This little boxy house, dramatically set on the shores of New Brunswick, Canada, is an ode to timber, its site and its makers. Designed by Halifax-based architects Peter Braithwaite Studio and titled The Sandbox, the project is the home of a local couple who operate and own an excavation business. It was the clients’ contacts in the area’s manufacturing and construction industry that the architecture team, led by practice founder Peter Braithwaite, made the most of and celebrated – alongside the home's chosen material, timber.
Making The Sandbox
The project gave the architects the opportunity to use 'locally milled timbers and carpenters, tying this build to vernacular processes of the region', the team explain. At the same time, the coming together brought by the collective effort of the construction and the dialogue between architects, clients, makers and the surrounding, small city of Bathurst's residents, inspired a community spirit that has far outlived the building process.
The home's outline is pared down and seemingly simple – a squarish eastern white cedar wood box, punctuated by the Corten-steel form of a feature staircase that wraps around the upper levels, connecting the two top floors. This straightforward, but quite powerful gesture, along with the Corten steel entrance windbreak, marks the house as unmistakably contemporary among its neighbours. At the same time, a long, winding strip window on the opposite façade creates a geometric play and frames long views of the sea beyond.
Inside, an open-plan living space makes the most of the vistas. The collaboration between architect and client is felt here too, as the studio explains: 'The client’s passion for gathering and food inspired the kitchen to be organised around a custom island that acts as the central hearth of the room. Above the kitchen and living area, the master bedroom captures views of the mouth of the bay through another corner wrapped in glazing.'
Ultimately, the team concludes, 'this New Brunswick home is a reflection of its sandy site outwardly focused to nature.'
-
First look: Western Mongolia meets Kew Gardens in John Pawson and Oyuna Tserendorj’s cashmere throwsArchitectural designer John Pawson and cashmere designer Oyuna Tserendor have collaborated on a cashmere throw collection inspired by Pawson’s 70m Lake Crossing in the Royal Botanical Gardens
-
How to buy art: the accessible new marketThanks to a growing pool of art advisers, digital intelligence and collector groups, buyers are better equipped than ever
-
The coolest design-led coffee shops in SeoulSeoul counts more coffee shops per capita than any other city in the world – cut straight to our six must-visit spots
-
Bunkie on The Hill is a cosy Canadian cottage full of charmBunkie on The Hill, a design by Dubbeldam Architecture + Design, is tucked into the trees, slotting neatly into Ontario's nature
-
Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory 2024: meet the practicesIn the Wallpaper* Architects Directory 2024, our latest guide to exciting, emerging practices from around the world, 20 young studios show off their projects and passion
-
Svima looked to Japanese architecture, 'nature and ecology' for Passageway House in SerbiaThe Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory 2024 includes Svima, a young Canadian practice joining our annual round-up of exciting emerging architecture studios
-
Arthur Erickson's Museum of Anthropology at UBC has been given a new lease of life in VancouverAfter an extensive renovation, The Museum of Anthropology is part Shinto shrine, part cathedral, part longhouse – and a temple to learning
-
A dramatic new lakeside cabin in the Canadian wilderness rises above the treesKariouk Architects' lakeside cabin ‘m.o.r.e. CLT’ explores new material approaches while making a minimal impact on a precious landscape
-
Forest Retreat is a new low-energy family house in the forests of OntarioSet beneath a vast roof, Forest Retreat is a rich mix of local materials, craftsmanship and space for an extended family to get together in the heart of nature
-
Join the West Coast Modern Week's Home Tour 2024 for modernist architecture and moreWest Coast Modern Week 2024 comes with its annual home tour courtesy of the West Vancouver Art Museum, offering an extensive, immersive showcase of Canada's modernist architecture
-
A modernist lakeside cottage in Ontario provides a perfect backdrop for family vacationsA lakeside cottage by Canadian studio Dubbeldam Architecture + Design has been shaped as a modest multigenerational retreat to accommodate the surrounding wilderness
