Whare Koa
Location: Opahi Bay, Auckland NZ
Project Architect: Strachan Group (SGA)
Featured Fixture: Hinaki by David Trubridge
N. American Distributor: wakaNINE
Photographer: Simon Devitt
Awards: NZIA Award Winner 2018
The Brief
This home designed by Strachan Group Architects had to accommodate a very active and gregarious live-work lifestyle and see them into retirement. Having been involved with the community for over fifty years, the brief for the family’s new house was beyond the normal requirements of a contemporary three-bedroom home. The family’s new house was to become part home, part workshop/studio and part community facility to accommodate weekly tennis games and community meetings etc.
Opahi Bay has been the McGreal family holiday destination since the early 1950’s when Ray McGreal built the original fibrolite family bach and tennis court on the eastward sloping site towards the idyllic bay. Whare Koa, the new house of Ray’s youngest daughter and her family required a sensitive and thoughtful approach to a unique and special place, filled with memories and family history.
“This easy, loose-fitting social hub for the community utilises a rich material palette on a difficult south-facing site with a clear organisational schema across three levels. Built-in furnishings and interior fittings that are rich with ingenious technical solutions blur the interior and exterior space throughout the house.”
– NZIA Awards Jury Citation
The Structure
The floor plan is “T” shaped, with the head anchored to the low part of the site, directly atop the footprint of the old bach, accommodating two east facing bedrooms and the art studio with the main living spaces and kitchen above – all oriented towards the view. An open atrium occupies the space between this living wing and the workshop with master suite above with views beyond via the glazed roof and clerestory.
Two massive Hīnaki 1400mm (55″) lights (designed by David Trubridge) grace this beautifully crafted home in Opahi Bay, New Zealand by the team at Strachan Group Architects.
The atrium is a multi-functioning space from which the home is entered, its transparency breaks down the bulk & scale of the building. Floor levels respond to the sloping site and are linked with a connecting glazed stair gallery, reminiscent of the original path connecting the old bach to the shared tennis court along the north face of the building. The head of the stair opens to a pavilion-like room with a double height-pivoting door that opens to the west providing links with the community and extended family located next door.
Featured Fixture
Hinaki 500 (7″ x 20″ x 7″)
Hinaki 900 (13″ x 35″ x 13″)
Hinaki 1400 (20″ x 55″ x 20″)
The Hīnaki pendant light was David’s first exploration into lighting in 1995 when he made a prototype based on fish traps which are called hīnaki by the Maori. Hīnaki traps were made from woven vines, some in amazingly beautiful forms.
The thin curved pieces of CNC-cut bamboo plywood create a flowing structure that also casts magical patterns on nearby surfaces when illuminated.
Learn More
Location: Opahi Bay, Auckland NZ
Project Architect: Strachan Group (SGA)
Featured Fixture: Hinaki by David Trubridge
N. American Distributor: wakaNINE
Photographer: Simon Devitt
Awards: NZIA Award Winner 2018