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Whaitere — Te Arai

Whaitere among the dune grass at sunset
Architect
Ponting Fitzgerald Architects
Location
Te Arai, Northland
Build
Oli Tuck
Film & Photography
ArchiPro Studio

01The Site

Scattered like shells on the coast.

At Te Arai, north of Auckland, the coastline still carries the rawness of a landscape that hasn't been overly handled — wind-shaped dunes, pines leaning toward the sea, and the green ribbon of fairway curling through. Into this setting, Ponting Fitzgerald Architects was asked to design a holiday home less like a typical residence and more like an artifact discovered within the terrain.

The house sits at the southern tip of the south links, where three holes — the fourth, fifth and sixth — wrap around the site. Seen from 270 degrees, the building was designed to look outward across all of it: the tee, the fairway, the ocean and distant islands, golfers moving through the scenery as part of the everyday theatre of the place.

“New Zealand is blessed — absolutely blessed — with the most beautiful places. This being one of the very best in the world.”David Ponting, Architect
Watch the film
Whaitere — film by ArchiPro Studio
The approach to Whaitere through new dune planting
The approach — forms scattered among new dune planting
Whaitere seen across the fairway
Across the fairway — roof forms fanning toward the coast
“We wanted a building that felt like it nestled into this environment.”David Ponting, Architect
Watch the film
The deck above the fairway — ArchiPro Studio

02Inside Out

A house designed from the inside out.

Rather than beginning with a striking external form, the house was shaped by the moments the family hoped to have in it. What emerged is a scattering of stones and shells in the sand — roof forms radiating toward the coast, each spine directing a space toward its own view.

Entry is deliberately compressed: a narrow gap between board-formed concrete and cedar, offering only a glimpse of water. Then, step by step, the building releases — floors lift, ceilings rise, and unexpected angles open to the horizon and the sky.

The materials read as landscape more than building. Concrete rises like sand drawn up from the ground into strong, bracing forms; cedar laps over them like driftwood gathered from the beach, darkened as though burnt. Moving through the house, the intent is to feel on the land far more than in a building.

Bedroom looking into the dunes
The sleeping wing looks into the dunes
Kitchen island at golden hour
The kitchen at golden hour
Kitchen with stone island and coastal view
Stone, cedar and steel — the kitchen
Light moving across cedar and concrete — ArchiPro Studio
Sunrise seen from the deck
First light — the deck opens to the horizon
In their words
“Embracing the triangular element allowed the house to be whatever it wanted to be.”

David PontingPonting Fitzgerald Architects

“It feels a little bit like a dream being able to build stuff like this, if I’m honest.”Oli Tuck, Builder
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David Ponting and Oli Tuck on site — ArchiPro Studio

03The Craft

A team that saw the vision.

David Ponting and Oli Tuck met fifteen years ago on a building site — an architect who loves building, and a builder who loves architecture. On a house like this, that matters from day one: the finishes have to be understood while the foundations are still going in.

The build ran on collaboration — a shared understanding of the materiality, the landscape and the drivers behind the design, carried by a crew that considered not only their own work but each other's. "You can't do this with anyone," Ponting says. "You need slightly obsessive, very keen, very talented builders."

Aerial view of Whaitere's roof forms
From above — 'Whaitere', the enchanted stingray
Living room facing the sea
The living room settles toward the sea
Pool terrace at dusk
The pool terrace at dusk
Interiors at dusk — ArchiPro Studio
Board-formed concrete and a chair by the ocean
Board-formed concrete, ocean beyond
Dining table on the deck overlooking the fairway
The fairway — an ever-changing foreground
Whaitere at nightfall
Nightfall at Te Arai
“You wake up, you live your life — and the joy of doing that on a daily basis in a place like this is really what’s special.”The owners
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The surf at Te Arai — ArchiPro Studio

Bring this team to your project

  • ArchitectPonting Fitzgerald Architects
  • BuildOli Tuck
  • Film & PhotographyArchiPro Studio
  • TapwarePlumbline
  • ConcreteFirth
  • FlooringForté
  • AcousticsAutex Acoustics

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