A spaceship on a beach, a family retreat and a moving placement of whakairo (carvings) were just some of the great architecture projects awarded at the Waikato & Bay of Plenty architecture awards tonight.

Nineteen projects across seven categories received a Te Kāhui Whaihanga New Zealand Institute of Architects award, and one also scooped up a Resene Colour Award.

Awards convenor, Paul Raven of Shelter Architects, said the jury were impressed by every finalist because of the absolute love of what each architectural practice had created, the dedication to the profession and their real focus.

“Every project that we visited was a highlight, every single one. The delight that we had just in walking up into some of these projects and thinking ‘heck, this is amazing.”

See above for images of the shortlisted projects, which are:

Housing

Park Vue by Brendon Gordon Architects

Park Vue is a two-storey holiday home with a mannered response to the surrounding neighbourhood. It has a cleverly modelled ‘H’-shaped footprint which allows for good public and private space separation, while also maximising views of Whangamatā. The well-appointed, comfortable interior is finished with a refined yet robust palette of materials that include sarked cedar ceilings and timber detailing, as well as subtle industrial finishes. Both restful and lively, this is a house of many moods and shows how multiple generations can easily cohabitate in a holiday home.

View Point by Architecture Bureau

Fitting easily on a sloping coastal site with views of Raglan Harbour, Rangitahi Peninsula, and Mt Karioi beyond, the living spaces and private rooms of this holiday home are wisely placed to embrace its beautiful surrounds. On either side of a central living space that is warm, durable and visually appealing, are two separate decks which mean clients can enjoy the outdoors while being sheltered from the wind and rain of the west coast. The architects’ thoughtful use of durable external materials that will not corrode or require constant upkeep makes this an easy and relaxing home away from home that can be enjoyed without worry.

Number 22 by Brendon Gordon Architects

This three-storey home is carefully layered to make the most of the expansive views. Site constraints helped to inform a long linear house that captures stunning views at one end and provides privacy from the neighbours at the other. An open plan, pure forms and beach connections are ideal for entertaining family and friends. The architects’ attention to detail, clever choice of materials like cedar cladding stained to match the dune vegetation colour, in-situ board form concrete with horizontal detailing, and the incredible ocean view make this home a delight to experience.

Aigéan, Opito Bay by Bull O’Sullivan Architecture

From a distance, this coastal beach home resembles a UFO nestled in the Coromandel foreshore. On closer inspection, this zinc armadillo-clad beach home is a delightful juxtaposition of crisp angles contrasted with the lush, undulating beachscape. The home’s interior utilises a spare colour pallet, fibrous plaster panels and a gloriette floor. Spaces are organised like cabins, with sleeping quarters, generously sized living spaces and a kitchen area that provides a year-round sense of exhilaration and fun for multigenerational living. 

Waterhouse Family Home by Bull O’Sullivan Architecture

A steep, sloping, urban site hides the surprise of this well-designed, functional, and nurturing family home. Tall cedar shutters throughout create cross ventilation, while double doors at the lower levels are combined with the dramatic sloped roof allowing for passive ventilation. The owner designed and built elements of the house himself, learning as he went. His passion for the project is reflected in this resulting work of love.

Resene Colour Award:

A fun palette of colours and clever material choices such as natural cork flooring and chocolate-toned plywood walls make this house welcoming and a perfectly joyful place to grow up.

MV House by Cate Creemers

A thoughtful array of spaces wrap around a half hexagon living area that perfectly captures the view. Pre-cast concrete walls host large modern art in a home rich with spatial metaphors. This house is delightful, cosy, and rich with adventure, a testament to the will of the client and the skill of their architect.

Twin Aspects by Edwards White Architects

Twin Aspects presents a clever architectural solution to a constrained building envelope, a steep site, proximity to neighbours, and river views. The expansive entry hall offers a welcoming passage through to a compact integrated living plan where a stunning view of the Waikato River (awa) is framed by the twin gabled roof form. The architects have paid great attention to detail, with skylights and windows smartly placed to create an ideal balance of privacy and connection with the outside, to embrace the awa from every angle.

Sisters Sanctuary by Edwards White Architects

Set on the tranquil Rangitahi Peninsula, the Sisters Sanctuary instils a sense of calm, beauty, and solidarity throughout. The home is a considered response to the social dynamic of the developing street to the west and the expansive inlet views to the east. Two interlocking forms are expressed from the street, compositionally light horizontal timber cladding and screening against the more grounded masonry. A protective cloak of cedar draws one between the two forms into the modestly scaled interior. Rich walnut tones, paired with a selection of travertine, venetian plastered render and soft sandy greys, work in harmony together and form an inviting space to witness the ebb and flow of the tide and observe the changing light throughout the day.

Fillmore House by Evelyn McNamara Architecture

Designed as a family holiday retreat, Fillmore House is nestled into the base of a native bush clad hill in Okawa Bay, Lake Rotoiti. With its clean, rectangular form, the building’s raw and robust textures frame the lake views — it sits beautifully in the native bush, exuding a sense of belonging and permanence. The interior is moody and inviting, complemented by warm timber tones, dark steel, and well-considered lighting. Seamless indoor-outdoor flow on the lower level incorporates a generous overhang and sunken firepit. These elements provide sheltered gathering spaces year-round and encourage social interactions with neighbours strolling the fenceless lakefront yard.

Acacia Bay Gables House by Fraser Cameron Architects

Overlooking Lake Taupo, the dark external gables of this inter-generational home appear humble and unassuming. The interior delights the senses, with the form echoed inside and is combined with a rich material palette, well-considered lighting and exceptional detailing and craftsmanship. Living and main bedroom wings are clearly articulated and are differentiated through two modes of internal finishes. Raw, robust, and tactile living spaces contrast luminous painted surfaces in the bedrooms. Dark masses of shuttered concrete anchor soaring timber ceilings in living spaces while steel framed glazed sliders provide flexibility to the enclosure of rooms. Acacia Bay Gables House is a home that will endure. A home that embraces the unique qualities of each material and provides inviting and uplifting spaces suitable for multiple modes of family life.

Casper’s House by Glamuzina Architects and Dessein Parke in association

Settled into the steep hillside beneath Mount Paku, this small holiday home challenges the idea of what a beach house should be in our consumer-driven world. This experimental holiday home utilises the classic Kiwi bach vernacular and number 8 wire mentality. Its cleverly articulated 92-sqm footprint contains several small spaces which delight as they open out to the sea, earth and sky. The two steeply pitched volumes and floating mezzanine enable this tent-like home to embrace the extended views and surf beyond. Casper’s House is a snapshot and reminder of a time when building was more experimental and life perhaps more simple. Construction challenges with structural insulated panels and corrugated translucent sheets were overcome, resulting in a simple elegant rainscreen, reminding us that less is more.

Waimataruru by Pac Studio and Kristina Pickford Design in association

A single sloping roof form on the stunning coromandel coast follows the slope of the land. Weathered timbers and Shou Sugi Ban cladding enclose informal and exotic spaces that connect with the outdoors and each other in delightful and intriguing ways. Views are masterfully curated through timber joinery, with art and artifacts, crafted steel and stone, and colour from soft plaster finishes. This home is a sophisticated informal building, tuned perfectly to the site and its owners, and is environmentally responsive to perfection.

Interior Architecture

EWA Studio by Edwards White Architects

Edwards White Architects transformed this heavily partitioned space into a light and engaging studio that expresses the firm’s creative expertise and encourages a collaborative culture. Inherent qualities of the existing concrete structure are embraced while bespoke and beautifully crafted interventions create a refined relationship between old and new. The layout features a central white pod framing meeting spaces and break-out rooms that divide the kitchen and workstations. The gentle curves and vertical battened rhythm encourage fluidity between spaces which is reinforced through use of translucent drapes, loose furniture, and metal screening; softly defined spaces that allow flexibility for current and future occupants. Warm timber and natural tones compliment the raw, monochromatic palette and create a highly tactile environment that uplifts the human spirit.

Commercial Architecture

Profile Group Hautapu Facility by Jasmax

Architecture has prevailed in the face of an extreme brief that required a building of epic proportions delivered to a tight program. Stringent environmental, economic and social demands have been exceeded throughout. The architects have added design expertise to this grand scale typology, with clarity of form and highly functional planning. The human scale touches are superb.

Public Architecture

St Johns Church by DCA Architects of Transformation

The open and engaging design of this modest and unimposing brick building holds its own in a humble environment. Intended to be inclusive of all denominations, St Johns Church is a sensitive reinterpretation of how religious beliefs can reside and worship in a common space. In a nod to the spiritual, rays of light penetrate the auditorium through perforated exterior bricks, and artworks created in collaboration with mana whenua and the Rarotongan and Tokelauan communities adorn the interior. Whether to worship or simply seek comfort and rest, this is a building that embraces its communities.

Education

Te Puna Kindergarten by MOD Architecture

This joyful kindergarten is made up of two strong building forms that provide a clear and confident entry from a busy car park. Its contemporary shed-like appearance gives a nod to its rural neighbours. Inside, generous, light-filled spaces comprise a sociable and welcoming learning environment that is easily navigated at play time and rush hour by small people, teachers, and caregivers. Te Puna Kindergarten is an asset to future generations creating a practical and playful space for tamariki that delights and inspires. 

Small Project Architecture

Te Whare Mauri ō Tānewhirinaki – The Living Essence of Tānewhirinaki by Anthony Hoete

Te Whare Mauri ō Tānewhirinaki was designed to temporarily stand over 100 whakairo (carvings) that are the tipuna (ancestors) and mauri (life force) of the former Ngāti Ira ancestral house Tānewhirinaki. The careful and exact placement of these precious carvings, within a light filled structure, facilitated bringing the hapū together for their first wānanga in a generation. In awe of their surroundings, the hapū were inspired and those who were in attendance agreed to pursue options for reconstruction of Tānewhirinaki.

            Tānewhirinaki whakamaua te titiro ki Whakaari te ao tawhito.

            Irapuaia kōkiri ki te rāwhiti tokotū te ao hou.

Like the Parthenon and its marble sculptures, Tānewhirinaki will one day house these whakairo again, thanks to this installation, its curation, the hapū and their architect.

Enduring Architecture

L Block Lecture Theatres -The University of Waikato Te Whare Wananga o Waikato (1978) by Smith, Grant and Associates (architect Rod Smith)

The L Block lecture theatres’ bold and brutal design have provided a robust teaching environment for the faculty and students of Waikato University. Located between the campus library and the student village, L Block has five separate lecture theatres all with tiered seating. This building has stood the test of time, with three major access ways and all theatres served by a large common foyer split over two levels. Masterful and timeless.

Te Whare - Lake Tarawera (1986) by Architecture Aotearoa (architect Fred Stevens)

Te Whare is the culmination of one architect’s 36-year journey to create a space that embodies the soul, spirit and life of sense of place. The place is Lake Tarawera and Te Whare is that journey. This house has continuously grown and adapted to fit whānau, friends and work. Set within the bush landscape, spaces draw in the lake and mountain as they traverse the site and provide delight at each turn. Reminiscent of NZ hero architecture of the 70s, te Whare reflects on a colonial typology and contemporary domestic Māori architecture. te Whare’s journey is ongoing and will unravel more stories as time passes.

The NZIA Local Awards 2022 programme is supported by Resene and APL.