Herbst Architects distill everything you need and nothing you don’t into their tiniest, and arguably most ingenious project yet
The land was cheap, which is strange because it’s simply delightful: a long narrow section running down to Little Shoal Bay at Tryphena on the western side of Great Barrier Island in the Hauraki Gulf. There’s a grove of pohutukawa and kanuka above the beach and a sheltered little clearing back towards the road.
One day, the family that owns this land will build a beautiful little bach designed by Nicola and Lance Herbst. It will be carefully placed in the trees and reached by a bridge over the stream and a long timber boardwalk to protect the roots of the trees. There’s a walk through the trees to a sheltered sandy beach.
In the meantime, the family asked the Herbsts to design what the architects think may be their smallest project to date: a utility shed and a 6sqm deck, which the family unfolds and unpacks in the manner of a Swiss army knife when they get there, and then lock up securely while they’re away.
