Hughes’ collection of hundreds of books is stored on a vertiginous two story bookcase, which takes up the whole of the northern wall of the living room. It’s an ingenious solution to the small-space dwelling that draws the eye up, adding texture and interest to the room without taking up floor space.
With its tall silhouette, narrow upper window, and blank face, this house in the Auckland suburb of Waterview could almost be a utility building, were it not covered in cedar weatherboards.
Architect Andrew Lister designed the wedge-shaped building for actor Yuri Kinugawa and film producer Owen Hughes, with a high ceiling stud, open-plan interior, and a deck flush with the ground floor, based on the principles of the Direct Compass, a Japanese discipline related to feng shui.
The building’s dimensions are simple yet very precise. “It is basically two boxes joined by a passage and a bathroom hanging off it,” says Hughes. “It’s not a big house by any stretch of the imagination, but people think it is.”
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