RESIDENTIAL ARCHITECTURE
TE ARAI BEACH HOUSE by Fearon Hay Architects
With interiors designed in collaboration with Sonja Hawkins, this home in the upper reaches of the Tāmaki Makaurau/ Auckland region is sited amid Te Arai’s dunes and pine forests. It comprises a pair of gabled timber sheds referencing those found in rural Aoteroa, with an area for seating and an outdoor fire between them.
To moderate the light, air, view and privacy, the house is layered with sliding timber shutters that, along with the roof and cladding, will develop a patina over time, further integrating the buildings with the landscape. The use of timber inside (oiled to provide warmth as a subtle counter to the exterior) brings the building together as a whole, and blurs indoors and out.
A combination of sloping and flat ceilings provides both intimate and voluminous spaces inside this home. Where the ceilings are raised and sloping to the ridge, a dado of timber down-stands links the spaces and consolidates the glazing and shutter lines on the perimeter.
As much sustainably grown timber as possible was used in this environmentally conscious project; the
