Point Wells Gable House by Pac Studio - Point Wells, New Zealand

Demonstrating a love of timber in all its textures, tones and applications, Point Wells Gables House by Pac Studio outwardly takes its cues from the gabled barn of the local rural vernacular. Yet, in its entirety, the project is an extension and abstraction of the architectural language of timber construction.

Set on a site adjacent to an estuarine tendril of the Omaha River, on New Zealand’s North Island, the house consists of three gabled volumes. Two separate wings, running north to south, are connected by a boardwalk running east to west, and sit alongside a gabled guest wing. This arrangement contributes a familiarity to the built form that is reminiscent of a group of outbuildings, while the boardwalk is a key organising device that creates a variety of outdoor spaces that respond to the changing position of the sun throughout the day.

Structural components rhythmically march through the interior, evoking both the raw aesthetic of an agricultural building and a sense of craftsmanship and detail.

The architects took the opportunity to celebrate and showcase the aesthetic, tectonic and weathering of raw timber by using it for all exterior cladding and interior lining. Wells Gable House is a tribute not only to the beauty and possibilities of natural timber but to the craft of timber construction too. All joints and grains are exposed, with particular care given to the jointing of timber elements. This intent is extended to every single essential part of the whole, with each constituent, from a joint to a door, window or truss, approached as a chance to dwell on detail and emphasize a sense of the handcrafted and bespoke.

As a result, the project inhabits a balance between the practical, the raw and the rural on the one hand, and the detailed, delicate and custom on the other. While the exterior gable form deliberately invites comparison to a traditional barn, and tonka posts, transom beams and truss frames joined by exposed galvanised bolts give the interior an agricultural tone, the space consciously recalls another typology – that of the soaring, vaulted cathedral. Lit from above by windows situated just below the gable’s peak, the interior is imbued with natural light and the warmth of New Zealand beech, mitred and spliced to form a seamless linear surface that lines the interiors.

Point Wells Gables House is defined by the emphasis on the materiality of timber and its celebration of traditional timber construction.

Careful control light is key to the design that finds a balance somewhere along the spectrum between agricultural and sacred architecture. While generous openings allow spaces to flow onto adjoining decking, care is taken that glazing has the effect of enhancing, rather than detracting from, the home’s sense of inferiority and protection. The interplay of light and shade emphasises the timber’s materiality, creating an unmistakable sense that one is immersed in the material.

Taking inspiration in vernacular forms, Point Wells Gable House’s emphasis on handcrafted detail is at once contemporary and timeless, speaking to both a contemporary appreciation for design finesse and to the craftsmanship and raw materiality of a bygone era.