An industrial chic Queenstown residence built around a view of The Remarkables
Written by
25 October 2023
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4 min read
In about 13,000 BC, pressure between tectonic plates moving along the fault line that runs the length of the Southern Alps birthed an iconic mountain range to preside over the south-eastern shore of Lake Wakatipu. Ever since, it’s come to define the landscape, and inspire its people.
On a site with a grandstand view of what is now called The Remarkables, BMB Building, which specialises in new builds, is the latest to lay tribute at the foot of the mountain, bringing industrial chic to the plinth of one of only two mountain ranges in the world running directly north/south.
BMB Building’s Ben Brown says the section, a corner site backing onto neighbouring farmland, allowed for the house to be built around a view of The Remarkables and to capture the sun throughout the entire calendar year.
“In a medium-density living area, it feels very isolated,” he says. “The 360 degree views of The Remarkables, Coronet Peak and Ben Lomond are breathtaking.”
The brief, to build an architectural four-bedroom, four-and-a-half bathroom 388 sqm house, was not without its challenges, with Ben citing the excavation and the installation of 12-tonne precast concrete panels as prime examples of the meticulous planning and execution the project required.
A floor-to-ceiling window revealing a large water feature and fernery greets guests on arrival, leading the eye left towards the main living area and guest quarters replete with ensuite. To the right, a media room, spare room, master bedroom with walk-in wardrobe and ensuite, bathroom, laundry and study awaits - all appointed with a colour and material palette plucked straight from mountains committed countless times to canvas.
A two-and-a-half car garage sits below a loft comprising living, bathroom and bedroom spaces, with the entire triple-gabled dwelling connected by a flat-roofed area in keeping with the near vertical rock faces of the mountain, forged over thousands of years by the faulting and folding of schist rock.
Ben says combining exposed materials and industrial finishes with a personal touch has delivered a home built in the stylised, yet understated, image of the omnipresent mountains.
“The large precast panels, eurotray iron and profiled red cedar were all used to blend the house into the surrounds, which was a key requirement of the design guide dictated by the governing body.
“The rotating electrical kitchen bench made from native rimu sourced from the Haast River, which has sentimental meaning to the client, is an especially nuanced design touch when considered against the expanses of polished concrete.”
The austere, understated effect is amplified by a large concrete fireplace, which required builders to work in a confined space to insert 58 bolts into brackets to hold the formidable panels in place.
Triple-glazed windows stretch the verticality of the structure towards high beam ceilings boasting dormers further framing The Remarkables, allowing the raw edges of the ranges to bleed inside without bringing the cold along with them.
The sum, says Ben, is sophistication, strength and style against one of the most staggering vistas anywhere in the world.
He remembers initially seeing the skeleton of the house, comprising the enormous precast panels reminiscent of the very tectonic plates that first gifted Queenstown its ski fields, engineering steel and “beefed up” timber framing, to be a highlight of a build incorporating natural toughness and warmth into every space.
“Seeing the sheer scale and strength of those industrial materials, and how they sat within a setting as beautiful and raw as that, was astonishing. That’s when the true magnitude of how much the project had been shaped and shaded to mirror the mountains really hit home.
Some 15,000 years since they were forced upon the landscape, The Remarkables remain as influential as ever.
Ben says the team at BMB Building would have it no other way. “This place can be as exacting as it is stunning, and we are always fine-tuning our approach after learning lessons from the land.
“The thing that most excites me is earning lessons through experiences like this, and then incorporating those learnings into future builds to further enhance this incredible environment.”