On the shore of an idyllic white sandy beach on New
Zealand's Coromandel Peninsula rests an elegant hut. The site lies within the
coastal erosion zone, where all building must be removable. This is taken
literally and the hut is designed on two thick wooden sleds for movement back
up the site or across the beach and onto a barge.
The hut is a series of simple design moves. The aesthetic is
natural and reminiscent of a beach artifact/perhaps a surf-life-saving or
observation tower. The fittings and mechanics are industrial and obvious, the
structure is gutsy and exposed.
The holiday retreat is designed to close up against the
elements when not in use, and measures a
mere 40 square meters. It accommodates a family of five in a
kitchen/dining/living area, a bathroom and two sleeping zones, the children's accommodating
a three tiered bunk. Closed up, the rough macrocarpa cladding blends into the
landscape and perches unobtrusively on the dunes. The rear being clad in
"flat sheet" a cheap building material found in many traditional New
Zealand holiday homes.
These clients sought to explore the real essence of holiday
living; small, simple, functional. The normal rituals of daily life; cooking dining,
sleeping and showering all being done connected to the outside. The two storey
shutter on the front facade winches open to form an awning, shading the
interior from summer sun while allowing winter sun to enter. It reveals a
double height steel framed glass doors that open the interior much like the
tent flap, connecting the living and the ladder accessed mezzanine bedroom to
the extraordinary view.
Within, the interior is the epitome of efficiency, every
available space is utilised from cabinetry toe spaces to secret cubby holes
within the children's bunks.
The hut is totally sustainable from its modest size to the
use of timber in its cladding, structure, lining and joinery and from its worm
tank waste system to the separate potable grey water tanks. This is a new way
of looking at holiday living in this sensitive dune environment.
Photography: Jackie Meiring
Engineering: CMR
Engineers Ltd
Contractor: D.F.
Wight Builders Ltd
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