Located in Lower Hutt, New Zealand, Wainuiomata is the Masonic Villages Trust’s latest retirement development. Operating at a small to medium scale, the Trust work to provide a comfortable space for people to retire close to their friends and family, and in turn create a tight knit community.
This sense of community and local identity are central to the design of the Common Facilities building within the Village. Responding to the geographic features, history, and culture of Wainuiomata Frances Fraser, Director of Honour Creative, sought to “amplify the pre-designed layout of the light-filled common facilities building through the interior treatments."
To create an interior complementary of both the architecture of the building and the surrounding landscape, Frances notes that every aspect of the space – from flooring and lighting to finishes, window treatments, furniture, and plants – “needed to feel contemporary as well as be inviting and considerate of its ageing residents.”
An extension of the exterior spaces, “the palette is inspired by the raw materials, colours, and robust forms seen in the nearby natural environment,” says Frances. “Moments of forest green feature in the joinery and wall colours, paired with warm timber accents and stony textures on the servery benchtops and fireplace surrounds. Grooved details in the wall panelling and intricately woven textures in the furniture upholstery further add to the refined rustic feel.”
