Innholdsfortegnelse for November-December 2022 i Architecture NZ

NOW THAT HE HAS BECOME KING Charles III, will Aotearoa’s new Head of State continue to be an imperious antimodernism, pro neoclassicism architecture critic and ardent anti-pollution, pro-nature, environmental activist? Protocol would suggest not. A constitutional monarch must keep his opinions to himself and, regardless of whether he agrees or not, blithely rubber-stamp royal assent to all legislation passed by the government of the day. But, given His Majesty’s propensity for spontaneously erupting over the bother of a leaking fountain pen at a signing ceremony, – “Oh God, I hate this” – we imagine the new king may have some difficulty reining in speaking out on one’s passions. Even if the royal gob is required to remain publicly shut, the new king will likely be unable to resist wielding power and…

LARGE-SCALE REUSE FOR NEW SCHOOL CAMPUS Having been badly hit by the 2011 Canterbury earthquakes, Christchurch Catholic girls’ school Marian College had to vacate its North Parade premises and move to a temporary location in Barbadoes Street. After an almost-decade-long search for a permanent new home, the school came up with a unique solution. A former Foodstuffs distribution centre on Lydia Street – the largest of its kind in the South Island when it was built – was acquired by the Catholic Diocese and the concept of placing the new school within the 17,000m2 structure was explored. A feasibility study conducted by consultants WSP concluded the idea was possible and the school engaged Christchurchbased practice Sheppard & Rout as project architects. Associate director Jonathan Kennedy says the “brave concept” presented…

Upon entering Auckland’s Spark Arena for mini in:situ – Aotearoa’s largest architecture conference, hosted by Te Kāhui Whaihanga New Zealand Institute of Architects – I found myself immersed in a trade show; even outside of the office, the sales pitches are inescapable. After weaving my way through the irl spec sheet, I found my way up into the stands. Watching members of the crowd meander to their seats, I began to wonder why the NZIA had chosen these four international speakers. What insights did they have to offer and how could these be applied to Aotearoa’s built environment? As the broken murmurs were lulled by TV personality Jehan Casinader and the collective mourning commenced, it became clear that, for some of us, this was possibly more than a branding exercise.…

NEW ZEALAND BEACHES ARE DANGEROUS. Really dangerous. More dangerous than it is being an architect (although they share the risk of public exposure). New Zealand beaches were even more dangerous again if you were Māori in 1769 and a funny-looking waka was heading your way. They were still dangerous in the 1980s, when vile acts of violence by a few who had sworn to uphold the law coloured some Bay of Plenty beaches in halffear. I couldn’t look at a surf club tower for 15 years without feeling ashamed for the police. I was reminded that a surf tower could carry pain as well as hope in the pages of a local newspaper recently: “… what a terrible ‘ting’ to have in the sand dunes”, “…how dare such a ‘ting’ occur…

Architecture practice GARY TODD ARCHITECTURE Project team GARY TODD, COURTNEY TODD, JAIME HORNE, MATHEW ROWLAND Photography SAM HARTNETT, GARETH HARVEY AND JEREMY HOPPER Jury citation Andrew Irving, Ana O’Connell, Mel Bright and Craig Moller Ebb-Dunedin succeeds as an intervention within the fabric of Ōtepoti by extending the boundaries of its commercial site and brief. The bold incorporation of a grand-scale piece by Simon Kaan at the façade contributes art to the central city and functions as privacy screen, light sculpture and environmental control. The architecture questions hotel typology with a shared pedestrian walk-through at street level: a transparent public edge that introduces the casual luxury of the hotel beyond. A protected central atrium inverts the relationship of interior to exterior and creates gallery-like circulation spaces that transform into outdoor balconies…

“An exemplar of enduring postmodern New Zealand architecture, First Church of Christ Scientist is humble in scale with a whimsical yet serene sensibility. The two rectangular forms and wide courtyard are sensitively sited between the river, established trees and a busy road. Postmodern nods to the Parthenon in the form of coffered barrel-vaulted ceilings provide sculptural delight, while Mondrianinspired artworks add playful colour. After the city’s earthquakes, demolition of the church was debated. Thankfully, over the course of nine years, its custodians have repaired this little gem, enabling it to shine into the future.”…

“Te Rau Karamu is the cultural heart of the campus and a flexible space that supports education, creativity and conversation. The ātea (courtyard) opens to the surrounding campus, reordering and expressing the access sequence to the new whare wānanga. Recognisable elements derived from traditional forms are given contemporary expression through the use of technology. The interior is rich, warm and superbly detailed. Surfaces alive with story and pattern speak to the close collaboration between architect, client and artist. Te Rau Karamu is an uplifting and engaging cultural outcome: a place of welcome and retreat that fosters education and understanding.” Project team JOHN HARDWICK-SMITH, NICK MOUAT, ARI STEVENS, CHRIS WINWOOD, MIRIAM BARNETT, KIM SALT, TE KĀHUI TOI – NGATAIHARURU TAEPA, KURA PUKE, HEMI MACGREGOR, SAFFRONN TE RATANA, STUART FOSTER, WI TAEPA,…

“Providing integrated library, community, exhibition and performance spaces, this building is the first civic gesture in the new Rolleston town centre. Within a simple four-cornered plan, movement through the building is curated to provide moments to pause, view and study. The central stair is an ordering element, its crafted timber detailing connecting upper-level workspaces to the act of vertical movement. Expression of the dynamic roof form yields uplifting ceilings, a spacious interior warmed by considered material selection and external screening. Study spaces, workstations and window boxes are artfully inserted, delivering a diversity of public space and experience.” Project team JONATHAN COOTE, TIMOTHY HERVEY, FREDERIC GAPINSKI, BRIDGET WATSON, SHARON DOWERS, BRITA CORBETT, ANDREW WADE, IAN HUTCHINSON, TAO SHEN, HAYLEY FISHER, JONO COATES…

“Hovering within a grove of established pōhutukawa at the top of a steep, narrow site, this retreat is a project of enjoyable contrast: restrained yet sophisticated, modest yet bold, simple yet complex. The two axis parti of a deck for living, intersected by a floating timber box for sleeping, provides delightful spatial contrast. The clarity and elegance of the floating timber box is achieved through care in detailing, the refined steel structure and in deftly hiding the services. In the living level, the feeling of being in nature is enhanced by timber linings, the high level of transparency and a lack of structure. The volume stretches out seamlessly to the decks and connects with the landscape.” Project team SAM CURTIS, JO MACKAY, EARL RUTHERFORD, RAY ATKINS, JONIE MOLLOY…

Architecture practice STEVENS LAWSON ARCHITECTS Project team NICHOLAS STEVENS, GARY LAWSON, JOSHUA WARNE, SASHA HENDRY, HOWIE KANG, JAMES HAY, YVONNE MAK, JULIANA BUDEL, ELLIOTT MORGAN, YVETTE OVERDYCK, NATALIE KEANE, KAT HEBDEN, BARRY TOBIN, BHAVINA LE GRICE, WOO MIN LEE, JOHN SCOULLER Photography MARK SMITH “The building is at the forefront of multilevel, enginee-redtimber construction and sustainability in Aotearoa New Zealand.” Jury citation Andrew Irving, Ana O’Connell, Mel Bright and Craig Moller HomeGround is an immaculate architectural insertion within the fabric of the city. This building remakes its immediate surroundings, with a legible internal street that serves building users and welcomes all. Layers of accretion have been sensitively removed, returning the Prince of Wales tavern as a meaningful heritage structure to Hobson Street. An architecture of openness and inclusion combines material…

“A successful outcome of a complex brief with many stakeholders involved. The result mediates the conversation between the city and its water’s edge, integrating and embedding elements of Māori design in the narrative outcome. The project closes the gap between large-scale urban planning moves and the intricate, small-scale details required for its success. There is joy and delight in the ways the project engages with the water, allowing for the transition of commuters across the site, as well as catering for children at play and the young at heart.” Project team NADA STANISH, SARAH BISHOP, DAVID IRWIN, GAVIN LISTER, ALEX FOXON, SOPHIE FISHER, TRAVIS WOOLLER, PAULO COSTA…

ALONG WITH A LARGE NUMBER of others, I celebrated the life of a mate and occasional client yesterday. It was a wonderful gathering, full of humour, love, great stories and no little sadness at the loss of a friend, family member and acquaintance. As happens, there were moments of self-reflection and I thought about my relationship with him, the projects I joined him in, particularly those that involved Auckland Council. For reasons that no one at the celebration could determine, our friend had a profound antipathy to ‘city hall’. This is not an unfamiliar attitude to those of us required to deal with the Byzantine machinations involved in consenting construction. For him, though, the relationship transcended the occasional skirmishes over consents and became a wonderful, multifaceted conflict of operatic proportions. His…

Following an extensive four-year programme of refurbishment and seismic strengthening, the Hamilton New Zealand Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) was recently open to the public for only the second time in its history. Prior to its rededication, guided tours showcased the heritage and holy purpose of a building that is a landmark, both day and night, on the edge of Hamilton. In secular terms, the experience was akin to visiting a high-end mid-century hotel in which every detail had been carefully crafted and arranged. Members of the LDS church have been part of New Zealand society since the late 19th century. Architecturally, the church is best known for its modernist meetinghouses, which are instantly recognisable by their masonry block construction, slender spires and creamcoloured…

ROCKFALL RISK FROM THE CLIFFS BEHIND meant Te Raekura Redcliffs School was left without a home when its site was deemed uninhabitable after the Canterbury earthquakes. After the school spent seven years fighting the Ministry of Education and resisting its closure, a land swap with Christchurch City Council was agreed in 2017. Redcliffs Park, across the road from the original school site and facing the water’s edge, was to become the school’s new home: a unique opportunity for the small seaside community to design its school from scratch on a remarkable piece of land. The new site has a rich cultural history as well as complex geographical challenges, including a flood hazard zone and geotechnical issues. Between the escarpment along the road from the Raekura Redcliffs and the Heathcote and…

“A singular folded timber roof, floating above expressed gabion elements, compresses the experience of entry, which opens as a sheltered inner environment. Sustainability principles are apparent in ordered banks of solar water heating, while LVL components are assembled with visible care and craft. The roof grid orders a diverse brief of requirements: solid forms enclose the materially rich and carefully resolved changing rooms and treatment spaces; and controlled circulation separates adult, family and spa facilities. The glazed building edge is enhanced by a simple material palette and minimal vertical structure. The building opens to the alps through well-captured views and integrated landscaping.” Project team JASPER VAN DER LINGEN, MATT GUTSELL, MAX WARREN, JONATHAN KENNEDY, BRAD BANNAN, ELLA VAN DER LINGEN, TIM DAGG…

“Designed by Roy Lippincott in the 1930s, the refectory has been subject to a series of unforgiving interventions. This carefully managed restoration returns the building to its original configuration, while addressing accessibility and environment. Intelligently located seismic work integrates with the existing fabric and belies the complexity of these interventions. Heritage discoveries are sensitively retained and expressed, returning layers of history and use. [The architects’] rigorous process contributes greatly to the project’s success.” Project team EVŹEN NOVÁK, SARAH BERRY, DIANA BRAAKSMA, ELLIE COMPTON, NICK DENTON, JON FRASER, AGATA HALAGARDA, MATTHEW KIDD, TAKESHI KOMINAMI, MITCH MCTAGGART, FRANCES MOUGHAN, ARIANA PIA, SAMANTHA ZONDAG, LIANNE COX, MAX WILES…

“A small-scale intervention within an existing school successfully uses the contours of the site to make it appear bigger than it really is. Simple forms and typologies have been deployed to meet the brief and budget constraints. The pièce de résistance of the scheme is the two-level loggia fronting the playing fields, providing a respite from classroom activity and a sheltered space that can be used in many ways. Interior spaces are beautifully detailed and handled in ways not typically seen in education projects; there’s warmth and delight in the materials and craft in the way in which they’ve been put together.” Project team ANDREW SEXTON, HAMISH PARBHU, SALLY APTHORP…

“A beautifully resolved interior embodies cultural significance, and provides a place for education and storytelling, and a framework for engaging with the wider community. There is a seamlessness in the relationship between interior and exterior architecture, developed simultaneously by working in close conjunction with the client and their brief. Light and shade are used in subtle ways to enhance the experience and storytelling of the space, while artworks further strengthen that experience.” Project team JOHN HARDWICK-SMITH, NICK MOUAT, ARI STEVENS, CHRIS WINWOOD, MIRIAM BARNETT, KIM SALT, TE KĀHUI TOI – NGATAIHARURU TAEPA, KURA PUKE, HEMI MACGREGOR, SAFFRONN TE RATANA, STUART FOSTER, WI TAEPA, ISRAEL BIRCH, ROBERT JAHNKE, MAIHI POTAKA, TE KĀHUI TOI WHĀNAU WHĀNUI…

“HomeGround provides much-needed housing for those most in need, showing how architects can contribute more broadly to this typology. While the programme caters for the homeless, the building provides lessons in applying this architectural solution to a multi-unit residential environment. The arrangement of the living units reads as a series of clusters around a common core, breaking down the overall internal mass from a user experience, as well as externally in the urban realm. Wraparound services are provided on the ground floor, where commercial tenancies connect with the public through community spaces. The top floor is dedicated to common areas, decks and gardens to provide joy and outlook to the city.” Project team NICHOLAS STEVENS, GARY LAWSON, JOSHUA WARNE, SASHA HENDRY, HOWIE KANG, JAMES HAY, YVONNE MAK, JULIANA BUDEL, ELLIOTT…

“This relaxed and enchanting house accommodates a retired couple, plus their extended family for holidays. The dwelling fits into its suburban context, yet differentiates itself from its neighbours. Living is arranged around a series of courtyards to provide natural light and outlook within the tight site. Privacy and proximity to the street are mediated with a series of louvred decks, which lend a holiday feel to the environments created. Roof forms connect with the sky and pōhutukawa without compromising privacy. Landscaping provides a house that mingles the inside with the outside.” Project team AARON PATERSON, STEVEN LLOYD, LIZ TJAHJANA, SAROSH MULLA, RORY KOFOED, JOSH OVEREND-CLARKE…

“Beach Barn is a dramatic transformation undertaken within the footprint of an existing dark and leaky 1990s’ house. It was stripped back to a pure gabled form, and circulation and planning maximise the site’s potential. The result is a light-filled home that settles the conundrum of privacy versus views, and demonstrates successful collaboration between architect and interior-designer client. Care and attention to detail, unexpected touches and delightful use of colour and texture are evident throughout. Beach Barn showcases the potential of collaboration to create beautiful and adventurous residential architecture.” Project team CHARLIE NOTT, ANNABEL CROPPER, MATT DAVIS, ALEX FULTON…

“A small-scale intervention that is part of a larger master plan, this project provides much needed connection to the water’s edge at the city’s fringe, as well as a safe path for pedestrians and cyclists along a tight site. There is a range of spaces for transiting pedestrians and cyclists, as well as places to pause and connect with the coastal environment. Materials and details balance robustness and delicacy, and are fit for purpose as they age gracefully in the severe marine environment.” Project team LISA RIMMER, AARON MILLER, TIM COOK, JAMES PATULLO, BLAIR BRIXTON, SAM GWYNN, CHELSEA KERSHAW, PAUL BARKER, DANIEL CAIRNCROSS, VIDA CHRISTELLER, VERONICA BYRNE, CHARLES GORDON…

The first-ever town plan for the Cook Islands capital Avarua has won an International Federation of Landscape Architects (IFLA) award for its response to the climate crisis. The award was one of two prizes received by urban design and landscape architecture practice Reset Urban Design, the only New Zealand practice to receive an award at the international event in South Korea in early September. Te Tau Papa o Avarua, The Avarua Town Plan, was praised by judges for its climate change mitigation and positive contribution to the wider Cook Islands community. The plan was commissioned by the Cook Islands Government and designed in association with traffic engineers Stantec and Rarotonga-based architect Romani Katoa. “This award recognises the tough calls needing to be made to improve resilience to climate change and…

WHEN WE FIRST BEGAN, IT WAS IN THE midst of the GFC. While some firms were falling over, with people losing their jobs, we were diving into the chaos. In hindsight, it was the best time to start something new – we were motivated and inspired, and we worked hard to establish client and industry relationships. That has been our focus from the start – to develop a strong network of people that can collaborate with us to deliver outstanding projects. Post pandemic, we’re purposefully evolving our studio culture, strengthening our capacity for collaboration. We’re not an eponymous practice but, as directors, we set the tone for Bureaux in terms of design inquiry and interest in the careful crafting of space. That hasn’t changed; however, we more consciously encourage the…

KELBURN IS A WILDLY HILLY SUBURB OF well-heeled Wellington, home to gaily painted timber villas perched atop fiercely pōhutukawa’d slopes, accessed via infeasibly large numbers of complex, interconnecting walkways. Almost no one has level, walk-on access and, for many houses, maintenance to the timber weatherboards and fretwork is long overdue. Car-parking is precariously perched on the sides of road reserves or hugs tightly to the sides of skinny, winding roads. Patchwork Architecture’s pair of townhouses in Upland Road conforms to the trend in one way and strongly bucks it in the next. Cue complex staircases for access and a precarious parking pad for cars. But cue, also, a massively comforting concrete floor and centrally located party wall, anchoring the two homes firmly to the rock below. A word of warning…

This year’s New Zealand Architecture Awards jury was led by Nelson-based architect Andrew Irving of Irving Smith Architects and included fellow architects Ana O’Connell of Lovell & O’Connell Architects, Craig Moller of Moller Architects and Mel Bright of Studio Bright, Melbourne. The jury began its 11-day tour of Aotearoa on Monday 29 August and visited 47 projects across 12 categories.…

Architecture practice ATHFIELD ARCHITECTS Photography DENNIS RADERMACHER Project team TREVOR WATT, ZAC ATHFIELD, TIM DEWAR, MIKE CALLAGHAN, MATTHEW WEBBY, ALICE BROOMFIELD, CHARLES COLLINS, POLLY DAWES, CATHERINE LEE, COLIN MCKEAN, LAURA STEVENS “… the addition stands apart from the heritage context, yet mimics existing gable forms. New materiality and colours respond to and acknowledge the existing building.” Jury citation Andrew Irving, Ana O’Connell, Mel Bright and Craig Moller The addition of Christchurch Boys’ High School’s Caddick Caldwell Block is an exemplary educational project. It responds to the heritage context of the existing Main Block with a series of quads linking old and new. Equally, the addition stands apart from the heritage context, yet mimics existing gable forms. New materiality and colours respond to and acknowledge the existing building. The project fulfils…

“Commitment and care in the design and detail of Footsteps preschool has produced a fresh and gentle building. Clever siting and planning provide positive street activation and playful interaction between children, parents, adjacent primary school students and the public. The use of a cost-effective shed structure, simple materials and colour has been cleverly and inventively handled so that minimal means have not inhibited architectural quality. Footsteps is a delightful, calm and nurturing learning environment with children’s scale, connection and joy at its heart.” Project team GERALD PARSONSON, CRAIG BURT, SAM DONALD…

Architecture practice PATCHWORK ARCHITECTURE Project team BEN MITCHELL-ANYON, SALLY OGLE Photography SIMON DEVITT Jury citation Andrew Irving, Ana O’Connell, Mel Bright and Craig Moller Party Wall recognises the opportunity afforded by a difficult central site. An intelligent and restrained architectural response, the bold structural gesture grounds the project, triumphing over topography. The simply clad and expressed form shelters two similar dwellings, each offset, supported and serviced by the central in-situ concrete core. The opportunity of the site is embraced by glazing and outdoor living, maximising sun and the remarkable aspect to Kelburn and the Wellington Green Belt. Each unit is compact but generous; materials are considered, and expressed with care and crafted detail. These homes provide quality, amenity and comfort, and are suitable to adapt and reinterpret at greater scale.…

“This crafted home fits peacefully within its stunning coastal landscape: a singular form following the land’s contour. A considered entry sequence turns away from the coast, connecting with the site’s regenerating bush. The dramatic view is delivered from within a beautifully crafted interior. A stepped strategy follows the landform, defining internal spaces that interconnect seamlessly within an open volume. Coastal views are restrained, scaled and composed through timber joinery. Thermal performance and carbon calculation inform the design of a highperforming building envelope. The line between architecture and interior design is delightfully blurred in a series of beautifully crafted surfaces and rigorously assembled timber elements.” Project team RORY KOFOED, KRISTINA PICKFORD, AARON PATERSON, SAROSH MULLA, LIZ TJAHJANA, STEVEN LLOYD…

Michael Lett 6 August – 17 September 2022, Gus Fisher Gallery 6 August – 19 November 2022 Creation Stories is the result of the ultimate link and build between Pacific academic Karamia Müller and Berlin-based artist Simon Denny. The two have produced a series of newly co-authored works that chart a variety of narratives, linking Sāmoa and the Pacific to Germany and a wider Western milieu. These unique mixed-media assemblages are presented in association with a range of works by an international cast of artists – Sarah Friend, Buck Nin, D Harding, Daniel Boyd, Michael Stevenson, Salle Tamatoa and Tunagi Funaki, and more. Split across Michael Lett and Gus Fisher Gallery, Creation Stories cunningly negotiates both the market and the institution, leveraging the strengths of both contexts to acquire works…