Cocker Townhouses in Wood St, Freemans bay, Auckland

Featured at the back page of the Aug/Sep 2007 copy of Home and Entertaining magazine is the My Favourite Building feature. Seleting his favourite this month is architect Ken Crosson--winner in 2005 of Home and Entertaining's Home of the Decade award for his distinctive Coromandel bach --and he's chosen Claude Megson's Cocker Townhouses in Wood St, Freemans bay, Auckland, designed in 1969 and competed in 1973.


Click on the pic to enlarge, or here to see a PDF of the page [5.5MB].

Says Crosson in the article:

“Claude Megson was one of my lecturers at architecture school and I was always fascinated by his work. These townhouses are one of his finest projects. They are a grouping of four town houses in an existing Victorian suburb. The design is fundamentally different to its neighbours, but is totally respectful of them. Megson was a master of context. He extended the existing street pattern into the site. He re-interpreted forms, elements and details in a modern context.

“I was lucky enough to live in one of the town houses in the 1980s. More recently when another of them was damaged by fire, we helped restore It. Bill and Finola Cocker commissioned Megson to design the houses in the early 70s. Bill was an artist who had a vision of adding something beautiful to the city. It was built as per Claude’s wishes. “Each unit is an individual, with its own courtyard and different views and a different floor plan and all are spatially rich. The top floors have amazing views of Auckland’s central city — they remind me of the main character in Atlas Shrugged, Dagny Taggart, who is inspired and empowered by the energy of the city.

"These days everybody is talking about sustainability and density. The unit I lived in had a site area of 215 square metres. These houses show how successfully Megson was grappling with these concepts back in the early 70s — good living isn’t about the size of plots, but about the quality of design.”

I love that pointer to Atlas Shrugged.

1A Warrington St, Remuera.

What looks to be an unfortunate recladding job mars what seems to be a typically playful spatial delight within.



From AllRealEstate's site come this description:

Situated amidst mature native trees and bush along a quiet right of way sits this immensely valuable architecturally designed home; which steps down the beautiful northern slopes of Remuera over three levels, and captures the most uplifting views imaginable!

The interior enjoys four lofts and voluminous entertaining areas all with polished floors (family, dining, formal living with fireplace, plus extra lounge), which flows out to big sun soaked decks, great for entertaining on any scale.

The multi level living and five fascinating bedrooms, 2.5 bathrooms, connect with dramatic spaces to create a relaxed ambience of excitement and character. An ideal home for a teenage family with more than enough room to spread out. A tranquil oasis in a north facing environment, enjoying privacy on a 1095 m2 more or less site.

Imagine waking to the sound of the Tui in this beautiful bush setting whilst being only a short drive from Downtown Auckland, Newmarket, Remuera shops and motorways are at your doorstep.

Double garaging, extra parking, Grammar Zoned.

Janet Lambert
Mobile: 0274 736 023
Megan Jaffe MREINZ
Ray White Remuera

Property Summary:

Category:

House

Bedrooms:

5

Bathrooms:

1

Garage:

Double

Land:

1095.00sqm (approx)

More pics. Click to enlarge.

Megson House - Claude Megson

Here's architect Claude Megson's own house, above Dingle Dell in Auckland' St Heliers. A simple looking exterior concealing an awful lot of living within.

Writing about Claude's house a few years ago, John Dickson said of it, "It is impossible without the process of Megson's imagination to connect the cluster of small, confined rooms of the house as it was (right) to the expansive, multi-levelled, vertical-fissured, spatial-phantasm that it has become." And English architectural critic Professor Geoffrey Broadbent, writing after a 1992 tour of Claude's Auckland houses had this to say:

"This," I said to myself, "is work of a very high
international standard indeed." ...One is constantly struck by the surprise around the corner, the bright shaft of light penetrating from above into the softer glow of the main living spaces -- especially in Megson' own house -- that
give his work such very special qualities...

There is an essential "rightness" about Megson's spaces, for pleasant occupation by ordinary, normal human beings. Such things, says Dickson, have gone out of fashion with today's students. Well, so much the worse for the students [and their clients!].
Perhaps it hasn't occurred to them that if they design real spaces for human
comfort and pleasure, then even those anguished souls overwhelmed by post-Heideggerian "problematics" about the nature of their existence might, given spaces like Megson's to contemplate that nature of their "Being," come to more positive conclusions! Because that's the point about Megson's spaces; they are life-enhancing.

Broadbent, for once, is exactly right.

LINKS: The Claude Megson Blog

RELATED POSTS ON Architecture.

20 Walton Street, Remuera, 1974

This house is also known as the Norris house. A two-zoned house, it was one of Claude's own favourites. Description is from the Auckland Architecture Association site.

This Claude Megson designed home was winner of the 2005 Enduring Architecture Award.

- solid concrete construction/steel joinery
- offering poetry of light and space
- formal and informal living
- magnificent north western aspect with views to Hobson Bay and harbour.

Townhouse, 4/57 Wood Street

Auctioned Bayleys, 2PM, Wednesday
11th October, 2000

NO PICTURES AT PRESENT

Details from Taupo Property site

Residential Town House

4/57 Wood Street
Suburb: Freemans Bay
Area: Auckland City
Region: Auckland

Landmark Architecture.

Classic Claude Megson Architecture brings poetry of space amongst traditional Freemans Bay villa norm.
These 1975 townhouses brought fresh spatial relationships integrating the abstraction of design with the elements of place and aspect overlooking the inner city skyscape and harbour views.

Accommodation consists of lounge with fireplace, dining and kitchen opening onto courtyard garden.
Next level has two bedrooms and bathroom.
Above the bedrooms via a trap door you will find an abstract minaret or turret with small study and huge panoramic city/harbour views.

Features include:

Covered car parking
Large courtyard style garden
spa

Residential Townhouse
4/57 Wood Street
Freemans Bay, Auckland

2 Bedroom plus Study
108 Sq meters

Buyer enquiry range
Upwards of $300,000

54 Hapua St, Remuera

Auctioned 7 march, 2007.

This is part of a project in north-east Remuera, which included three connected ('semi-detached) townhouses. From memory, this is the largest of the three. [Correction: the three connected townhouses are at 64 Hapua. See comments below.]   Here's Barfoot's description:

Every now and again, an architecturally outstanding home comes along that is simply unique. Designed by the revered architect Claude Megson in 1974 with high ceilings and voids it presents an uplifting sense of volume and light filed spaces. This solidly built home on its own freehold 306m² site enjoys a quiet, leafy setting. Features 2 bedrooms, 1 1/2 bathrooms, separate living and dining areas which open to private courtyards and garden; including many original 1970's features. Perfectly positioned for optimum sun in winter and shade in summer, this could be your very own private sanctuary. A perfect natural setting just five minutes to the city.

What Architecture Is All About.

Claude Megson quoted in this article by Peter Cresswell: What Architecture Is All About.

Now we're at the halfway point of our architectural debate over at my main blog 'Not PC,' here's a brief meditation on what architecture is all about. In five words or less: giving meaning to our lives. To quote the late Claude Megson, "If it doesn't have meaning, then you're just wanking."

Read on now for the thousand-word meditation...

29 Whites Rd, Broomfield Peninsula, Whitford

From the Open2View site:

Suburb: Whitford

Area: Manukau City

Region: Auckland

Rooms:

5 bedrooms

2 bathrooms

Floor area: 220m² (2367 Sq. Feet)

Lot size:

Built In: 1

Broomfields Peninsular Location.

A private & spacious Claude Megson design home positioned beautifully for sun in sought after Broomfields Peninsular location. Sweep down the fabulous tree lined driveway past 3 grazing paddocks & enter this character filled 5 bedroom home with native bush outlook.

Peace & privacy assured on these magical 5 acres

Frankly, I don't think the furniture does much for the house.