- Becroft House in Takapuna, designed by Peter Middleton, is for sale for the first time.
- The five-bedroom home, with a $9 million RV, features mid-century architecture and a Historic Heritage Overlay.
- House has a vibrant history, hosting notable artists and legendary parties in the 1960s and 70s.
A historic waterfront home has hit the market for sale for the first time since it was built over half a century ago.
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Becroft House, at 7-9 Lake View Road in Auckland's Takapuna, is one of the best-preserved examples of mid-century architecture in New Zealand.
It was designed by acclaimed architect Peter "Pug" Middleton for Genevieve and David Becroft in 1960 and has twice been honoured by the New Zealand Institute of Architects.
The five-bedroom home, which has a Historic Heritage Overlay and an RV of over $9 million, sits on a 2314sqm section overlooking Lake Pupuke.
The mid-century home was designed for arts champions Genevieve and David Becroft in 1960. Photo / Supplied
A who's who of New Zealand art used to hang around the house. Photo / Supplied
The couple's daughter, Gabrielle Becroft, told OneRoof that her parents had worked in the United States in the 1950s and had returned to New Zealand with ideas about modernist architecture that rejected the post‑war conservatism.
“In Boston, mum got really involved in pottery and women’s groups and all sorts of things,” she said.
The Becrofts also hired Harry Turbott, New Zealand's first formally trained landscape architect, to work with Middleton on the home at Middleton's request.
Gabrielle told Oneroof that Becroft House was a magnet for the who’s who of New Zealand art in the 1960s and 70s, thanks to her mother. Patrick Hanly, Margaret Lawlor-Bartlett, Mal Bouzaid and Len Castle were frequent visitors, she said. And the parties her parents hosted were legendary.
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“They used to have great parties. They held theatrical productions in the garden, like Alice in Wonderland. It was interactive, so you could walk around the garden. They had a Mad Hatter's tea party [corner], and in a different section, they'd have something else going on. It was amazing growing up in a house like that," Gabrielle said.
"Each of us kids had a loft above our bedrooms with a ladder, and our friends could stay up there."
Gabrielle added: “It was an amazing house to grow up in. It was just always colourful, always artists there. There was always something happening. We used to have people over, and it was all about pottery and tie‑dyeing.’
Gabrielle said her mother was a kindergarten teacher, while her late father was a paediatric pathologist who was instrumental in the development of Auckland’s Starship hospital. Both were champions of Auckland art and culture.
They joined the fight to save The PumpHouse Theatre in the 1960s and 70s, and in 2017, the theatre renamed its main auditorium the Genevieve Becroft Auditorium in honour of Genevieve's work.
Middleton's design has been twice honoured by the New Zealand Institute of Architects. Photo / Supplied
The house, which has a Historic Overlay, overlooks Lake Pupuke. Photo / Supplied
Genevieve also co‑founded Sculpture on the Shore in 1996. The now-famous event was held at the Becroft’s Lake Pupuke property for the first six years of its life until the numbers became too much for David.
In an interview highlighting the event, Genevieve said: “I felt like I had this big garden and perhaps we could have sculptures in this big garden.”
However, after 6000 visitors walked on David's beloved lawns, he said: “Enough is enough”. The show then moved to Fort Takapuna, on the Devonport peninsula, where it continues to be held.
Over the decades, the Becrofts built up a large art collection, although much of it was sold in 2024, including pieces by Don Binney, Barry Brickell, Louise Henderson, Barry Lett, Teuane Tibbo, Greer Twiss, and Robert Ellis.
Prestige listing agent Murray Blair said that the home was widely regarded as one of New Zealand's most important and influential mid-century homes.
"Its significance has been formally recognised with the prestigious New Zealand Institute of Architects 25-Year Award - an honour reserved for buildings of enduring national importance. The home also won the NZIA Bronze Medal for Domestic Architecture in 1966. Decades on, the home remains remarkably intact, a testament to the strength of its original design and the care taken to preserve it," Blair says in his listing.
- 7-9 Lake View Road, Takapuna, Auckland, is for sale, deadline closing May 14
