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Home
& Entertaining Issue 6 04 October/November 2004
LIVINGSPACE
Text © Susan
Buckland Photograph © Paul McCredie |
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Enter
the house and knockout views command your attention. They are uninterrupted
by floor to ceiling windows. Glass doors open to a south facing deck,
built lower than the interior floor, to take the eye straight out
to the dreamy ribbon of land on the far side of the lake.
Raised windows on the northern side allow winter’s lower rays
to warm the house. Windows at the base of the southern side allow
air to circulate diagonally up to louvers opposite during the summer
months.Margy Gower has furnished The Top House with unobtrusive style. Why
compete with such a stunning exterior? Her pleasing and uncluttered
mixture of antique and contemporary furnishings reflects the interior
contrasts of light vertical spaces and darker horizontal ones. Kahikatea
about to be felled on a family farm has been used for ceilings. Matai
floors were created from recycled wood from the Napier wool stores
and polyurethane with a matt finish to give an oiled look.
“Margy and Jack were good to work with because they knew they
were creating something as opposed to just buying something, says
Cameron. “They wanted an adaptable, contemporary home that would
make a single couple feel just as comfortable as a large family.” Flexible spaces allow a small group to live on one floor or larger
group to use both. Downstairs is an integral part of the house with
its own outstanding views. The Gower’s love of stone, wood and
natural light bears out their wish to achieve a house that gives its
occupants a New Zealand experience. Jack Gower has applied his considerable
landscaping talents to the garden, creating green and luscious sunny
spaces and shady nooks. And parked outside is a golf cart to ferry
them around the Point.
Look up to the hill on your right as you enter the gates of The Point.
You will see the distinctive, sloping roof of the Top House, following
the contours of the land.
Both a beach house and a ski lodge –a rare distinction - you
will then open the door to a fully prepared house. And can look forward
to enjoying all The Point amenities: two floodlit tennis courts, two
boat ramps, excellent fly fishing within a minute’s walk, bush
walks, beaches, sheltered harbour for safe swimming for children.
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Margy and Jack Gower embarked on their “Top House’ at
Lake Taupo they were certain of two things. They wanted to capture
the quintessential Taupo holiday feeling and for architect Fraser
Cameron to interpret their wish. Cameron, who lives in Taupo with his architect wife Belinda Ellis,
had already won an NZIA award for a previous Gower-owned house. Like
the Top House, it was built for holiday rentals. He understood the
Gower’s desire to incorporate a bach feeling into the design
of their holiday house. And he supported it. What other form of architecture
could you describe as belonging uniquely to New Zealand, asks Cameron
who believes Taupo is an ideal base to express his interest in locally
empathetic houses. The old creosote coloured baches, built with simple,
easy spaces, still dot the shores of Lake Taupo and for Jack and Margy
Gower, hold sentimental memories of childhood holidays.
The couple now live near Acacia Bay at The Point, a handsome, lakeside
subdivision of 58 acres and home also to The Top House. The land had
been purchased by Jack Gower’s grandfather in 1936 and the grandchildren
were determined to retain its character when they subdivided it in
the end of the eighties. Native bush enhanced with exotic species
gives each house privacy and fine views. Fraser Cameron was first retained by Jack Gower to build “The
Woodhouse,” a holiday dwelling in a shawl of bush at the Point.
Completed in 1998, it took advantage of the views across the lake
to the mountains of the Central Plateau and infused character and
warmth with local materials – notably stone and wood. “The aim was to design a house that belonged to its environment
and Margy and Jack wanted to carry this through to the Top House,”
said Cameron. ‘Uncomplicated, open living spaces which worked
naturally with a steep section and dramatic views.
“The living spaces were dictated by views on all sides of the
elevated site. But we anchored the sunnier, northern side of the house
while letting the south facing side “float off” the sloping
section towards the lake and mountains to the south.”
The Top House was completed 18 months ago and last year won Cameron
another NZIA award (he has won all eight of his award entries to date).
The judges described his latest accomplishment with The Top house
as exploring “the notion of living on the edge. The spectacular
yet difficult site generated the simple, linear form, folding along
the slope. This has resulted in a double sided house, one side anchored
with solid materials, texture and detail into the ground on the north;
the other floating, projecting out and above the bush to the almost
overwhelming views of lake and mountain.’Architect Belinda Ellis skilfully reflected the Gowers’ wish
for practical, good looking bathrooms and kitchen with her choice
and placement of fittings and joinery. The centrally placed kitchen
in the large living room melts into the background while being a central
social focus. With its granite topped island, it forms a subtle part
of a 13m long by 6m wide multi-functional room. Informal living space
at one end opens to a north facing deck and BBQ area. A fireplace
framed by honed basalt and concreted plaster centres a more formal
living area at the other end. Contemporary dining table and chairs
sit between.
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