Bossley Architects’ Thorne Bay House Grows Around Trees on a New Zealand Beach

The <a href="http://inhabitat.com/shigeru-bans-temporary-cardboard-cathedral-breaks-ground-in-new-zealand/">New Zealand</a>-based architecture firm of <a href="http://www.bossleyarchitects.co.nz/">Bossley Architects</a> specializes in building for the arts, residential work, and restaurants. Their ability to think outside the box brought about the creation of the <a href="http://archinect.com/firms/project/43037457/thorne-bay-house/70604894">Thorne Bay House</a>. A steep site studded with deeply rooted trees created restrictive constraints, so the architects responded with a home that squeezes under and around the limbs of the trees as if it were a treehouse. The resulting house boasts magnificent sun-soaked spaces and dramatic views - read on for a closer look!

The house grows and changes as it rises from the ground level of the site and reaches out towards the ocean.

Whether at night or during the day, the house seems to resemble a treehouse on a beach.

Strategically placed columns help to hold the floating upper levels, while a suspended foundation provides support for the lower floor. The

The site also has many pohutukawa trees growing on it, and since the owner and design team wanted to preserve this iconic Kiwi Christmas Tree they had to design the residence around the tree and its roots.

The views from the Thorne Bay House are spectacular.

The style of the home is very clean and modern and helps to bring out the significance of designing for the landscape.

As you enter the ground floor level, a series of orthogonal spaces follow the site as it slopes down to the oceanfront.

The spaces on the upper floors are more angular and unorganized in order to interact with the tree limbs.

Bossley Architect’s Thorne Bay House won the Registered Master Builders Auckland Region Gold Medal in 2009, and received the New Zealand Wood Timber Residential Architectural Excellence award in the same year.