But does that still hold true in today\u2019s world?<\/p>\n
\u201cAbsolutely,\u201d says Tim Dorrington of Dorrington Atcheson Architects (DAA). <\/p>\n
\u201cIn a way, a bach is really just a tent you don\u2019t take down. That\u2019s one of the enduring lessons of the bach. You don\u2019t need excess to create comfort, pleasure and connection. <\/p>\n
\u201cOften the smartest move is restraint. The bach was the bare minimum, which meant less to do and less to maintain. It\u2019s about making a modest space work really well.\u201d <\/p>\n
Tim Dorrington: \u201cIn a way, a bach is really just a tent you don\u2019t take down”. <\/p>\n
It\u2019s this stripped back simplicity that underpins its attraction. A bach is as small as can be, low to no maintenance \u2013 it\u2019s where you go to relax. <\/p>\n
\u201cYou compromise and make do when you\u2019re at the bach,\u201d says Dorrington, a spokesperson for Te K\u0101hui Whaihanga NZ Institute of Architects. <\/p>\n
\u201cA lot of its charm comes from simple materials, practical spaces, no unnecessary fuss. Design doesn\u2019t have to mean expensive or overdone. Quite often it means being clearer about what matters and stripping away what doesn\u2019t.\u201d <\/p>\n
Bach furniture also had a \u2018less is more\u2019 approach, one that was more about sentimentality than Scandinavian chic. <\/p>\n
Sinking into a bach sofa is like putting on an old and familiar pair of slippers that are past their prime, worn and faded but comfortable. <\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes that comfort comes from familiarity rather than luxury,\u201d says Dorrington. <\/p>\n
\u201cGran\u2019s old dining table, a slightly faded couch, a daybed in the sun that\u2019s perfect for reading. It may not be polished but it feels right. <\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s often what good design comes down to as well, not making something flashier, but making it feel useful, enduring and right for the way people actually live,\u201d he continues. <\/p>\n
\u201cA quirky, colourful little building with personality is a place you go to get away from it all, to gather with friends and family. The classic Kiwi bach is where jandals rule and community is key, where doing a jigsaw and building a fire become the main event.\u201d <\/p>\n
There are things you can get away with at the bach that you can\u2019t get away with at home, he adds: \u201cThe mindset is different. What might feel like a chore at home becomes part of the ritual at the bach, even something like washing the dishes. <\/p>\n
\u201cYou wear togs all day long, you read a book without feeling guilty, and meals become the way you mark time.\u201d <\/p>\n
Second-hand pieces, often from relatives, furnish many baches. Photo \/ Cave Studio<\/p>\n
Bach culture is a uniquely Kiwi response to New Zealand\u2019s warm summer climate, a tiny house movement that evolved many years before that phrase was even thought of. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe economy of space is a big part of the appeal,\u201d says Dorrington. <\/p>\n
\u201cA smaller footprint, when it\u2019s well thought through, can be both more affordable and more enjoyable to use. A lot of bach life happens outdoors. You don\u2019t want too much space, because then there\u2019s more to clean, more to maintain, and more to worry about.\u201d <\/p>\n
There\u2019s a common belief that the classic Kiwi bach will always be linked to a time when life wasn\u2019t as challenging and complicated as it is today. <\/p>\n
\u201cIn some ways that\u2019s true,\u201d says Dorrington. <\/p>\n
\u201cLife was probably more structured, building was less regulated, and self-builds were more achievable. Land was also much cheaper, relative to income than it is now, even coastal land. <\/p>\n
\u201cSo it does seem to reflect a different era. But I think the long-term appeal is more than nostalgia. It\u2019s the idea that what\u2019s important to living well is a good connection with the outdoors, things like natural light and flexible shared spaces, and having a solid, low-maintenance structure that can adapt as your needs change,\u201d he continues. <\/p>\n
The classic Kiwi bach doesn\u2019t need a large footprint because most activities take place outside. Photo \/ Cave Studio<\/p>\n
It was back when middle New Zealand could afford to own a simple holiday home. <\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m no expert on the historical economics of it, but they were often tied to a particular activity or way of spending time; fishing, white baiting, hiking, and they were quite often self-built as a family or community effort,\u201d says Dorrington. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe bach was once a more modest and accessible idea than the holiday home can be today. That\u2019s one reason this conversation still matters. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe principles behind the bach; flexibility, simplicity and making space work harder, are just as relevant when we talk about affordable housing now.\u201d <\/p>\n
Flexible spaces were fundamental to the bach lifestyle. <\/p>\n
Decks extended the bach living space and reinforced its connection with nature. Sometimes they had provision for shade from the sun and protection from the rain. <\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s a good example of smart design adding value without necessarily adding much cost, having flexible spaces where you can put up temporary shelter if you need to, and take it down when the weather allows,\u201d says Dorrington. <\/p>\n
DIY design reigned supreme in bach construction, reflecting a time when there was less red tape associated with building. <\/p>\n
Most were basic, often resembling a child\u2019s drawing of a house, but some were influenced by one of the most important design movements in recent times, mid-century modernism. <\/p>\n
With an aesthetic that championed logic and simplicity, its style appealed to some bach owners. <\/p>\n
\u201cA lot of baches were built in an era when there was a recognition that you didn\u2019t need masses of space to create a functional, liveable and enjoyable home,\u201d says Dorrington. <\/p>\n
Little and charming, a bach is all about simple materials, practical spaces, and no unnecessary fuss. Photo \/ Paul McCredie<\/p>\n
Over time, and it\u2019s difficult to pinpoint exactly when this began, the holiday home started to move away from the cute baches of yesteryear. <\/p>\n
\u201cI think it happened almost by accident,\u201d says Dorrington. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe seem to have drifted into more of a beach house culture, maybe because of what got built next door, or because of resale thinking, or just what people saw in magazines and online. <\/p>\n
\u201cAnd yet people are still drawn to the classic Kiwi bach for a reason. I think that says something important. Bigger and more expensive isn\u2019t automatically better. A lot of people still respond to the modesty and clarity of a traditional bach.\u201d <\/p>\n
With coastal land prices soaring in recent decades, is the humble Kiwi bach in danger of disappearing?<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is, although\u202fI\u2019d\u202flike to think it can make a bit of a resurgence,\u201d says Dorrington. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s always going to be a place for beach houses, and they\u2019re not in competition with baches. They\u2019re just answering a different brief.\u201d <\/p>\n
Beach houses took a couple of new directions \u2013 there\u2019s a hybrid that\u2019s still small and deeply pragmatic. <\/p>\n
Often architect-designed, its roots are firmly in the classic Kiwi bach vernacular. Commonly an unadorned plywood box, with a floor-plan dictated by the size of a sheet of ply, the structure is simple, and the emphasis remains on outdoor activities.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s often small, durable, low-maintenance and easy to lock up and leave. In fact, our office is in the process of coming up with a basic bach design that tries to respond to exactly that,\u201d says Dorrington. <\/p>\n
\u201cAs architects, we\u2019re trained to solve quite complex problems of brief, budget and context, and turn them into a specific response for a specific site. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhen that thinking is applied to a bach, you can still end up with something very simple, very emotive and very cost-effective. That\u2019s where good design really adds value, not by making something more elaborate, but by making it work harder.\u201d <\/p>\n
Mid-century modernism had an influence on bach design, such as this lakeside holiday home in Taupo. Photo \/ David Straight<\/p>\n
The other style of bach in this new design-driven beach house world is not really a bach at all \u2013 more of a large beach house with all the mod cons of home. <\/p>\n
A home away from home, clustered in popular coastal bolt holes like Omaha, Pauanui and Waiheke Island. <\/p>\n
\u201cI think beach houses and baches are really just two different types of building solving two different problems,\u201d says Dorrington. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey can happily co-exist. The architect\u2019s role is to help clients get the best outcome for their brief, budget and site, whatever scale the project is.\u201d <\/p>\n
For some, owning an impressive holiday home is important. <\/p>\n
\u201cEveryone\u2019s different,\u201d he continues. <\/p>\n
\u201cFor some people, that probably is the goal, and for others it\u2019s not. The architect\u2019s job isn\u2019t to impose one answer, but to solve the brief clearly and efficiently.\u201d <\/p>\n
If bach ownership is slipping out of the grasp of middle New Zealand, are there ways we can reverse this? <\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m no economist, but I do think it would be great if a low-cost, simple bach could become more common again,\u201d says Dorrington. <\/p>\n
Achieving the Kiwi dream of owning a bach will invariably involve finding cheaper land in more out-of-the-way places, as well as making the most of smaller sections and smaller footprints. <\/p>\n
\u201cLower costs should open it up to more people. Shared ownership or family ownership may be part of that. <\/p>\n
Baches are often handed down for generations.<\/p>\n
Architects can help families think ahead and design baches that will still work for the next generation, and which can easily adapt as lifestyles and tastes change.\u201d <\/p>\n
Has New Zealand developed into a country of two halves, where mansions are right next door to old-style baches? <\/p>\n
\u201cYes, and I don\u2019t think there needs to be any judgement in that,\u201d says Dorrington. <\/p>\n
\u201cBaches and beach houses can comfortably co-exist. It really comes down to what you want from a holiday place. Somewhere you live half the year probably requires more home comforts in comparison to somewhere you go for shorter breaks. <\/p>\n
\u201cBut I do think there\u2019s still a strong public appetite for the simpler bach idea, because it speaks to practicality, memory and value. That\u2019s probably why the idea continues to resonate so strongly with New Zealanders.\u201d <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"But does that still hold true in today\u2019s world? \u201cAbsolutely,\u201d says Tim Dorrington of Dorrington Atcheson Architects (DAA).…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":363501,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[58114,7972,501,28145,39401,2881,189,1345,6800,10053,57910,2203,194,33120,5338,60,111,43,139,69,25073,92494,1954,223,6923],"class_list":{"0":"post-363500","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-zealand","8":"tag-bach","9":"tag-beach","10":"tag-design","11":"tag-designer","12":"tag-evolutionary","13":"tag-explores","14":"tag-holiday","15":"tag-home","16":"tag-homes","17":"tag-house","18":"tag-humble","19":"tag-journey","20":"tag-kiwi","21":"tag-leanne","22":"tag-makes","23":"tag-moore","24":"tag-new-zealand","25":"tag-news","26":"tag-newzealand","27":"tag-nz","28":"tag-origins","29":"tag-reshaping","30":"tag-simple","31":"tag-the","32":"tag-what"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/363500","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=363500"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/363500\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/363501"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=363500"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=363500"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=363500"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}