New Zealand is unquestionably one of the most picturesque countries in the world and, as you might expect, it is also home to some truly spectacular architecture as a result. A fine example of this is Dune House from Herbst Architects. Completed in 2020, Dune House has 282m² of living space and boasts some of the most extraordinary views imaginable of the New Zealand coastline.
The plot on which Dune House is built is a large dune scape, carpeted with Muehlenbeckia, which undulates and rolls SW to NE down to a long East Coast beach. Planning restrictions stipulated a 200m setback from the high-water mark and the client’s brief for the build called for a main house with two bedrooms and two smaller sleepout structures. The architects have done a first-rate job of designing this beach-adjacent property.
Boasting a simple rectilinear form that is sheathed in a light rain screen of timber battens, the top edge of this screen is sharply cut to deliver a strong horizontal line reflecting the horizon and delineating the built form of Dune House. The underside of the screen is cut to soft curves which conceptually mirror the dunes that surround the home and soften the form of the landscape.
In order to keep as close to the beach as possible, and to maximise the potential views whilst avoiding a double-storey structure in the landscape, the architects behind Dune House, Herbst, constructed the building on stilts and then re-contoured the land around to building the bring the dunes to the new floor level. Each of the three buildings on the site is linked with boardwalks which float above the Muehlenbeckia and retain the integrity of the landscape.
Images: Simon Wilson
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