Tane Cox Of Red Architecture Winner Of The ADNZ Supreme Award
The judging panel for the 2014 ADNZ | Resene Architectural Design Awards included Dr Andrew Barrie, professor of design at the University of Auckland’s School of Architecture and Planning, Dr Duncan Joiner, chief architect at the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment and Graham Sawall, award-winning architectural designer and life member of ADNZ.
The supreme award winner is selected from across all categories including commercial design, residential new homes, alterations and multi-unit dwellings.
For more information visit www.adnz.org.nz.
Architectural Designer Tane Cox says he loves projects that begin with an idea and grow into a design that embraces that idea. His design ‘Modern Barn Form’ picked up the SUPREME award at the 2014 ADNZ | Resene Architectural Design Awards, receiving praise for its unique barn-inspired structure.
A subtle and clever design, ‘Modern Barn Form’ is centred on two black barn-like structures located in the beautiful rural landscape of Whatawhata. Designed for a young family, the brief called for a home that was child-friendly and could grow with the clients and their children.
It’s a design that really serves its purpose, and although modest in appearance, the two black barn-like structures are hard not to admire when the home finally reveals itself as you wind around the quiet country road.
One of the structures houses the main living and sleeping areas for the property, while the entry and ablutions are in bock forms to the south of the main structure. The secondary black barn holds the garage which is detached from the main dwelling.
With the clients open-minded about the end result, Cox had some freedom of design, with the prime goal to build a home that fits in with its rural environment. There was real consideration for these surrounds right from the early stages of the design, with Cox passionate about creating homes that have a real relationship with their environment. He tends to favour simple designs that fit their context. .
The clients were particularly impressed with the design, and it has become a place where they can entertain their friends with ease, and also enjoy family time in the beauty of their location.
Barn Typology
With a real interest in the interaction between architecture and the environment, the traditional barn structure was a concept Cox was keen to explore. Generally confined to the farms of rural New Zealand, most barns are usually organised as part of a collection of buildings, all situated around a common arrival space. However, instead of housing farming equipment and animals, this structure would need to house a family.
Staying true to barn typology, Dimondclad Rib 50 vertical run steel was chosen as the primary cladding. Not only was this a cost effective option, it was also seen as an adaptive cladding that can easily be removed for future alterations, as well as being easily serviceable. The choice of black Dimondclad Rib 50, creates a dominant feature in the landscape and yet the barn typology blends in with the feel and identity of the countryside. Dimondclad Rib 50 is a versatile cladding that creates a distinctive look whilst maintaining clean lines and weathertight, concealed laps. Bricks from a warehouse that was a of the Christchurch earthquakes and had found their way to a local demolition yard were picked up cheap and seemed a fitting cladding of the block forms to the south side. They create beauty and contrast against the form of the steel cladding. A secondary barn clad in Dimondclad Rib 50 forms the garage, which is detached from the main building.
Structures were also put in place to allow options in the future - a pergola that will later serve as a guide for an external sliding weather screen, a garage that can easily have lean-to storage to the rear for firewood and an upper loft that can continually increase along the length of the roof space via attic trusses to allow for a growing family.
A cedar clad recess is cut at the centre of the house and provides a covered outdoor area for the home while creating an outdoor foyer with framed views from the entry and loft. The recess also functions as a passageway to a deck.
The simplicity of a single depth living space and skylight ventilation to the loft space allows for passive ventilation via the "stack effect". Predominant north facing glazing also allows passive solar heating. Solar panels for hot water located on the north facing roof facades and a low particulate output wood burner with wetback complete a mild passive envelope.
Beyond the exterior
Inside, it’s evident that this is a home made up of many elements. The interior is enlivened by recycled materials and off-the-shelf items such as bare light bulbs hanging from the roof by their cords, exposed beams , old distressed stools against the kitchen bench and brick features giving a modern industrial appearance. The judges in the ADNZ Resene Architectural Design Awards were particularly impressed by the use of these simple, yet effective additions and the disciplined palette of colours which they said invested the home’s spaces with liveliness and charm.
There’s ample space for the family to enjoy the home, including fun, quirky features such as a storage cupboard with a comic-book themed wall. A long deck protrudes from the house, with an outdoor dining option providing a seamless transition between the indoors and the outdoors.