About the awards

The awards provide an opportunity for the architecture profession (and interested members of the public) to view sophisticated exhibitions of high quality student work, and to compare and contrast any perceptible pedagogical approaches or emphases of New Zealand’s accredited architecture schools, those at Unitec (Auckland), Victoria University of Wellington and The University of Auckland.

Sponsored by Resene, the 2018 awards were held on 28-29 November at St Matthew-in-the-City – a historic church in central Auckland that happily opens its doors to more secular activities. At St Matthew’s, the four selected students from each school presented their final-year design studio projects to a jurty chosen for excellence in professional practice, as well as strong links to academia. As is customary, the Institute’s sitting President, this year Tim Melville, led a jury that included Nelson architect Rachel Dodd and Australian architect and academic Iain ‘Max’ Maxwell.

For the judges, a great challenges lies in comparing and unpicking work that differs not only in concept and scope but also in motivation. This year, it was noted, the topics selected often had a deep resonance with their authors, and the most accomplished projects went boldly beyond site planning, context and aesthetic preferences to consider wider cultural, social and environmental outcomes.

Unitec’s Carleone Posala, for example, presented an investigation into the potential of the Samoan fale that was also a very personal study into the traditional hierarchy and ambition of contemporary building in Samoa. Icao Tiseli, from the University of Auckland, undertook a conceptually complex yet beautifully drawn study that questioned Western conventions of place, and provided an alternative view that made Tonga’s “hidden worlds” more visible.

For Auckland University’s Jintao Yang, the final year of study provided an opportunity to investigate ways of preserving the distinctive architecture and traditions of the ethnic Li people in southern China, which are under dual threat from homogenous development and economic depletion. Nearer home, Victoria University student Jahmayne Robin-Middleton designed ‘How to Prep a Hangi’ as a hands-on consultation tool to help his extended whānau better engage with design and planning processes. 

Unsurprisingly, several students were motivated by the parlous state of the environment. Auckland University’s Kevin Ding took Burnham’s maxim to “aim high” to heart; he designed – and prototyped with kitchen equipment – a process to recycle plastic waste left on Mt Everest into bricks from which a new airport could be built.

Unitec student Sianne Smith presented plans and paintings for a Far North museum transformed, in its objective, from celebrating the destruction of kauri into a monument dedicated to the survival of the imperilled species. Anneliese Mirus from Unitec proposed a Central Otago development to draw attention to the “out of sight” land that supports consumption beyond New Zealand’s suburban boundaries, while Victoria University’sEmily Newmarch succeeded admirably in her ambition to answer a complex question about the best way to design a home for a very cool climate.

Architecture’s ability to encompass micro and macro themes was also well illustrated. Inspired by the structural and aesthetic qualities of Japanese timber buildings, Victoria student Mikayla Heesterman harnessed the power of a six-axis robotic arm to create highly resolved timber junctions that were clear evidence of the potential for craft in machine-based production. At the urban scale, a public pool proposed for Cuba Street in Wellington by Victoria University’s Janice Chan balanced humour – the togs v. undies “debate” – with a serious consideration of the importance of accessible public space. Unitec’s Emily Pearce delighted in the fine urban grain of Florence, Italy, transforming a walled city monastery into studio spaces for local artisans. In the ‘The Fleeting Acts’, designed by Auckland University student Annie Tong, random Auckland locations were and transformed into stages for a theatre of chance connection.It’s a tough competition, the Student Design Awards, and this year’s judges had a difficult time selecting the year’s winners. Emily Newmarch’s project ‘Climatic Conscience for Dwelling Design’ was named the winner, with the mix of pragmatism and poetry an irresistible combination for the judges. Icao Tiseli’s ‘Mapping the Feke’ and Annie Tong’s ‘The Fleeting Acts’ were both highly commended. The NZIA thanks all the finalists for participating in the 2018 awards and wishes them the very best for their future careers.