Builders Blocks
Defined by restraint and an honest material palette, Builders Blocks by Johnstone Callaghan Architects is a geometric, minimalist residence shaped by its urban context in Christchurch, New Zealand.
In Merivale, just north of Ōtautahi Christchurch’s city centre, the home sits within a neighbourhood defined by traditional character. Builders Blocks departs from this language to create a modern architectural statement. “[The client] sought to challenge the status quo, aiming for a design that would resonate with the surrounding context while provoking conversation about contemporary architecture in the area,” says Mike Callaghan, co-principal and architect at Johnstone Callaghan Architects.
The award-winning project’s exterior is composed of rectilinear forms stacked almost like toy building blocks. It features an iconic Canterbury prickle roof, expanses of intricate brickwork and Timaru bluestone paving, together nodding to the city’s modernist history. “These elements, combined with a contemporary approach, allow the home to both acknowledge its past and speak to the future of Christchurch architecture,” Callaghan says.
Having moved to the city from a rural property, the client sought a more cosmopolitan lifestyle. In response, the ground floor is designed to unfold intuitively, combining the sensibility of a premium hotel suite with the ease of a lock-and-leave. “Once you pass through the main entry space, there is no central hallway to access rooms. You pass through the dining and living to access the primary bedroom. The clients largely exist in the home without using any doors,” Callaghan explains. “The home is calm, comfortable and easy.”
Upstairs, the first level accommodates two additional bedrooms. On the uppermost level, wrapped in folded metal and glass, are a built-in office nook and gin room. Perched atop the residence, the space feels like a contemporary tree house, with views south toward the city and beyond to the Port Hills.
The interior palette is steeped in natural materials. Curved walls soften the otherwise angular facade, while Artisan Stone Orobico Grigio marble forms the kitchen island and VidaSpace custom timber flooring and joinery continue throughout the home.
“The building was designed to be seen from all sides, with no side of it treated as ‘the back’, creating an engaging and dynamic architectural form.”
When the project came to Johnstone Callaghan Architects, the site had already been considered as a single dwelling. The studio instead reimagined it as two attached homes, responding to densification goals and planning constraints. Each level steps back to soften the building’s mass, reducing its perceived scale while working within these limitations. Bordered by a car park, shared driveway and neighbouring church, Builders Blocks maintains privacy through lattice brickwork and clerestory windows that introduce daylight and airflow.
“The design responded to the brief by making the most of the site’s relationship with the neighbouring church, allowing for building to the boundary, upper-level windows within setbacks and recession plane intrusions,” Callaghan says. “The building was designed to be seen from all sides, with no side of it treated as ‘the back’, creating an engaging and dynamic architectural form.”
Craftsmanship and detail are cornerstones of Builders Blocks, shaped in part by the client’s own expertise as a leading architectural contractor. Locally made Canterbury clay bricks were selected for their longevity and timeless aesthetic, while custom folded metal cladding provides a low-maintenance, contemporary finish. Even seemingly simple elements, such as flashings and downpipes, required a detailed eye and close collaboration to achieve, as Callaghan notes.
Builders Blocks offers a contemporary addition to its traditional streetscape while remaining grounded in Christchurch’s material and architectural identity.
