Lake Taupo Retreat, New Zealand
New Zealand - Philip Liao and Partners Ltd.
An exterior entry precedent showcasing the transition from heavy stacked stone massing to light-filled interior transparency framed by deep timber-lined overhangs.
- What we like about this project
- The central glazed breezeway creates a completely transparent threshold that makes the heavy stone volumes float on either side.
Materials
- stacked-stone
- timber
- glass
- steel
- concrete
Visual identifiers
- stacked-stone-walls
- timber-ceiling-canopy
- framed-water-view
- deep-overhang
Style tags
- contemporary
- rustic
- regional-modern
Visual tags
- residential
- lakeside
- stone-masonry
- indoor-outdoor
- entry-sequence
- contemporary-rustic
- Geometry
- Low-slung orthogonal volumes structured around a central entry axis, featuring deep overhangs and framed transparency looking straight through to the water.
- Facade system
- Combination of dry-stacked stone shear walls, slender steel supports, and full-height glazed curtain walls.
- Structural guess
- Steel frame and concrete foundation with non-loadbearing stone veneer and glazed infill partitions.
- Spatial scale
- Intimate single-to-two-story residential scale, anchored by heavy masonry and a prominent entry door.
- Lighting
- Bright daylight with crisp shadows under deep roof overhangs and soft reflected light off the interior floor slab.
- Atmosphere
- Grounded, serene, and sheltered, balancing heavy tactile masonry with expansive open water views.
- Environmental context
- Natural lakeside setting in New Zealand with mature trees framing the foreground and distant water visible through the structure.
- Spatial experience
- The approach channels movement through a framed portal under a timber-lined canopy directly toward distant lake views, bridging heavy stone massing and open glass.
- Composition rhythm
- Asymmetrical composition balanced by the vertical tree trunk on the left and the rhythmic dark vertical joints of the ceiling cladding.
- Style reading
- Contemporary regional rustic
- Program
- Residential luxury retreat entry
- Perspective
- Exterior Facade
- Discipline
- architecture
- Materials
- stacked-stone, timber, glass, steel, concrete
- Visual identifiers
- stacked-stone-walls, timber-ceiling-canopy, framed-water-view, deep-overhang
- Style tags
- contemporary, rustic, regional-modern
- Visual tags
- residential, lakeside, stone-masonry, indoor-outdoor, entry-sequence, contemporary-rustic
- Geometry
- Low-slung orthogonal volumes structured around a central entry axis, featuring deep overhangs and framed transparency looking straight through to the water.
- Facade system
- Combination of dry-stacked stone shear walls, slender steel supports, and full-height glazed curtain walls.
- Structural guess
- Steel frame and concrete foundation with non-loadbearing stone veneer and glazed infill partitions.
- Spatial scale
- Intimate single-to-two-story residential scale, anchored by heavy masonry and a prominent entry door.
- Lighting
- Bright daylight with crisp shadows under deep roof overhangs and soft reflected light off the interior floor slab.
- Atmosphere
- Grounded, serene, and sheltered, balancing heavy tactile masonry with expansive open water views.
- Environmental context
- Natural lakeside setting in New Zealand with mature trees framing the foreground and distant water visible through the structure.
- Spatial experience
- The approach channels movement through a framed portal under a timber-lined canopy directly toward distant lake views, bridging heavy stone massing and open glass.
- Composition rhythm
- Asymmetrical composition balanced by the vertical tree trunk on the left and the rhythmic dark vertical joints of the ceiling cladding.
- Style reading
- Contemporary regional rustic
- Program
- Residential luxury retreat entry
- Perspective
- Exterior Facade
- Discipline
- architecture