Architect Designs A House With A Luscious Internal Courtyard Garden (House Tour)

Wānaka S.K.I House by Roberts Gray Architects is a holiday home for a multigenerational family in the Otago region of New Zealand’s South Island. Fuelled by the clients’ affinity for this city and an aspiration for a place embedded in longevity and contextual relevance, this home conveys a sense of belonging and ingenuity.
With views to the Buchanan Mountain Peaks and Lake Wānaka, the surrounding topography is not only integral to the interior design of this house, but also to the region. “Wānaka is very much about life outdoors,” says architect Jimmy Gray, who shares the clients’ personal connection to the area having holidayed there for many years. “You spend time on the lake, go water-skiing and fishing, and winter is very much oriented around the snow.” Despite these conditions, the house, which is located on the edge of the city condition of Wānaka and set among varying degrees of residential scale, is distinctly urban.
In response to these contrasts and nuances, the architect designed the house as a series of solid forms with contemporary decor and free-flowing courtyards and gardens encased in a lightweight screen. The street elevation is intentionally linear and abstract, immediately inciting curiosity. The architects built a brick wall running partially across the site; it’s a deliberate gesture signalling the shift from public to private space, and behind it, the screen stretches from east to west, sheathing the home and providing privacy. Upon crossing the threshold through a covert opening in the screen, the home gradually unfolds beyond an outdoor courtyard and garden. “It’s theatrical and staged,” says Jimmy. “It really draws you in and from there, the building starts to unravel itself and open up.”
Aside from a two-storey masonry built form at the front containing the main bedroom and a second living room - a private retreat for the clients that takes advantage of the views - the house is single-storey. Guest bedrooms with individual courtyards sit to the west and there is an open-plan kitchen, dining and living area facing a lawned area at the rear. This design ensemble of voids, masses and apertures achieves many things; not only does it direct the experience and intentionally frame the site’s most agreeable aspects, but it creates a diversity of spaces to move through across the seasons, as seen in the house tour.
As a social and vibrant house for clients who love cooking, the rear volume is lived in, enjoyed and used regularly. For this reason, the interior design works hard and the layout of the kitchen - which is anchored by a sculptural island bench and oriented towards the views - is straightforward but effective. The materials include timber and Silver River marble, resulting in a warm and inviting design. The house tour also shows that the decor is equally relaxed yet elevated, and the views are omnipresent in the experience of Wānaka S.K.I House.
00:00 - Introduction to the House With A Luscious Internal Courtyard
00:36 - The Original Brief
01:50 - A Walkthrough of the House
02:40 - Controlling the Use of Light
03:06 - The Compact Kitchen Design
03:44 - A Local Material Palette
04:44 - Favourite Aspects of the House
05:15 - Proud Moments
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Photography by Samuel Hartnett.
Architecture and Interior Design by Roberts Gray Architects.
Build by Level Construction.
Landscape design by Jared Lockhart Design.
Engineering by Constructure.
Joinery by Wānaka Cabinetree.
Appliances by Fisher & Paykel.
Filmed and edited by Cadre.
Production by The Local Production.
Location: Wānaka, New Zealand
The Local Project acknowledges Māori as tangata whenua and Treaty of Waitangi partners in Aotearoa New Zealand. We recognise the importance of Indigenous peoples in the identity of our respective countries and continuing connections to Country and community. We pay our respect to Elders, past and present, and extend that respect to all Indigenous people of these lands.
#House #Lakeside #Architecture

[@timcarrington5977]

Love the calmness this home provides. I’m not a big fan of grey but, the material choices are beautiful together. Nothing shiny or jarring, and the textures are subtle and warm. And an internal courtyard, well done.

[@Minimalism225]

Goodness, this house is sensational! The landscape encases gorgeous views from throughout the home. The internal courtyard is such a tranquil space and the curvature on some of the exterior features allows for a very well constructed contrast in materials and shapes. This home does really well to cover all the ideal aspects of a home design. The amazing views, luscious courtyard, and structural materials all contribute to a diverse home that compliments its surroundings. Well done to Robert Gray Architects on this sensational design!

[@TheLocalProject]

We hope you enjoyed the stunning Wānaka S.K.I House by Roberts Gray Architects! This home is perfectly designed for a multigenerational family in the breathtaking Otago region of New Zealand’s South Island. For more of the latest and greatest in architecture, interior design and house tours, be sure to order your copy of Issue No. 14: thelocalproject.com.au/publication/issue-14

[@donnaoz5502]

A stunning neutral zone from the street, into a warm welcome of essence and nature. Beautifully executed.

[@AB-ol5uz]

One of my favorites!

[@susanbilton9359]

I think it’s a beautiful design in the house and the landscaping. I love a central courtyard, which will be sheltered when the outside isn’t.

[@clubsobri]

Beautiful home. Simple, yet very sophisticated.

[@TheSushmaHomeSellingTeam]

A kind of home that can surprise any guest invited to get in. 🧡🧡

[@waimeagrl5142]

I love intelligent design and courtyards.

[@jayofthebuj]

This is so beautiful. I like how the street view looks modern yet unassuming. It conceals perfectly the gem that is the home - inside ❤

[@ginacrusco234]

Abstract yet warm; blocky but organic; shadow opening to light; dense vs. open-textured: this stunning build is a seamless blend of opposites.

[@janelte]

So inviting. And the landscapers have done a wonderful job to complement it.

[@jimandjudyc48]

Beautiful home in a gorgeous setting.

[@andreelliott467]

Choice of materials were spot on.

[@DZ60]

Stunning

[@ElisaDecke]

Amazing work - so inspiring! Thank you for sharing!!!

[@christianemeiners9224]

Perfection; if I had the opportunity to build a house, this would be a style I certainly would favour. Thanks for sharing this on your channel.

[@john3Lee]

Stunning !!

[@EduArchs]

simply beautiful

[@JoeNielsen44]

Absolutely beautiful 😍

[@nooahchannel]

Beautiful house and beautiful location.

[@filoflin5345]

omg omg this is like a dream that ill never be able to fulfill

[@ani-jf8pu]

this home is perfect to me

[@we-chill]

Love these videos.

[@tracymokgopo]

beautiful

[@Ren-1979]

I like the courtyard that at the same time functions as a distributor.

[@tAkg-bk3qt]

just a dream

[@sergnemo2379]

холодный стиль...но дерево и декор делают уют.++

[@mathewhills8807]

Fine on a hot summers day but howling winter winds and snow make a lot of redundant spaces and difficult journeys to the next living block

[@betraydan_]

Incredible! Anyone know what music track was used in this video?

[@user-ir6bh8dt4e]

شكرا لهذا البنامج الجميل والمفيد رجاء فقط توصيح مخطط المبنى بشل مبسط على الورق

[@cch12410]

材料多元豐富但又能轉化材料性質,每一種材料用量也都剛剛好,好舒服的房子.

[@tanjagrafin6399]

😊❤

[@epvs8373]

Hola, he echado de menos que se explicara, por qué en ese entorno y con esas vistas, hacen un patio interior. ¿Hay motivos climáticos? Es importante, no solo guiar al espectador a nivel estético sino también a nivel técnico y arquitectónico. Un saludo.

[@andrew4809]

Beautiful man garden

[@PUMIC]

👌

[@ivanklymenko]

🥰

[@jackchen5716]

What brand is that refrigerator? It's hard to find stainless steel interiors. Looks beautiful!

[@janicestevens4245]

I would assume their video partner, Fisher & Paykel?

[@queenabove18]

A square grey block tower. How dull. A second lounge? Why?

[@onepiecebarca]

do you have any plan to expand beyond australia and new zealand?

[@markkkpngnbn1892]

🇵🇭👌

[@nextwave1314]

I feel that good architecture is easier to achieve with huge budgets. I would be more impressed if the same quality of architecture was achieved with a middle class budgets.

[@searchingfortruth619]

I wouldn't be more impressed per se, but more intrigued. There's a development of ideas, and the ones that are unique/new/customized are often developed by people with means. My hope is that these design principles trickle down into mass-market developments.

[@alextenerife8868]

Браво! 🎉🇷🇺

[@gregpendrey6711]

A masterpiece. Dishwasher drawer circuit boards are not sealed and are not covered by a warranty. 🤔

[@willvink]

They aren’t dish drawers

[@thecolumbusonian9352]

a little too mausoleum-y no?

[@eduardoquiroga9666]

Didnt understand one word, maybe a couple of words

[@Kwakucam]

Architecture…

[@ilmannafia111]

Can you please give us a detailed house tour. It could have been better. The same shots with the background voice is shown again and again. Sometimes this looks like slideshow of photos of the house. Otherwise The house is beautiful 👍

[@chryXantho]

Deluxe prison home - just needs some barbed wire.

[@user-tl8zp2vs3e]

4:33 ‘It’s a real privilege’ architect speak for a massive fee … who writes these scripts ?

[@jean-marcabcarius4002]

NICE PROJECT, annoying commentaries...please have the architects step back vocally , their works are visually self explanatory.

[@brilent195]

The vocal is to help give U perspective into the architects intent and purpose for their design

[@thembamekwa2311]

context is important

[@jonathanemeryarena]

I quite enjoyed the voiceover. Just turn off the volume and watch the video if you don’t want to listen.

[@samuelyates1554]

Gas cooktop in 2024 😢

[@robby0101]

L take

[@primeentelechy]

Did it have to be so aggressively ugly on the outside? No, no it did not. This building benefits from its beautiful surroundings, but is a deliberately offensive eyesore, as the architect so much as admits. Pure obnoxiousness and hubris.