Slide House (left), Sir Howard Morrison Centre, and Hamilton Zoo were among the winners. Photos / Supplied
Slide House (left), Sir Howard Morrison Centre, and Hamilton Zoo were among the winners. Photos / Supplied
The “thoughtful” refurbishment and seismic strengthening of Rotorua’s Sir Howard Morrison Centre is among the winners at an event celebrating the best of the Bay of Plenty and Waikato’s architecture.
It was one of 21 projects in the two regions recognised by the Te Kāhui Whaihanga New Zealand Institute of Architects in its local awards, held at the Rotorua heritage centre last night.
Sir Howard Morrison Centre project architects Shand Shelton and First Light Studio were among the winners in the public architecture category, the institute said in a media release.
Sir Howard Morrison Centre by Shand Shelton and First Light Studio.
The others were Hamilton Zoo’s artful new entrance by Edwards White Architects and the Cambridge Police base by PAUA Architects.
Another public building recognised was the Taupō airport terminal, a winner in the commercial category for Shelter Architects.
At the other end of the scale, winners in the small project category included “experimental” design The Urban Tramping Hut, a minimalist studio by Bellbird Architect inspired by bush huts; prefabricated micro-dwelling Beach Hut by Strachan Group Architects; and Deep Cover cricket pavilion, which was sited on a residential section in Tamahere and praised by the judges for being intelligent and whimsical.
Image 1 of 21: Deep Cover by Edwards White Architects
Edwards White Architects won six awards across commercial, housing, housing — multi-unit and small project categories.
The studio’s awarded entries included Panorama, a floating cedar home atop a stone base in the Coromandel that was a winner in the housing category.
Jury convenor Megan Scott of Megan Scott Architect said in the release there were some “lovely moments of delight, playfulness and human spirit in the winning projects”.
“They varied in scale, complexity and budget, and were all so different, but we were impressed by the way the architects overcame the material issues and difficulties related to Covid, connected with their clients, and collaborated to create architecture that lifts the human spirit.
Taupō Airport Terminal by Shelter Architects.
“They created architecture that connects with human emotions and we were moved by them.”
Scott was joined on the jury by Brendon Gordon of Brendon Gordon Architects, Daniel Barrington of Klein, and architectural graduate Courtney Smith-Frank.
The awards were a peer-reviewed programme run by the 5000-member institute, in association with Resene and APL, between May and June.
Full list of Waikato and Bay of Plenty Winners by category
Commercial Architecture
● Rabobank Tower, Union Square by Chow: Hill Architects
