Moon House by James Garvan Architecture
Moon House lands in Waverley, New Zealand, as a house by James Garvan Architecture that folds sculptural curves into a clear urban presence. The project starts from a social brief and grows into a confident composition of zinc-clad forms and brick massing. Inside, the rooms carry easy movement from entry to garden while the geometries set the tone for daily life and gatherings.
Low sun rakes across a zinc curve and warms the brick plane. The street reads a trio of stepped semicircles pressed against a rectilinear body and the entry sits cleanly between them.
This is a house in Waverley by James Garvan Architecture, conceived around geometry as the primary driver. Curves, vaults, and voids organize rooms, manage light, and negotiate a streetscape of Federation and neoclassical neighbors. The throughline is rigorous formwork put to daily use.
Bridge The Street
The front composition mediates between small gables and boxier silhouettes. Three curved, zinc-clad volumes step across the facade, reading as contemporary kin to Federation profiles while anchoring into a brick rectangle behind. Each curve has a job. One frames the front door, one shapes a shower, and one wraps the main bedroom window for privacy and outlook.
Enter, Compress, Release
Arrival starts tight, then opens. A brief compression at the threshold gives way to a framed sightline of garden and pool, with a strong brick axis pulling the body upstairs. The upper level holds dining, kitchen, and living in a single, well-scaled volume that feels larger than the compact facade implies, and precise joinery sets the rhythm of activity.
Light Through Voids
Overhead, interspersed volumes and voids cast daylight deep into the plan. Operable highlight glazing draws in northern sun and sets up cross ventilation during warmer months, easing comfort without fuss. The voids do more than brighten; they stitch visual contact between levels so private rooms above maintain quiet awareness of life below.
Vaults At The Rear
Two soaring curves balloon over the living area and register strongly on the rear elevation. Here the vaults read weighty and monumental, pressed into a solid brick mass for a deliberate counterpoint to the street. That inversion matters. Up front the curves protrude lightly; out back they are carved and anchored, a calm finale to the internal procession.
Palette As Ground
Material restraint sets the stage for the geometry. Earthy limestone pavers run from front door to swimming pool, tracking the slope and keeping the ground level continuous underfoot. Above, double-height moments and rounded profiles keep the interior bright, while measured textures hold the eye on the compositions rather than decoration.
Private Rooms, Clear Order
The main bedroom and ensuite step up a half level to soften the street mass. A large curved window frames the neighborhood and edits views for privacy without heavy screens. Beyond, a nursery, guest room, bathroom, and a study overlook the living area through glass, lending a quiet, elevated vantage point for work or pause.
Evening brings a gentle glow to the zinc arcs and a subtle halo at the eaves. Light slides along brick, pools on stone, and makes the curves read anew each hour.
Photography by Katherine Lu
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