The residence that Tate himself uses on the weekend has very little site impact.  It sits on 16 poles drilled into the ground, allowing trees to grow from under the house.  The structure was also designed to point at the arch of a giant puriri tree, which frames the rear entrance (pictured above).

Further contributing to the experience of natural isolation is a set of 45 steps that lead you from the garage down to the home’s level.  This forces one to fully engage with the site on a daily basis… love it!

Reminiscent of Philip Johnson’s Glass House, Tate’s work also has very minimal interior decor.  High ornamentation and clutter would detract from the amount of visual activity taking place on the other side of the windows… actual birds flying by or a painting of a bird… I’ll take reality!

As a designer, I’m very suspect of trends… to me they’re just ways to make people shop more.  This Forest Home truly defies trends because of its simplicity and because, like I hinted at a moment ago, it’s grounded in reality.  If you think about it, nature has no trends, it only has function.  Green isn’t the color of 2010, it’s the color of life.

photos taken from New Architecture magazine, credits to Patrick Reynolds.

Hat’s off to Chris Tate and everyone else involved in this project… incredibly inspiring to say the least!  It has many similarities to the Juvet Landscape Hotel in Norway that I profiled a while back.  Take a gander at that link for a little more eye candy!

-j