Table of contents for URBIS_95_201612 in Urbis

Our Best of 2016 special (pg 48) is a sun-drenched compendium of the quirky, the puzzling, the wowmoments and the unmissable ideas from the year in design. The process of gathering, photographing and writing about these gems was a blast and we hope you share in our enthusiasm for these pieces. In this issue we also focus on summer homes. Our aim was not so much on houses in warm climates but on how architects and designers deal with warmth in usually cool places. From a stunning lakeside abode in Canada through to a house in London that is permeable to a single, ancient pear tree and the skies above. We were also fortunate to peek inside two local homes: a dramatic Waiheke space perched above a cliff and our…

When Colin and Wendy planned a house to replace their old 1950s Mangawhai Heads bach, they had a very clear vision from the outset. The house would be pure white, or Resene Black White, to be precise. Crisp, elegant and beautifully detailed, the house borrowed architectural references from both the coastal homes of the Mediterranean, as well as classic New Zealand houses. With its large eaves, gabled form, verandahs, and corrugated iron roof, the house sits perched in a stunning location looking out over the estuary, sand dunes and ocean. “Have a comprehensive vision of what you want. Don’t compromise. Collaborate with the right design and trades people.” The only colour on the exterior is a flash of lime green on the front door, in Resene Wellywood. The window joinery…

NEW PLYMOUTH’S BEATING HART The White Hart building in New Plymouth has been many things throughout its 130 years: hospital, biker gang hang-out, derelict. Its latest iteration as the social axis of the West End Precinct – by local entrepeneurs (see page 54) and Atelierworkshop – is set to be one of the region’s stars this summer. Here are our recommendations: FOR FOOD Ozone Coffee Roasters: Led by a Cup of Excellence jury member, this roaster and café has a reputation as purveyors of fine, single-origin black gold. ozonecoffee.com Snug Lounge: Japanese yakitori appetisers such as the pork belly grilled with ton katsu sauce. Cocktail: Wakaba Fizz – a refreshing blend of gin, mango and cucumber. snuglounge.co.nz RETAIL THERAPY Et Vous fashion retailer: For local brands such as Trelise Cooper,…

“FOR A COUPLE ACCUSTOMED TO THE CONSTA NT SOCIALISING THAT IS A PART OF THEIR INDUSTRY, THEIR FOUR-BEDROOM HOME IS A HAVEN OF QUIETUDE.” THE BOARDROOM FOR the creative studio on the second floor of the White Hart building – an Italianate Palazzoinfluenced building from the late 1880s in downtown New Plymouth – is submerged in the wavy, metallic reflections from the Len Lye Centre directly across the street. On this particularly sunny Labour Weekend, the space is also filled with some of the city’s movers and shakers. The mayor, property owners and developers, and entrepreneurs of many an ilk have all gathered to toast the opening of the West End Precinct, a new banner for 12 businesses (mostly hospitality and retail) hoping to ride on Len Lye’s kinetic wave…

JUSTIN FOOTE A trained journalist, Justin currently works in communications and regularly contributes to Urbis. He writes about Bethells Bach on pages 60–67. You write about a Bethells Bach for this issue. What struck you the most about this space? For me, it’s how the architects have manipulated the space to create a comfortable family holiday home within a compact footprint, without compromising on design or aesthetics. Herbst has a reputation for stunning holiday homes. Where would you put one for yourself? I have always been attracted to the pure beauty of the Marlborough Sounds. To have a sustainable, off-the-grid holiday home within that environment would be the ultimate. This is also our ‘best of’ issue. What are your personal favourites? There are so many contemporary architects whom I admire…

IMAGINING PARADISE Arcadia is a textile project made during a masters course at Massey University of Wellington by Amy Sio-Atoa. She used several techniques including hand-painting, textured paper collage, embroidery, photography and other digital processes and was influenced by historic French wall coverings, tropical prints in popular culture and the paintings of Henri Rousseau and Paul Gaugin. With some resonance to Edward Said’s Orientalism, this textile explores Western myths of the tropics as an idealised paradise. amysioatoa.com For more work by Wellington’s young creatives, turn to pg 21. Object of Desire: io Lamp OK, so it is not exactly a design piece that can be purchased. As a matter of fact, it hasn’t even been produced yet. Nonetheless, this prototype by Wellington design student Josh Bruderer ticks so many boxes…

Ermanno Cattaneo SUZANNE TURLEY LANDSCAPES Tell us about this space. This courtyard sits between the house and a wellestablished park. The steep bank already housed a substantial number of native trees when we started working on it. So we decided to build on this theme and borrow from the park’s background to make the terrace feel like an inviting open glade within a native forest. To this lush and soft backdrop we chose to counter-pose very stark and modern hardscape elements. Wedged on the bank between stone-cladded walls sits a dark overflowing pool, like a natural pond and waterfall would sit amongst rock outcrops in a forest clearing. Most of your career has been in Europe; What has been the biggest lesson learned from working in New Zealand? It’s been…

Design Warehouse brings you stunningly curated outdoor furniture from Italy, Belgium, Indonesia, France and the Philippines, available for local and national delivery. Everything arrives fully assembled. Sunbrella cushions are free with the purchase of our deep seating pieces as shown. www.designwarehouse.co.nz 09 377 7710 Toll Free - 0800 111 112 sales@designwarehouse.co.nz 137/147 The Strand, Parnell/Auckland Wholesalers Open Direct To The Public Daily 9:30 - 5:30…

Once in a Lifetime Vol 2. Places to Go for Travel and Leisure Edited by Clara Le Fort, Robert Klanten and Sven Ehmann Don’t read this if you were already happy with your summer holiday plans. Chances are your bach or camping trip won’t seem so sweet after leafing through these luxurious hotels from around the world. Once in a Lifetime is an apt title for this book, which showcases hotels that go beyond the everyday and define opulence. Well beyond a night at the local Hilton, these are one-of-a-kind rooms set in often historical buildings in incredible locations, such as the 17th-century Burgundy château filled with modern art and contemporary bespoke furniture by Dutch designers, or the Moroccan mountain kasbah, with its rambling architecture and richly-textured interiors. Aside from…

“...THEIR DESIGN AESTHETIC IS BEST DESCRIBED AS ‘LOW MAINTENANCE’... WITH ONLY TWO ROOMS PLUS AMENITIES, IT’S MORE ABOUT WHAT YOU LEAVE OUT THAN WHAT YOU BRING IN.” AFTER SEVEN YEARS of globetrotting, it’s understandable that Dariush Lolaiy and Rebecca Smidt treat their home like a backpackers’. “At the end of a busy week, we’ll look at the couch and realise we haven’t sat on it once… but that’s what happens; we’ll eat maybe one meal here, then fly out the door in the morning and won’t be back until midnight.’’ Work happens at Cazador, the Middle Eastern-inspired restaurant Lolaiy’s parents set up in Balmoral 30 years ago, and it’s the primary reason the couple are back at all. Apparently his parents thought he was off on a six-month holiday, so…

As the end of the year approaches we take stock of the shapes, colours, materials, objects, homes and makers we came across in 2016 and highlight some of those that stayed deeply engrained within our memories. Image: Toaki okano / Art Directi on: Thomas Cannings Some of the items on the following pages are not fit for human consumption. They are loud and aggressive. Some are excessive, expensive and entirely self-indulgent. Many will not match a single thing you have at home. They will stick out like a blue dog and possibly make your visitors nauseous with either vertigo or plain envy. After all, who needs a chair you cannot sit on or homewares with colours so flamboyant they will melt the paint off the walls? There are, however, other…