It was the same when it came to suggesting a new photo.
"Oh no," he said, insisting the one of him taken six years ago in front of the old Red Cross building which he designed would "be the one to use".
But he was happy to provide "a message of some sort" in the wake of what had happened to the War Memorial Hall - a refurbishment and transformation of the building he designed, specifically as a memorial to lives lost at war which was funded by the public of Napier during the 1950s, into something merely "to make money".
He was saddened by the Napier City Council's approach, saying they had failed to protect and preserve, and encourage the preservation of the city's heritage.
"And not just the buildings - the monuments and the gardens - they are our future heritage."
The city could not simply rely on its Art Deco.
"That is only a small moment in time - it is the whole landscape."
He said, however, that as a community we all had to take some responsibility as "they are all elected by us".
Mr Natusch is indeed passionate about the landscape of his home city and province.
He was born in Havelock North in 1921 and apart from some time in Wellington and his service years during World War II has lived here all his life.
Architecture and the pursuit of design which was both practical and eye-catching, and at times daringly modernistic, was always going to be in his blood.
He is the third generation of architects in the family and followed his father Rene Natusch, although his pursuit of an architectural degree was interrupted after two years by war.
He enlisted in the New Zealand Division of the Royal Navy from 1942 to 1945 and served on destroyers and torpedo boats, serving in the North Sea as well as the English Channel and was part of the D-Day campaign.
But architecture was never far from his mind, and during leave he would ride around on a motorbike looking at some of the remarkable buildings in that northern part of the world.
He returned to New Zealand in 1946 and went straight back to university to finish the final three years of his degree.
"Along with eight other rebellious returned servicemen," was how he put it.
"We were hell bent on getting through as quick as we could."
So he accordingly took up his role with Natusch and Sons, which had been set up by the grandfather Charles Natusch, and the startling architectural style he introduced caught plenty of attention.
His 60-year career in architecture saw him awarded a New Zealand Order of Merit in the 2003 New Year's Honours list for services to architecture, although at the time he winced at the suggestion he was seen as Napier's 'Mr Architecture'.
He said was not exactly a titles or honours person, but was pleased it had put architecture into the spotlight.
I suggested that the casual and humble way he talked about his remarkable skills made it all look easy.
"Well the best time in architecture is when you get to the stage when it does look easy - it's the getting there though," he said.
One of his first efforts to snare attention was the former Red Cross Hall in Tennyson St which he created in 1951.
When he showed his design to Morris Spence, who was president of the local Red Cross board, he was unsure how it would be received.
But Mr Spence gave it his green light, although he did make a comment along the lines of "how am I going to sell this to the board?".
"He was brave," Mr Natusch said.
"I was cutting my teeth well and truly on that one."
It is one of his personal three favourites.
When asked what they were he was quick to nominate them, but equally quick to point out that sadly one was demolished, another was modified beyond original recognition and the third, while surviving, had been altered to the extent of losing some of its unique glass window design.
That was the Red Cross building.
Then there was the Wool Exchange from 1962 - an eye-catching design which featured unique for the time tiered seating within.
It came down to make way for the Te Pania Hotel.
"I was very sorry about that because they did not need to lose it," he said, explaining that had an extra property to one side been purchased the hotel could have gone ahead alongside the exchange.
The third building faced the doomed exchange - the War Memorial Hall, with its then external eternal flame and roll of honour, which was built in 1956 and which had now stirred many emotions through its total redevelopment.
"I was appalled - when I was complaining about it they were pretty well saying 'it's our building and we'll do what we like with it'."
He has long fought for the saving of threatened, historic buildings since linking in with Heritage New Zealand as an adviser, and had been instrumental in saving several of what are today identified as grand examples of Art Deco architecture, such as the AMP Building and the former Criterion Building as well as the former BNZ building.
"I did not want to see these buildings lost."
Sadly, he has seen one of his acclaimed buildings demolished and another so revamped it no longer bears any resemblance to what he created and was so proud of.
Of the public response to the loss of both the War Memorial name, the eternal flame and roll of honour to the site, he quietly said "oh goodness".
"It has been so pleasing but it is too late to save the building."
But he is ever hopeful some amends could be made, and has even planned and designed a place for the memorials and back-lit lettering of 'War Memorial'.
While keeping his distance as best he can as the issue continues to play out, he simply wanted to make one thing clear to council.
"I have always said - I am available for consultation."