful views and has been built around the established garden.

The form of the house merges into the landscape. A central courtyard built around an established Punga Fern, provides a sheltered outdoor area away from predominant NW winds. It has views through the transparent glass walls of the house to the Sounds beyond.

The stained cedar clad upper level of the house matches the Pohutakawa bark. It floats above the lower level with its abundance of glass sliding doors. A clearly defined composition of solid and void create a simple sculptured form that required precise detailing.

This is a holiday home that expresses our client’s personality. It includes NZ sails from the recent Rio Olympic Games and a boatshed made from a lifeboat from the Interisland ferry the Arahura, that use to sail past the house.

It is an intergenerational holiday home that provides relaxed family living in harmony with a very special landscape.