Wednesday, April 28, 2010

How to get on in Society

New Zealand has no class struggle, no poor, no intellectual tradition, no overt group conflict, little self-awareness as a social entity and has sought for similarity rather than diversity in a restricted immigration programme; it is for these reasons that New Zealand has no sociology.
Jackson, William Keith, and John Harré.
New Zealand.
London: Thames & Hudson, 1969. p125


New Zealand has come of age. Every aspect of this multicultural society has something to offer and it all equates to style. This book is a showcase of the lifestyle that New Zealanders enjoy. New Zealand's recent desire for an increasingly informal lifestyle continues to inspire homes that blur the boundaries between indoors and outdoors. To achieve this, a series of warm, comfortable living spaces are featured throughout the book maintaining a strong connection to the outdoors. The influence of our natural surroundings can be seen in our love for organic furniture and natural building materials such as stone and wood. Even the most contemporary homes often incorporate natural elements. New Zealand Style is a collection of stylish elements including food, wine, interior design, lifestyle, relaxation, the home and garden - everything that makes up our society. Enjoy!


Murray, Peter A., and Jenna Tartt.
New Zealand Style :
Outdoor Living, Food, Wine, Relaxation and Home Ideas.
Australia: Murray Books, 2004.


6 comments:

Robyn said...

We really feel quite guilty about the fact that we have to build houses to live in. We'd rather live out in the unadulterated bush, perhaps in a whare built by the spiritual Maori peoples. But that would be a bit cold and damp. So while we are reluctantly living in a house in the suburbs, we have made a concession to the proper New Zealand way of life by having a large sliding door so we can open it up in summer (and autumn, winter and spring if we use the patio heaters) and enjoy the true New Zealand outdoor lifestyle.

Paul said...

Yes. Yes. Yes.

At least we have organic furniture.

Keri h said...

Robyn G - heh!

One of the things I have done is build a very small SI round house and live in it for a week in winter. It took nearly 3 weeks works (using modern tools - but there was only me doing the work where, historically there would've been 6-8++ people.) Wheki-ponga walls, manuka-batten and fern roof (times twice): a drained gravel floor, a raised sleeping platform(manuka stems and dryish fern fronds covered by good flax mats
(woven by mates because I am not a weaver)) and a small indoor fire using charred totara after the initial lighting...neither damp nor cold nor anything but cosy.

We had organic housing too-

Anonymous said...

I have a tent. But it's made of polyester I think.

Paul said...

Down in the jungle,
living in a tent,
Better than a prefab,
no rent!

Keri, you should be in my thesis - a writer who not only writes about buildings but builds one.

Keri H said...

Also built my own current home Paul (that is, from digging and constructing the foundations,frame, putting on the outside cladding to doing part of the roof - and the majority of the inside work. I did have help - I'm not good on heights, and because my main octagonal livingroom/kitchen/library/workroom is quite large, the neighbours gave me a hand to mix & pour the concrete for the floor (had to be done in one go.) The place has been up for nearly 30 years, and has survived several earthquakes, including a 6.9.
In later years, as I've got older, most big jobs have been done by paid help -but I am quite confident in/of/about my constructions - and can still build smaller things (and look forward to doing something new this year on the east coast of the South...)