Mt Pleasant Home

This house is located in a semi-rural environment, on the heights of Christchurch harbor with panoramic ocean views. The architects' mission was to create a modern family home adapted to the rough, wind-swept environment.

"We had to capture the vast, spectacular views and provide the diversity of planning to create sheltered courtyards for outdoor living. The house is cascaded, allowing most rooms to access the garden directly and anchor the house in the slope of the land. Twin pavilions contain the main rooms and create two living terraces. A third pavilion is placed above, it shelters storage spaces and protects the dwelling from the strong storms of winter. The program of the house is organized around a central gallery with transversal corridors and living spaces placed around it. Formal and informal living spaces are grouped to allow for a strong connection with the family unit. Interconnection gates provide a degree of separation if necessary.