| 99 T T Sue Russell ‘Good design can’t be rushed’ A project very close to his heart was the home he designed for his parents near the dunes at Mangawhai. ARCHITECTURE OTO Group Architecture Nicholas Dunning, principal of OTO Group Architecture, says one of the aspects that drew him to becoming a designer was the immersive nature of the process to find the perfect expression of form that sits comfortably with a person’s nature and lifestyle. ”Everyone lives in different ways, and a large part of the design process which I really engage with is to unravel how they want to live,” says Nicholas, who undertook his Masters of Architecture in Denmark, a place he was drawn to as the birthplace of modern design. He worked in Denmark for three years and has brought elements of the country’s consideration of design back home with him. “When I was there, I had a choice of two schools of architecture I could attend, and I chose the one that was very hands-on. “One of the buildings we had at the school was an old gymnasium hall and we used it to assemble prototypes. It was a much more humble approach to architecture. We were taught about how humans exist, and how the human body works in space. Architecture is about building and I wanted to learn from people who understood that.” His studio is based in Mangawhai, and Nicholas says he has plenty of work across his desk as 2025 gets underway. OTO Group Architecture is engaged in a number of projects across the country, from the Far North through Mangawhai, Auckland, Hawke’s Bay, Wellington and Central Otago. “Running a studio is a juggling game to a degree. Not everyone is building houses every day, given it’s a massive financial investment. People come along when they have decided to entrust a very personal journey with you as the designer. “I spend a lot of time with clients and get to understand their nuances. I want to respect the scale of the undertaking. My job is about listening and unlocking possibility.” Typically, there’s just Nicholas and one other designer working in the studio, but when projects come along he has a team he can call on. That flexibility suits the nature of how and when projects arrive. He points out, too, that a design process has its own time to it and can’t be rushed. Even some renovations can take upward of a year to take shape. “A lot of time, good design isn’t obvious. It blends into the background, and good design can’t be rushed. Sometimes ideas come quickly, but even then I think it best to let things sit, to think about things a little longer. It is easier to redraw than it is to rebuild.” A project very close to his heart was the home he designed for his parents near the dunes at Mangawhai. Nicholas had spent years holidaying in the area and had lived on the land in a cabin he had built for himself. He had an intimate connection with how this environment would influence a home, and what possibilities to look for. “I brought my learnings from Denmark into a connection with a site that was very special to me. It has been a rewarding experience. “My clients were my parents, which means I get to spend a lot of time in the house, seeing it in action in different ways and different weather conditions. I spend a lot of time thinking of these houses and seeing them getting built, but to get to spend time in my work once it is done is the ultimate learning experience.” When Nicholas returned from Denmark he worked for architect Richard Priest and it was during this time that the dunes project got underway. “I asked Richard if I could develop a concept myself and he agreed. That design is essentially what was built.” Imbuing a deep understanding of the site and the impact changes to the weather and the seasons had on it sat at the back of Nicholas’s mind through the design development. It needed to be a house that embraced the realities of living in the dunes, in that it could provide shelter from the different winds and not be worn down by the blown sand. “It is a remarkable landscape. Everyone who visits is struck by how different and dynamic the dunes and the bush here are.” As a nod to the shape and scale of the dunes behind, a solid brick form rises from the land, which can be seen as one approaches the home from the street. T wo brick walls curve inwards, as if extending an invitation to visitors to draw towards a very substantial cedar-clad door without framing, which seems to be both a barrier to what lies beyond and offering a way in. Inside, the red brick material continues, with the foyer encased on each side and underfoot in brick. Further in, timber, glass and travertine articulate the spaces inside and echo the tones of the sands outside. The brick was chosen as it does not rust or rot and won’t be damaged by the sand or salt. “I wanted there to be a sense of transformation as you enter the home, and a feeling of turning away from the street and being drawn to the dunes. It is a very private house, one of quiet and peace and awe.” Nicholas says the home was designed to be a one-bedroom house for his empty-nester parents, but could accommodate more people seamlessly without it feeling like a large house. Nicholas believes that now is a good time for people to consider engaging an architect and beginning the design process. “It’s a rare moment in construction when you can actually get tradesmen. Even if this isn’t the year to build, it is a very good year to start talking about building. Start the conversation and begin the journey of visioning how you want to live.” Nicholas makes a point of bringing builders on very early in the design process. He says this engagement brings real benefits for clients. He believes there is a misconception that architects are too expensive, and he is concerned that in the affordable housing market, architects are not talked to at all. “Architecture is about critical reasoning and looking for possibility. That sort of thinking doesn’t need to be reserved for million-dollar homes.” Your local bespoke cabinet makers Specializing in everything plywood and veneer Design. Build. Install. Proud to Support OTO Group Architecture 0212492382 samuel@mangawhaidesign.nz mangawhaidesign.nz Get In Touch SOLUT IONS L IMI TED Structural Engineering Consultants Building a Better Future RESIDENTIAL DWELLINGS • COMMERCIAL BUILDINGS SEISMIC ASSESSMENTS • RETAINING WALLS 021 0258 0408 | mario@mgss.co.nz | mgss.co.nz
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