“The layout resembles a Rubik’s Cube in its technical precision. The two bathrooms are stacked on top of each other next to the main stair; downstairs, the shower slots underneath the stairwell where the ceiling cuts away on an angle. Throughout the house, the clutter of family life disappears inside oak-faced cabinetry, while technical aspects such as the heating system are squeezed into the narrowest of recesses.”
“Architecture this eloquent doesn’t need to shout.”
— Tommy Honey
“For our last project we looked to one of the smallest building types – a child’s playhouse. Surely these hold the essence of the basic human need for shelter. But they hold a lot more too – a place to rest, socialise, read and play. When designing this playhouse for his children, architect Marc Lithgow, of Space Division, based the design on children’s building blocks, stacking solid plywood with translucent polycarbonate, fixed to a modular timber frame. The resulting weathertight, two-storey, light-filled playhouse is a delight, enjoyed by adults and children alike. With all the complexities of building today, it is a timely reminder that our basic needs are actually fairly simple, and that we have a choice over how complex to make them.”
“At the end of 2013, Auckland-based architect Marc Lithgow of Space Division tasked himself with a close-to-home commission with a non-negotiable completion date: Christmas. The project was a backyard playhouse for Lithgow’s two sons — for which the architect drew inspiration from toy building blocks.”
“Built on the footprint of an old brick garage, Joe and Vanessa Stradwick’s Auckland home strikes the perfect balance between tradition and modernity.”
Marc Lithgow features and contributes in this design annual illustrating how dwellings can be defined using space and light.
At the NZIA Auckland Architecture Awards on 12 October 2011 Space Division received an award in the Residential Architecture – Houses category for Stradwick House.The jurors commented,‘In this clever addition to an existing brick garage the clean and simple detailing of well-selected materials is combined with an interesting use of natural light to create a sensitive, peaceful suburban home.’