walker warner clusters its 'hale mau'u' house on hawaii's big island

california-based architecture studio walker warner looks to the big island of hawaii as the paradisiacal site of its newly designed dwelling, dubbed hale mau’u. while the island is commonly known for its dramatic volcanoes and jungled, coastal cliffs, its western side settles into a vast, gently sloping plain which gradually descends toward the ocean. in designing the vacation home, the team celebrates the natural beauty of the context with its lush grasses growing from between a rough bed of black lava rock. further unique to its site, the dwelling captures views out toward both the ocean and the mountains. the collection of ‘hales,’ or houses, are enclosed with visually-striking, copper-clad roofs defined by their long gables and dramatic eaves which gradually widen across their length.

images by matthew millman photography | @matthewmillmanphoto

walker warner architects organizes its hale mau’u house as a clustered assemblage of simple volumes, suggesting a small village. from an overhead perspective, the strategy is most clear. the relationship between the structures shows subtle shifts and slippages, expressed from the interior as narrow sliver of in-between space or a framed view. the disparate buildings are connected with an exterior circulation strategy. a linear axis takes shape as a single, elevated boardwalk which floats above the natural ground plane, leaving minimal impact on the grassy courtyard below. this axis divides the visitor’s view between the ocean on one side, and the mountains on the other.

the village-like hale mau’u dwelling divides its residential programming between each of its distinct buildings. upon approach, the first building visitors encounter is the main ‘hale’ which divides the boardwalk perpendicularly. this building stands as the largest of the four and hosts the main shared spaces, including the living room, family room, and kitchen. passing through this main house, visitors enter the grassy courtyard, flanked on either side by two hales which are each occupied by living quarters. the smaller of the two houses a grand bedroom suite, while the longer contains a row of cloistered guest bedroom suites — each with its own outdoor shower — looking out onto the courtyard.