Our clients bought this former fishing company warehouse with the intention of creating a unique urban home for them and their children when in Wellington. Complete re-strengthening was needed for this heritage building. The brief called for a comfortable, stylish west facing apartment, with an open, flexible and dynamic series of spaces that would allow…
Nestled under an ancient Pohutakawa, this deeply 60’s home was in original condition when our clients discovered it. With children now working, they were ready to move to their next stage of life. We were asked to transform this solid, but dull “Nana house” into a groovy, open, relaxed and colourful home.We have not added…
The clients had spent a long time in a delightful coastal home we renovated 20 years ago. They called us 3 years ago and said they wanted to “change the station”. The architecture celebrates the buildings’ history, strong form and generous volumes. Elegant double-PFC portals were placed within the existing structural bays and cloaked with…
This is a wonderful site set in a swathe of plaster and hardies minor mansions. The brief called for relaxing home with a strong and elegant form that boldly occupied the site. The built form references the delightful 1960’s beachheads of New Zealand’s suburban late modernism. The graceful form, thoroughly glazed, alighted in a gently…
The owners of this home bought it out of a love for its style, form and position, perched over Oriental bay and Port Nicholson. However, after living in it for a year they discovered it was cold, dark and offered very limited spaces to enjoy the sun and town belt surrounds. The brief was to…
The previous home on this site was a lost outpost of Spanish suburban sensibility, that was beached on the Eastbourne coast. This was an opportunity for the builder to show his craft-work with virtually a complete rebuild on the same footprint. The clients commissioned JMA to design this home to suit their busy lives as…
Judges commented, “Inspired by the flight of the tui, this house hovers over its site enabling its owners to scan for visual treats in the distance or to perch in a window seat to drink in the sun. The tui is never far from one’s thoughts in this house, whether it is as a pair…
The judges remarked, “clearly, this is a Wellington home. The house is located on a compact and steep site pinned against Mount Victoria but with glorious views out to Wellington harbour and the Tararuas beyond. Despite the confines of the site the house is spatially generous; the design caters for family dynamics by using levels…
A good-looking 60’s home in the Eastern bays totally untouched since then. The brief was for a much more open living space that flowed North and South for views, privacy and sunshine. We added internal access and a guest suite in the basement allowing a new staircase to provide a vertical juxtaposition with the dominant…
Wellington sites on which to build a new home are few and far between. This one was the last section within a recently established hillside suburb. The land had not been particularly well maintained and was home to a variety of wild self-seeding plant life which seemed to breathe fresh air into the otherwise built upon and hard…
Judges commented, “Breaking away from the surrounding traditional Epuni Street villas, this house creates a dramatic contrast in the streetscape. Raw materials are expressed as finished surfaces throughout. The clients’ unique artefacts are thoughtfully integrated into the building fabric, offering richness in colour and texture to dramatic effect.” Awards: Winner: NZIA Resene Local Architecture Award…
This city home has had many different, drastic alterations since it was built in the 1920s. Our clients envisaged their future life here as like living in an apartment, where they could work from home and still be within the larger home with their big family. We endeavoured to create a robust sense of horizontal…
Judges commented, “This house was built over eight years on an exquisite bush clad site in Eastbourne. An organic assemblage of spaces and forms, the house draws from the personalities of the owners and the memories of the previous house on the site as is shaped in response to strong connections with the environment.” With…
Friends bought this home after we looked around on an open day and it was known henceforth as the “James Bond house” With a host of movie quality features including the oblique mosaic fireplace and large Oregon round handrails, there was always character to spare here. Sadly the kitchen, a maelstrom of Formica, let the…
“Playful spaces and shapes invite patrons to relax and enjoy themselves, the created interior/exterior environment melding well with the busy adjoining street…” The Southern Cross is one of Wellington’s few remaining 19th century hotels and in various guises has been a Wellington icon for over a century. These extensive alterations were instigated to give the…
Judges commented, “The Lighthouse Cinema Cuba makes a vital and seamless contribution to Wigan Street, one of the Cuba precinct’s hidden gems. The design and material selections reference light and sound effects of the movies; the exterior cladding and glazing incorporate secret design messages. This is an inviting interior that plays with spatial volume, fabric…
Judges commented, “the old changing rooms have been revitalised with a contemporary, sculptural interior intervention. It has created a focus toward the public beach while respecting and enhancing the shell of the old building.” An iconic waterfront building that was crumbling in disrepair, the alterations to the Days Bay Changing Sheds have given new life…
Judges commented “Situated impossibly close to the ocean, this home is a textural experience with internal spaces that contradict the simplicity of the exterior form. As you move up through the house privacy increases through the use of translucent layering and discrete staircases. Arrival is celebrated by walking up and through a split island bench…
The brief for this Mt Victoria home required a floor for two daughters and a master bedroom suite for the parents that connected to the quintessential Mt Vic backyard. These bedroom floors should be connected by modern living spaces that frame the city and harbour vistas that have been enjoyed here for over 130 years….
This iconic home was an award winner in the 80’s, and had had an extensive renovation 20 years later. JMA was commissioned to refit the entire interior/exterior to be reminiscent of a luxury lodge. Interesting features abound, starting when you arrive home, where a panel opens to reveal secret bookcase door into the dining room….
The Judges remarked “Juxtaposed against a cliff on a narrow site facing the harbour, this house eschews any of the normal formal concerns – the entry is hidden and just part of a journey that flips from private to public without modesty. This is a highly personal home for the architect and his family. Space…
