The Stage and The Cave

by Rogan Nash Architects

From the Architect

This thoughtfully renovated character villa in Auckland’s Grey Lynn makes the most of its long thin site. Walking from the street to the front door you follow the central hallway and are led down a few steps taking you from the villa to the new addition, with a contrasting modernist aesthetic. On your left is an outdoor lounge – a terrace with outdoor fireplace which faces the west and makes the most of the late afternoon sun. To your right is a media room and straight ahead the ceiling height increas-es in the open – plan living, dining and kitchen then outside to the outdoor dining, with outdoor fire-place and BBQ area, and carefully considered north-facing garden. Running the length of the new addition is a lap pool, which seems to fuse outdoors and indoors. Past the kitchen is a scullery, which adds extensive storage, and additional access to the northern garden.

The design plays on the Frank Lloyd Wright concept of Compression and Release which in this de-sign is imagined as ‘The Stage’ and ‘The Cave’. The kitchen forms part of ‘The Cave’ which anchors this room with a lower stud and is formed from walnut and granite creating a moody atmosphere. In contrast it opens up to the double height dining room as ‘The Stage’.

The kitchen is lined in walnut timber veneer, the splashback is black granite and back bench is stain-less steel. The ceiling is lined in walnut veneered acoustic panels. The depth of colour and richness further emphasizes ‘The Cave’.

Adjoining the kitchen is the open plan living and dining room which have a 3.8m stud height, clear-story glazing and stunning two-sided fireplace. The chosen aesthetic of Mid-century modernism, re-flects the clients’ favourite piece of furniture, a Clausen & Son vintage sideboard which sits facing the dining table. The rest of the furniture was custom made for the room. Including the Simon James Design ‘Outline Chairs’ and ‘The Knack’ sofa, Ben Glass table and chairs and rug from Designer Rugs. The George Nelson Bubble pendant lights which emphasizes the height of the space.

The outdoor dining space is adjacent to the kitchen and has its own BBQ, wood store and pizza oven fireplace as well as an 8 person table setting. At the far end of the lap pool is the outdoor lounge, which by comparison is much more informal but still has its own outdoor fireplace. These sit on built-in bench seats and are complimented by a 2-seater sofa.

The garden design directly references the architecture: the building is clad in cedar so this material was carried through to the design of the fireplaces and fences. As the site size was limited we en-sured the palette of materials extended seamlessly from inside to outside.