A Considered Addition – The Side Car by Spacecraft Architects

As a complementary addition to another nearby building on the site, dubbed the Wedgie, The Side Car is imagined as an evolution of the original principles of the removed home. Spacecraft Architects draws from the surrounding environmental and architectural context, proposing a fitting sibling to the dramatic, bold form that sits so starkly amongst the natural.

When planning for an addition, the choice to add to the previous form or build anew becomes a point of contention. In this case, the original home needed additional amenity, was already a striking addition to the landscape and had its own sense of presence and identity. The steeply sloping roof form dramatically contrasted the surrounding dense greenery and forest conditions and was a statement in itself. In proposing the most apt approach for an addition to sit comfortably next to this building, the same team worked to respectfully honour the original. Instead of changing the existing form in any way or adding on to it and affecting its presence, the approach was to create a new form of its own. Borrowing principles from the original and aligning the new alongside the existing, Spacecraft Architects offers a balanced insertion.

Imagined as a winter dwelling while the original is open to the elements, the building allows the site to be enjoyed throughout the year.

Built by Richard Hilton Jones, The Side Car makes no claims to be adding anything other than a functional expansion to the original. Sitting aligned, the roofline is lifted at the opposing end, as a composed ying-and-yang type arrangement. The cloaking materiality also offers an element of contrast in a darkened metal sheet wrapping, leaving the original and its grey natural timber finish as its own form. The choice to encase the form in a dark palette is a receding act of sorts, enabling the landscape to remain the focus and the Wedgie form to be secondary.

Located in Tutuakaka, the removed retreat offers an opportunity to be immersed deeply within nature. While the original brief called for a bachelor pad that offered a place of escape, with time, however, the owner’s needs expanded, resulting in the birth of The Side Car. By flipping the overall form, the same geometry and proportions are retained, yet its sense of enclosure sits in contrast to its muse. Imagined as a winter dwelling while the original is open to the elements, the building allows the site to be enjoyed throughout the year. Its select location then nestles further into the landscape, with its long linear formation ensuring a reminder of place is present from all aspects of the home.

Located in Tutuakaka, the removed retreat offers an opportunity to be immersed deeply within nature.

Through an embracing and protective sensibility underpinning the approach, Spacecraft Architects offers an aptly-named complementary expansion, retaining the essence of the Wedgie while crafting its own identity in the process.