Houses Revisited: Motuoapa house
The south elevation and entry to this Motuoapa house.
The first floor hallway is dappled in early evening light that shines through floor-to-ceiling glazing.
Goal posts frame the eastern elevation of the house from the footy pitch next door.
Stepped wooden decking leads to the front door through a rugged rock garden.
The wooden stairway in the entry hall.
Ground floor plan.
First floor plan.
Auckland architect Mark Frazerhurst has designed a holiday house for friends that is hardwearing without compromising good looks, first published in 2012.
The town of Motuoapa is around a five minute drive east of Tūrangi, overlooking the shores of Lake Taupō. It was developed as a holiday spot but in recent years people have started living there permantly and commuting to nearby towns.
Architect Mark Frazerhurst’s clients purchased a piece of land in a subdivision in Motuoapa overlooking the lake. They are good friends of Frazerhurst and commissioned him to design a holiday house for them on the site, which he undertook during his evenings and weekends as he was working for another architect at the time. Designing for, and with, friends was a great opportunity and was what led Frazerhurst to start his own practice.
Finishing the house was also a friends and family affair. The builder is the uncle of one of the clients, and Frazerhurst and friends spent weekend working bees staining the exterior. Frazerhurst’s wife Kate designed the landscaping.
The clients wanted a holiday home that would reflect their interest in the outdoors and be suitably rugged and easygoing to accommodate their young family. It needed to be a lock up and leave house that they could arrive at from their home in Auckland and set up quickly and easily. The clients also wanted to be able to rent the house to others, so it needed to be able to accommodate large groups.
There was a written brief that included the budget and the type and number of spaces. This included a games room, sauna, and three bedrooms. It was a functional, rather than aesthetic brief, but the clients knew that they wanted the house to respond aesthetically to to their love of outdoor pursuits, and a relaxed holiday mode of living.
The plan was designed around a courtyard entry. The house is oriented towards the views of Lake Taupō and the approach to the house on the west side. The eastern wall is the backbone of the plan. It has very little glazing and acts as an anchor and a privacy screen from future neighbours.
A stepped wooden pathway leads visitors to the front door. Inside, slatted timber casts dappled light onto the staircase. On the ground floor are the garage and laundry cupboard, along with spaces to unwind after a long day on the mountain: a sauna, spa and games room.
Upstairs there are three bedrooms, two bathrooms, and an open plan kitchen, living and dining space. The living space leads out onto an L-shaped deck that enjoys the view of the lake. A smaller balcony accessed from the master bedroom is another outdoor space from which to enjoy the view.
The material palette includes Waikato schist and cedar weather boards, which together create a rugged, wintry feel. According to Frazerhurst, materials were all selected to age and weather gracefully and to complement the natural environment and respond to the local context.
The plan and materials come together in a house with strong, sleek lines that suit the environment and the family that it serves.
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Note: These are stories from our archives and, since the time of writing, some details may have changed including names, personnel of specific firms, registration status, etc.
