The Greenhouse

“It starts with that glazed brick that changes colour a thousand times a day. Under morning sun, it’s gleaming emerald-green, like a summer walk to Karekare Falls, but as the day unfolds it’ll shift to forest-green, then dark olive, then almost to black – the colour of a midwinter slog through Great Barrier bush. There are glimmers of Whatipū greys, fleeting moments of Waiheke navy and indigo."

"All up, there are 150,000 of these wondrous, iridescent bricks which give The Greenhouse its name. Getting the glaze right has been a slightly obsessive quest, but it’s worth it: this is Auckland’s most desirable neighbourhood, and a building has to be exceptional to belong here.” says Ockham’s Mark Todd.

“It took us almost four years, but there was a standout – the Sant’Anselmo brick company from Veneto, Italy. When you see how the colour changes subtly as the light changes through the day, you understand why these were the only bricks for The Greenhouse. Holding an early brick made by Sant’Anselmo is like holding a piece of time in your hands. And indeed, each brick was traditionally hand-crafted – each slab of clay carefully composed; every edge attended to."

This artisanal level of detail has been passed down across the years, never once compromised even as Sant’Anselmo grew and refined its manufacturing. Projects realised with Sant’Anselmo brick have an unrivalled integrity and narrative, a certain something that can only be formed over layers of time. Brickmaking at Sant’Anselmo is more than a practice, craft, or even tradition – it’s an honoured ritual.”