The ‘Three Trees’ Early Learning Centre in Christchurch, New Zealand, embraces a natural approach that focuses on providing children with experiences to learn from and grow within nature. The pedagogy of the centre focuses on “childcentered learning through play that embraces the great outdoors”, and this philosophy has been carried through in the architectural approach to the design of this Early Learning Centre.
The brief required a home for entertaining and rest that would seamlessly integrate with the neighbourhood, it also called to maximise a dog-legged site to capture sunlight and views. The resulting house is sympathetic to its neighbours, providing privacy through the careful composition of building form and light.
Following the site’s shape, the building unfurls in a series of enigmatic light-filled spaces within a logical building plan composed of courtyards and outdoor zones, each positioned to follow the sun’s path. The formal entrance is bordered by a concealed garage, connected to the house by a ‘zen’-like covered link.
This residential home resides atop Mt Pleasant in Christchurch, New Zealand overlooking the natural landscape of the mountain and the waters of the Estuary. Designed to the landscape and surrounding environment, the building’s form stands honestly with purpose.
MC Architecture Studio was fully aware of the surrounding environments impact on the building and vice versa. The Wall House has been formed to address, and exist alongside, its exterior world. Its fragmented northern façade splits open for maximum sun contact, while protecting a sheltered outdoor living area from the prevailing winds. The shape creates two alternative wings, one reaching out to the North Eastern corner of the site, while the other leans to the North West directing out towards the view.
Over the course of 15 months in 2010 and 2011, Christchurch, the largest city of New Zealand’s South Island, was devastated by four major earthquakes that toppled a city known for its arts, culture, and surrounding natural beauty. Schmidt Hammer Lassen Architects, together with Architectus, designed Tūranga, a new central library project that is one of nine anchor projects identified as vital to the redevelopment of the city centre.
The new central library is a visually stunning symbol of hope, unity, and rebirth that will fundamentally change the way residents and visitors experience Christchurch’s city centre. In collaboration with local architectural firm Architectus, Schmidt Hammer Lassen relied on its vast library experience to design and deliver a building that is at once fortuitous and deliberate.
“Tūranga is the kind of multi-faceted project that layers architectural interest with significant cultural relevance,” said Morten Schmidt, Founding Partner at Schmidt Hammer Lassen, lead designers of the library. “It has been a privilege to design a project that not only fulfills the need for a new central library, but also one whose mission of restoring the soul of the city includes the deep cultural heritage of Ngāi Tūāhuriri, the local Māori people.”
A modest family home nestled amongst the foothills of the Port hills in Heathcote Valley, Christchurch- a rebuild option for clients who were keen to stay within their community after the 2011 earthquakes. The house, like the section, is naturally orientated towards the valley and features a longitudinal stretch of windows offering magnificent views across the valley and an intimacy with the surrounding landscape. The band of sliding doors below opens onto an expansive deck- blurring the boundary between man-made house and the natural surroundings. The northern ‘glass house’ end of the house sits under generous overhanging eaves giving an illusion of the house disappearing into the trees beyond. A double height space is located behind a portion of the ‘glass house’ allowing natural daylight to filter into the first floor common areas. The house is a good example of what can be achieved with a modest budget and well thought-out economical design.
The characterful Durham Street Townhouses sit proudly about a shared courtyard punctuated with private walkways, dramatic pergolas, and bold roof forms.
Around this central space the proportions and arrangement of the buildings work together to create a village-like atmosphere, while oiled cedar walls and slatted screens combine with the careful composition of glazed openings to provide privacy to each unit.
Article source: MCAS-Max Capocaccia Architecture Studio
The brief required a rectangular floor plan, whilst the creation of partition walls not to celling height and small separations between elements achieved captivating interior spaces that detract from the simple form.
The whole of the North façade and part of the West are glazed so that the entire view is accessible from the living area, dining and kitchen.
The Christchurch Botanic Gardens lie within a 21ha loop of the Avon River and is the cities most visited public space. The newly developed centre is regarded as one of the most significant new build projects since the 2011 Christchurch Earthquake and extends the garden’s ability to undertake research, conservation and run educational activities as well as demonstrate the beauty, variety and complexity of the plant world.
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