A Restful Resolve – Hill to Horizon by Lloyd Hartley Architects and Studio Brick Architects

Balancing contrasts of light and dark, Hill to Horizon embraces its removed coastal position to curate framed vistas outward. Lloyd Hartley Architects and Studio Brick Architects create a grounded and warm internal enclave through a richly considered materiality, while capturing a restful and calming resolve.

Like any coastal occasional home, Hill to Horizon idyllically captures the essence of the escape. Through its dutiful bringing together of crafted and textural elements, the resulting home is a projection of its owner’s values, as a place that immerses its residents and visitors within such a naturally rich setting. Openings act as a visual and ventilated reminder of the surrounds and the location, bringing pieces of the outside in, while the home itself provides a place to remain warm and observe nature, protected and yet projected. Lloyd Hartley Architects and Studio Brick Architects inject the familiar through the use of timber and controlled proportions, responding appropriately to the surrounding context.

Through its dutiful bringing together of crafted and textural elements, the resulting home is a projection of its owner’s values, as a place that immerses its residents and visitors within such a naturally rich setting.

Built by Sayers Construction, together with joinery by DBJ, Hill to Horizon is intended to be both delicate and enduring. Under its folded iron roof, volumes sit staggered across the terrain, neatly tucking into one another, while forming an enveloping whole. The open shared living spaces encourage large groups to gather and interact, while the spaces of retreat offer a reprieve and a place to breathe. The extensive use of timber adds warmth, while also bringing a natural element into the interior of the home. Located in Otama Beach, in Coromandel, the home sits respectfully within its sloping landscape and amongst other established properties. Through shaping views and sightlines, however, the home feels removed and as if experiencing the landscape on its own.

With operable façade features, the home can open and dissolve the building boundary, creating uninterrupted views and further emphasising a feeling of remoteness. In its composition, there is a deliberate play on light and dark, open and closed, with the expression of these contrasting features an offering of balance. Encased in cedar cladding to the upper levels, the colour changes as it interacts with sunlight throughout the day and across the seasons, while still responding to the modesty of the surrounding holiday homes. Able to be expanded on compressed, the home allows for flexibility whether it is accommodating groups or only a couple, ensuring either occupation is comfortable. The select materiality and warm palette is a significant contributor to reinforcing calm, while aptly protecting its guests from the elements.

Under its folded iron roof, volumes sit staggered across the terrain, neatly tucking into one another, while forming an enveloping whole.

Lloyd Hartley Architects and Studio Brick Architects’ Hill to Horizon is conceived as part response to its surrounds and part mood-enhancer through its ability to make guests feel immersed within nature.