‘Koha – an offering of New Zealand architecture and design’ is is a tabloid-sized newspaper published by the New Zealand Institute of Architects. It was written to provide visitors to ‘Future Islands’, NZ's exhibition at the 2016 Venice Biennale, with background knowledge about architecture and design in this country. You can download a pdf version of ‘Koha’ below.
New Zealand’s participation in the 2016 Architeturra Biennale in Venice is an opportunity to consider the wider achievements of New Zealand’s architecture and design practitioners, the increasing diversity of their practice and production, and their contribution to the life of the country.
Future Islands, the official New Zealand exhibition created by Charles Walker and Kathy Waghorn and commissioned for the New Zealand Institute of Architects by Tony van Raat, puts some of these concerns on the international architectural radar. But, of course, there’s a lot going on beneath the surface of the show: island environments have long been regarded as nesting grounds for evolutionary development.
This publication tells some more of our island’s design stories. It takes its name from a Māori word for a gift or contribution, an offering made in a spirit of reciprocity. We want to learn from the Biennale, and offer information in return.
Our stories may be news to many people – we believe it’s good news.
Koha covers the continuum of architecture and design in New Zealand, looking at how we got to where we’re at (voyages, arrivals and adaptations), what’s happening now (design tendencies and contemporary projects), and why the outlook is propitious (the promotion of inclusiveness, the push for equity and the promise of youthful talent). Koha also profiles the innovative companies who see New Zealand’s presence at the world’s leading architecture event as a chance to tell their stories in a forum dedicated to the exhibition of imaginative propositions and the realisation of creative ideas.
Find out more about New Zealand’s exhibitions at the Venice Architecture Biennale.