He Wahi Tautoko

1:50 Model

He wahi tautoko (A supportive place) is a retreat camp where children aged seven to six-teen can learn and gain valuable life skills, in a supportive and encouraging environment. This experience will educate students, transform their way of thinking, involve them in the outdoors and motivate them to get away from the technology, which has influenced us all over the last few years. This gives us a chance to bring children back to basics hoping that they too can enjoy our beautiful New Zealand landscape, which would provide a rewarding future.

He wahi tautoko is located in Waikawa at 9 Mena Street and 29 Carrickfergus street, along the Catlins coast of the Southland district. The site is rugged and full of imperfections. It provides an ideal location for children to experience nature with nothing more than the necessities of life to live off. It is a place where children can learn rewarding and educational skills of suvivival. This remote location is full of exciting things to do and learn about such as wildlife on the land and in the water, nature native to the area and New Zealand, the culture of New Zealand and the land, how to care for the environment, survival skills, life skills and getting outdoors and being physically involved but also having a lot of fun well doing it.

My design uses natural durable materials such as woods and linens. Sustainable use of shipping containers, solar panels, reuse of water and ways to reduce energy impact. This is to encourage children to do the same and motivate them to enjoy the littler things in life and be grateful for what we have. I have combined my use of shipping containers and woods into this environment to show a variation and possible options to save our environment through reusing and recycling what we have already, but well also reducing our impact through water and energy usage, which will be about how we gather and use our supplies.

This retreat can hold twenty students for anywhere between 1 day to 1 week, with the longest stay being up to two weeks as well as housing two to four adults to help and provide support for the children. The building also functions as a learning, cooking, eating, sleeping and relaxing environment where the students will help to do day-to-day tasks such as cooking, cleaning and other functional aspects.

He wahi tautoko is the only educational facility of its kind in the Waikawa area, which provides a new and unique learning experience for children.

Exteriors:

The building exterior is constructed out of Abodo vertical timber cladding in Vulcan straw. The decking off of the bedrooms and the dinning space is also constructed out of Abodo timber in a very light and natural colour. The exterior timber will meet with the corrugated iron of the five shipping containers, which includes three twenty foot containers and two forty foot container. The identity of the shipping containers is very bold and clear, but also has a new twist of a Trivaivai like pattern inspired by Polynesian culture with a new kiwi twist. These designs will display a loose painting of plants, birds and other attributes of nature, inspiring children to use their imagination of what the shapes could possibly be. This will bring the building to life and will make it stand out from the surrounding environment. The additional two vertical forty-foot containers at the back of the building will also have the same patterns.

The roof construction will be in three different pieces. The first of which will be cladded in vertical timber the same colour as the exterior walls. This will cover the open space only, not the containers. The second roof will cover the front dining area and kitchen, which will also provide a small amount of cover over the front decking. This roof will be a light grey corrugated iron. The third roof, which will be over the containers at the back of the main building, will be a tent like structure, such as a tensile structure roof, which will soften the building and create an organic feature.

Interiors:

The interior of the building will be constructed out of eco plywood splashed with colour in certain areas. These areas include the kitchen, with colour on the kitchen cabinetry, the dining area will have coloured chairs and tables, the bunks and storage units inside of the bedrooms, and the cabinetry in the bathrooms. Colour choices will vary from yellow, green, red or blue. Everything has been designed for the safety and enjoyment of the children and adults who will inhibit the space.

The windows throughout the space have been placed specifically. The kitchen has one large window that looks out to the harbour and has a full view of the exterior environment. In the dining area, the doors that line both walls have the ability of opening the space outwards. There are serval half circle windows in the bedrooms, which line one wall in each room, these act as little peep holes for the children to enjoy. A sliding door at the end of the bedrooms opens out onto a small deck. The storage area also has a bench seat, with a large window to look out of.

The lookout located separately to the main building, which can be accessed through the back doors of the main building, has various large windows on each level, which hold a different perspective of the surrounding environment.

The lookout, which can be used by all children, has an external spiral staircase and an interior Aritco Electric Home Lift. These two containers have not been modified from their original state other than some additional windows and doors.

The bedrooms also include an internal, separated room, which has two beds. These will be used by teachers or other adults and in some cases can be used for a sick child.

The bathrooms are separated into three areas, one of which is wheel chair accessible.

The interior features are functional and practical as well as playful and child friendly.