In a wood-lined field, near Wanaka’s lake edge, the Wanaka Crib is composed of two gables and a chisel roof slipping transcurrently past one another to make three enclosed courtyards. Each courtyard creates a specific relationship with the interior. The lounge and dining spill out to a north-facing entertainment patio, bounded by an angular concrete cooking fire. The kitchen connects to a sheltered southern working garden, enclosed by a grape bearing espalier frame made of reinforcing steel. The eastern terrace gives access to the self-contained bunkroom providing privacy from the public reserve and boulevard of trees.
The crib is a place to relax and focus on the social side of food, where cooking and dining become a culinary performance connected to the landscape. At 150-m2, the crib has the intimacy of a small house, but can comfortably sleep ten people, with two double bedrooms, an attic loft for two, and a bunk room with four beds.
The detailing exaggerates and abstracts southern green roof sheds to create the look of an ad hoc settlement. Façade elements accent the composition – a mustard reading nook box, concealed venting openings, triangulated high-level windows, and corrugated steel wall with floating entry boardwalk. The graduated weatherboards and razor-thin roof edge detail make a striking profile. The interior is lined with a combination of southern beech, recycled kauri, rimu, plywood and terrazzo. Dark concrete floors merge with local stone paving dissolving to the grassy surrounds.
