2019 Distinguished Fellow Awards

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Anne Salmond, Graeme Scott and John Sutherland.

Anne Salmond, Graeme Scott and John Sutherland.

Te Kāhui Whaihanga New Zealand Institute of Architects awarded three individuals the honour of Distinguished Fellow at the 2019 New Zealand Architecture Awards, held in Queenstown on 9 November. The Distinguished Fellow distinction is one of the highest awards that the Institute confers and is given to those who have made an exceptional contribution to architecture in New Zealand. There may be no more than 10 Distinguished Fellows at any time.

Anne Salmond

Throughout an architectural career which began in the late 1980s, Anne has demonstrated exemplary dedication to her practice and a profound concern for the contexts in which it has developed. She is a model of professional engagement and an empathetic designer, who has consistently exhibited leadership in her field and a willingness to tackle challenging architectural issues. Anne was a founder member of the Wellington practice architecture + before establishing her practice in Central Otago. She has been generous in her contribution to her profession, the wider industry and her community. Her collegial spirit is evidenced by her membership of the Council of Te Kāhui Whaihanga New Zealand Institute of Architects (NZIA) and NZIA awards juries, and in her 15-year service as a New Zealand Registered Architects Board assessor. Anne has been a mentor to young architects and graduates, and an advocate for equality in the profession through her support for Architecture+Women.NZ. She has championed important industry causes, such as sustainable design and innovative and economic building methodologies, including prefabricated and modular construction. She also took an early interest in the post-occupancy evaluation of architectural projects, a concern at one with her whole-of-life approach to building design. Anne has dedicated enormous effort to these demanding and often-undervalued aspects of practice and she has done so with skill, determination and grace.

Graeme Scott

Throughout his career, Graeme has acted with admirable integrity as he has committed his talents and skills to the service of his clients, his profession and his community. A leader of ASC Architects, a major and much-awarded architectural practice, for 35 years, Graeme has also volunteered his expertise, and donated enormous time and energy, to numerous campaigns and initiatives dedicated to the advancement of his profession, the protection of the civic realm and the improvement of Auckland’s urban environment. Graeme’s strong collegial sensibility is evidenced by his contribution to Te Kāhui Whaihanga New Zealand Institute of Architects (NZIA) – he has convened the National Awards jury and served as a Councillor and NZIA Honorary Secretary – and by his receipt of four NZIA President’s Awards. He has demonstrated impressive fortitude and tenacity in his advocacy work, over a period of two decades, for the NZIA Auckland Branch’s Urban Issues Group and for the Urban Design Forum. Graeme took a leading role in producing the well-researched Auckland Unitary Plan submission presented by the NZIA’s Auckland Branch and the Urban Design Forum, and has served on Auckland Urban Design Panels and the Design Review Panel for Hobsonville Point. In sum, Graeme exemplifies the best qualities of an architect and is an inspiring model of architectural engagement.

John Sutherland 

John has had an extraordinarily wide-ranging and accomplished architectural career. Over the course of 60 years in the profession, John has contributed his leadership, knowledge and expertise to architectural and engineering practices, industry groups and government agencies, academic institutions and his own professional body, Te Kāhui Whaihanga New Zealand Institute of Architects (NZIA). As a director of JASMaD for 25 years and, later, as a senior member of Jasmax, John was closely involved in the evolution of New Zealand’s largest architectural firm; through his career-long research and publishing endeavours, which have permeated the wider industry, he has significantly advanced the understanding of material specification and building performance. Alongside his commitment to practice and industry, John has pursued a strong interest in teaching, first at the University of Auckland and then as the founding Head of the Unitec School of Architecture. In his academic positions, as in his professional roles, John was instrumental in forging beneficial connections with international peer organisations. John has played a very active role in the NZIA, serving as chair of the Auckland Branch, as a Councillor for 18 years and as Institute President (1983–85). He has made an enormous contribution to his profession and to New Zealand architecture.

Read more about the winning projects at the 2019 New Zealand Architecture Awards here.


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