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Mangawhai Dune House
Mangawhai Dune House
Mangawhai, New Zealand
Project Featured on May 22, 2026
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Mangawhai Dune House
Mangawhai, New Zealand
Project Featured on May 22, 2026
Type
STATUS
Built
YEAR
2022
SIZE
3000 sqft - 5000 sqft
BUDGET
$1M - 5M
A home set into the dunes at Mangawhai, New Zealand. This project was close to my heart. I'd spent years camping and holidaying in the area, and when my parents decided to retire here, the design drew on that long familiarity with the site and how it changes with the weather, the tides, and the seasons.
The house is built from red brick, glass, timber, and travertine. The brick is a custom-made smooth red Roman profile from Canterbury Clay Bricks, chosen for its solidity against the shifting dunes and its warmth in the coastal light. The material continues from outside to inside without interruption, so the threshold between landscape and interior is blurred from the moment you arrive.
From the street, two brick walls curve inwards and draw you toward a large cedar-clad door sunken into the form. There's no frame around it, so the door appears to open or close the entire structure. As you cross the threshold, panoramic glass reveals the dunescape beyond. The facade works as a site of transformation, turning its back on the road and pulling you outward to the dunes.
The plan is L-shaped, wrapping around a central courtyard and pool. I think of it as a one-bedroom home that just happens to have a guest wing. The house runs on two axes. To the east, you look out across the dunes from the deck. To the west, you're looking over the pool from the main outdoor terrace. The courtyard creates a sheltered, resort-like quality in the middle of a windswept coastal site.
The design references are Danish. I studied and worked in Denmark, and the thinking of Jørn Utzon and Arne Jacobsen runs through this house. Utzon's Kingo Houses in Helsingør were based on an additive approach, beginning with one form and moving forward from there, each house turning toward the sun like a flower on a branch. That same principle is at work here. But the references are subtle. It's not about particular gestures. It's about understanding material and proportion, being honest to the materials, and designing from the inside out. The elevations are what they are because of what's inside.
The house was featured on Grand Designs New Zealand and later in Home Magazine.
Location: Tern Point, Mangawhai
Type: New build, residential
Materials: Custom red Roman brick, cedar, travertine, glass, timber
The house is built from red brick, glass, timber, and travertine. The brick is a custom-made smooth red Roman profile from Canterbury Clay Bricks, chosen for its solidity against the shifting dunes and its warmth in the coastal light. The material continues from outside to inside without interruption, so the threshold between landscape and interior is blurred from the moment you arrive.
From the street, two brick walls curve inwards and draw you toward a large cedar-clad door sunken into the form. There's no frame around it, so the door appears to open or close the entire structure. As you cross the threshold, panoramic glass reveals the dunescape beyond. The facade works as a site of transformation, turning its back on the road and pulling you outward to the dunes.
The plan is L-shaped, wrapping around a central courtyard and pool. I think of it as a one-bedroom home that just happens to have a guest wing. The house runs on two axes. To the east, you look out across the dunes from the deck. To the west, you're looking over the pool from the main outdoor terrace. The courtyard creates a sheltered, resort-like quality in the middle of a windswept coastal site.
The design references are Danish. I studied and worked in Denmark, and the thinking of Jørn Utzon and Arne Jacobsen runs through this house. Utzon's Kingo Houses in Helsingør were based on an additive approach, beginning with one form and moving forward from there, each house turning toward the sun like a flower on a branch. That same principle is at work here. But the references are subtle. It's not about particular gestures. It's about understanding material and proportion, being honest to the materials, and designing from the inside out. The elevations are what they are because of what's inside.
The house was featured on Grand Designs New Zealand and later in Home Magazine.
Location: Tern Point, Mangawhai
Type: New build, residential
Materials: Custom red Roman brick, cedar, travertine, glass, timber
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