Te Kāhui Whaihanga New Zealand Institute of Architects recognised the best of Aotearoa’s architecture at its annual awards ceremony on Friday 22 November in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland. Twenty-three projects received awards across 11 categories.
An outstanding wānanga (university), a heroic building in Nepal, and a unique glass-fronted addition to a marae are among the winners. Partnerships between architects and mana whenua were well represented too. Buildings lauded for their manākitanga (care), inclusiveness, and sense of history include Te Taumata o Kupe Nuku, created by TOA Architects and a winner in the Public Architecture category; Te Tihi – Aurecon Auckland, awarded in the Interior Architecture category to Warren and Mahoney Architects; and Pā Reo campus in Ōtaki, a winner in the Education category.
“So many projects came from completely different walks of life, but used the vehicle of architecture to explore the potential of partnership between cultural groups. It was epic,” says jury convenor Caro Robertson.
“Pā Reo speaks beautifully of collaboration,” says the jury citation for the Tennent Brown Architects’ suite of four wānanga buildings. “The whare live and breathe Māoritanga… and express kaitiakitanga in an elegant, functional, quiet way. It is heartening to experience a warm, comfortable, open building that feels good to be in and restores ecological wellness to its immediate environment.”
Several unusual projects, including a quirky church refurbishment and a visitor centre in Nepal, received awards. The understated Sir Edmund Hillary Visitor Centre in Khumjung Village is a one-of-a-kind cultural project envisioned by Pearson & Associates Architects, a Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland practice, and was the only winner in the International Architecture category. In the Small Project Architecture category, Pōneke Wellington’s St Hilda’s Church renovation illustrates the power of imagination to transform a space, thanks to a folded, patterned screen façade designed by First Light Studio.
Winners were chosen from a shortlist of 48 outstanding projects created from the various regional awards’ winners named earlier in the year.
They were judged by a panel, including jury convener Caro Robertson, co-director of Spacecraft Architects; Ari Stevens, associate at Athfield Architects; educator Julie Stout; and Patrick Kennedy, founding partner of Melbourne studio Kennedy Nolan.
“So many senses are at play in the experience of buildings. It was exciting to see aesthetic loveliness formed from elements essential to buildings, the articulation of everything from mullions to sunshades showing a clear understanding of how these necessary pieces can be arranged both functionally and to make a satisfying spatial composition,” says Robertson of the winners. “Building is constructive by nature and you can construct really lovely spaces that are supportive of culture and narratives. These are buildings formed to carry out our daily activities, our work, our play, and also our self expression.”
Winners
Commercial Architecture
• Tuhiraki – AgResearch Lincoln Facility, Architectus and Lab-works Architecture (Ōtautahi Christchurch)
• Kā Uri, Awanui, Glamuzina Architects (Kaitaia)
• Deloitte Centre – Te Kaha, Warren and Mahoney Architects (Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland)
Education
• The Pā, Architectus, Jasmax and Design Tribe (Kirikiriroa Hamilton)
• University of Auckland B201 Building, Jasmax (Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland)
• Pā Reo Campus, Tennent Brown Architects (Ōtaki)
Enduring Architecture
• Cathedral Nave, Holy Trinity Cathedral Auckland (1995), Professor Richard Toy (Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland)
Heritage
• Dunedin Railway Station Restoration, Salmond Reed Architects (Ōtepoti Dunedin)
• Whare Mīmīrū, Dr Anthony Hōete and Dr Jeremy Treadwell, in association (Waikato)
Housing
• Wānaka S.K.I House, Roberts Gray Architects (Wānaka)
• Ravenscar House, Patterson Associates (Ōtautahi Christchurch)
• Gonville Pool House, Patchwork Architecture (Whanganui)
Housing — Alterations and Additions
• Ridge House, Keshaw McArthur (Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland)
Housing — Multi Unit
• Kōtuitui Terraces, Stage 2, Crosson Architects (Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland)
• Hills Residences, Edwards White Architects (Kirikiriroa Hamilton)
Interior Architecture
• Te Tihi – Aurecon Auckland, Warren and Mahoney Architects (Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland)
International Architecture
• Sir Edmund Hillary Visitor Centre, Pearson & Associates Architects (Nepal)
Planning & Urban Design
• MADE, Edwards White Architects (Kirikiriroa Hamilton)
• Te Āhuru Mōwai Vision Framework, Isthmus Group (Porirua)
Public Architecture
• Te Taumata o Kupe Nuku, TOA Architects (Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland)
Small Project Architecture
• Whare Mīmīrū, Dr Anthony Hōete and Dr Jeremy Treadwell, in association (Waikato)
• St Hilda’s Church Renovation, First Light Studio (Pōneke Wellington)
• Beach Hut, SGA – Strachan Group Architects (Coromandel)
Named Awards
• Deloitte Centre – Te Kaha, Warren and Mahoney Architects — Sir Miles Warren Award for Commercial Architecture (Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland)
• The Pā, Architectus, Jasmax and Design Tribe — Ted McCoy Award for Education (Kirikiriroa Hamilton)
• Hills Residences, Edwards White Architects — Sir Ian Athfield Award for Housing (Kirikiriroa Hamilton)
• Te Taumata o Kupe Nuku, TOA Architects — John Scott Award for Public Architecture (Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland)
