The taxi driver, on the way to the Marina Sands Convention Centre in Singapore, where the World Architecture Festival (WAF) is being held, made the observation that,”Singapore is always changing. That is why tourists always want to come here”. This is also an analogy for the festival, where architects from around the world flock to show their projects, compete for a prize in one of the world’s most prestigious architecture awards, and to be inspired by ‘the new’.

As a judge at the awards, it became apparent that, unless the jury is lucky enough to be shown a stand-out project, then the task of comparing good project against good project is a challenging question, helped along by a thorough and engaging presentation. There’s a fine line to negotiate and often the winners fit into the zeitgeist.

But, one thing became clear, on this international scene, our New Zealand architects gave astute, considered and engaging presentations. Their works exemplified a range of budgets and stunning landscapes around New Zealand, wowing packed audiences with images worthy of New Zealand Tourist Board advertisements. Most of the packed audiences were for presentations by architects from Zaha Hahid Architects and the like. And we have come away with three shortlisted projects. That’s tremendous for a small nation at the bottom of the world, bearing in mind that the Auckland Art a Gallery Toi o Tamaki won the major award last year. I just hope that Government takes notice and starts to reward and promote our world-class talent.

To read more from WAF, click here.