Natural discourse, Auckland
Whilst most projects tend to start with a conversation, very few projects start with a conversation quite like this. In the end, ‘discourse’ is the better term to describe the series of meetings that we had with the clients and Cheshire Architects to interrogate our collective process from the beginning.
Unusually, landscape and architecture developed along the same timeline, and as part of an open dialogue. This involved extended research into local ecology, geology and hydrology, and the multitude of ways in which these converge (including within Auckland’s built environments).
This all arose from the clients’ desire to deepen their engagement with the natural world around them. Accordingly, our discussions encompassed Rangitoto’s lavafield ecosystems, the Waitemata Harbour’s scarp forests, coastal shrublands and meadows of the Hauraki Gulf, and the often surprising presence of spontaneous vegetation within the centre of Auckland City.
This garden represented the first time that we specified the critically endangered native meadow grass in the image above, Pentapogon (syn. Dichelachne) micranthus within a project. We had trialled this attractive species for a couple of years within the experimental garden attached to our studio, from seed sourced off an exposed cutting on a previous project on the eastern end of Waiheke Island – a habitat with marked visual similarities to the ground plane of the seaward-facing garden at this project.
We often discuss the character of woodlands within our studio (especially Logan Drummond and I), for this varies significantly as one traverses even comparatively short distances in Auckland’s varied forested environments. A woodland’s character is partially defined by the quality of light that penetrates the canopy – with the best example of this provided by our southern beech (Nothofagus) forests.
This kind of dappled light (and branching structure) was a quality that we felt was necessary for the central courtyard, around which the house rotates. However, the very minor role that beech plays within Auckland’s woodlands (where small pockets of hard beech endure in association with kauri) steered us towards considering which other species deliver an equivalent sense of lightness.
Our observations from the interior of local riverine and coastal forests steered us towards the use of turepo (Paratrophis microphylla, syn. Streblus heterophyllus) – a seldom-planted small tree with a recessive, pale green hue and an airy growth habit.
Local basalt was already present on the site before our design process commenced, albeit in built form (as a wall at the base of the property). This volcanic stone was repurposed to define the boundary, and basalt was further specified throughout the site – a natural decision considering previous flows from a nearby extinct volcano.
We were particularly interested in the way in which stone could form overlapping, abstract geometric blocks adjacent to the main entrance, to provide a greater sense of depth from the adjoining access drive. This involved specifying a linear, cut basalt ‘negative’ detail to facilitate the dual movements of people and vehicles (whilst emphasising a human scale).
One of the most distinctive parts of this project was the proposal to situate a large tree within the main living space of the house. In addition to collaborating with the architects on ensuring that there is sufficient air exchange with the surrounding environment (a lack of humidity is the primary issue with the cultivation of indoor trees), we spent a considerable amount of time determining which native species are capable of sustaining both low light and comparatively low humidity.
Having seen the degree to which matai (Prumnopitys taxifolia) tolerates heavy shade within dry eastern forests of both islands, we felt that this majestic podocarp would be particularly well adapted to life as a ‘semi-indoor’ tree – as shown in the image above. In addition, the iridescent, silvery tone of its new foliage reflects light in a manner that continues the tone established by turepo within the central courtyard.
Northern rātā (Metrosideros robusta) emerges from a low coastal woodland association of Olearia albida and Pseudopanax lessonii – echoing the presence of northern rātā in the slowly evolving forest cover of Rangitoto.
Further up the site, 3 large specimens of Auckland’s predominant coastal species of kowhai (Sophora chathamica) establish silhouettes against the rhythmical cladding of the building. This impressive tree is still a significant member of the Waitematā and Manukau’s coastal scarp forests – places where its presence should be reinstated to provide late winter highways for tūī and kereru.
Within the matrix of low-growing shrubland and meadow on the seaward side of the house, a critically-endangered native daphne, Pimelea orthia, is nestled within the meadow with a highly threatened flowering herb from Auckland’s West Coast – Lobelia ‘Woodhill’. The former is noteworthy in the context of Auckland for having historically grown within metropolitan Auckland’s current limits, from which it has since disappeared.
Another Pimelea native to islands of the Hauraki Gulf, P. urvilleana subsp. nesica, continues the tone of its taller, mounding relative, and the weeping manuka of coastal headlands (including Tawharanui and Great Barrier Island), Leptospermum hoipolloi f. procumbens, trails over the seaward palisade wall to establish a more seamless foreground to the gulf.
