Reflecting Life Of The Beach

Piha’s Butler Beach House designed by Herbst Architects is the company’s “most ambitious project to date,” according to Monocle. “Herbst Architects is renowned in New Zealand for its signature remodeling of the classic Kiwi bach. [Butler Beach House was] designed for an Auckland couple who are patrons of the arts and architecture. The airy cedar and glass pavilion lies within a belt of native pohutakawa trees that soften the force of the onshore wind at Piha. Throughout the house, the use of exposed wood gives the light a mellow quality. ‘We’re interested in the patina that develops through age,’ Lance Herbst says. ‘The longer [the clients] live there, the more it will reflect the life of the beach.’” Lance and Nicola Herbst immigrated to New Zealand from South Africa in 1998. Herbst Architects was established in 2000.