Five simple elements and the well-placed delivery of a stunning view define this minimalist, Hawke’s Bay home by Dorrington Atcheson Architects.

When a client’s brief is to “come up with something you think looks good”, the parameters are so open and the trust so complete that it can feel overwhelming. However, architect Phil Smith had known Martin and Christina Russell for close to a decade. If they were relaxed, so was he.

This clear insertion into the back of a century-old Wellington villa provides an extra 135 square metres and a myriad of spatial experiences for the owners.

This Leigh holiday house by Belinda George Architects offers spatial variation, highly contrasting experiences, and a bespoke solution that reflects its owners’ personalities.

Danish modernism, Kiwi nostalgia, and a touch of grandeur converge on a one-of-a-kind site in Mangawhai, where a home of red brick and glass is dwarfed by an undulating dunescape.

About 15 years ago, Darryl and Lee-Ann Church happened upon a for sale sign as they were driving to their child’s school camp at Lake Whakamaru. The land was part of a working farm, a property spanning 175 hectares that would ultimately be jointly owned by the purchasers of 50 new blocks within its boundaries.

Located down a densely populated driveway, this steep, small site didn’t have a lot of obvious benefits. What it did present was a number of questions, the answer to each offering a topical narrative on where to from here when designing stand-alone homes for family life in our cities.

On a piece of Christchurch real estate with some serious architectural heavyweights as neighbours, this home had to do justice to the area’s rich design legacy while embracing a contemporary approach to a prominent, public-facing corner site.

This monopitch, minor dwelling by Assembly Architects was inspired by Roman domus, tripped up by gladiatorial battles against local design parameters, and boasts a tasteful play of translucency and light.

That recurrent trope of ‘compression and expansion’ in architecture has been given a beautiful, rocky interpretation above Alexandra and looking across to the Hawkdun Range.

A beautifully understated Westmere home filled with luxurious detailing makes the most of its waterfront location.

Tucked away on an idyllic semi-rural site in Paremoremo, on the outskirts of Auckland, New Zealand’s first — and the southern hemisphere’s largest — 3D-printed concrete house marks a bold move forwards, and a golden opportunity to make architecture more accessible.

With help of a meticulous brief, exacting craft, and impeccable taste, this 1916 Arts and Crafts house in Remuera, Auckland, has been brought into the modern era in a manner true to the spirit of its original style.

A restricted material palette, a modernist soul that is part Californian, and a touch of Japanese — all combine to form an entirely picture-perfect Waiheke home by Rowe Baetens Architecture.