Demonstrating the range of work undertaken by architects in the Canterbury and West Coast regions, the winners in the peer-reviewed awards programme run by Te Kāhui Whaihanga New Zealand Institute of Architects include a town hall and a town centre, a performing arts centre and a pre-school, an observatory and a church, several commercial buildings and 11 housing projects.

See a list of all the winners. 

Most of the award-winners are located in Christchurch and its suburbs, but there are also winners in Amberley and Ashburon, Lyttelton and Charteris Bay, Lake Tekapo/Takapō and Greymouth.

Awards jury covenor, Christchurch architect Huia Reriti, said the jury, which also included fellow Christchurch architects Bernadette Muir and Dan Sullivan, Wellington architect Anne Kelly and Christchurch architectural designer Tobin Smith, found the mix of projects awarded in all categories was of excellent standard.

"Canterbury housing, in particular, is in good design health," Reriti said, "and it was especially pleasing that several architects’ own houses won awards."

Three projects won awards in the Commercial category. The first is an unusual project – the Bathroom Pavilion designed by Architype at the Farmers Corner tourist destination in Ashburton.

"Seldom is the term ‘experience’ associated with an ablutions block, at least not in a positive sense,” the Awards jury said. “However, visitors to Farmers Corner are treated to just that – and an opportunity to interact alpaca while taking care of business."

Two Christchurch projects won awards in the Commercial category. The Welder, designed by Three Sixty Architecture, is "an exemplary architectural response to a brief that reimagined a cluster of existing industrial buildings, mixed-use tenancies and public spaces as a community hub for health and wellbeing," the jury said.

The Kathmandu Building by Wilson & Hill Architects is "a thoughtful and considered urban project," the jury said. "The architects have used folded forms to create two bold, unique façades that the public can engage with and easily identify."

In the Education category, the jury said the award-winning McCombs Performing Arts Centre at Cashmere High School, designed by Athfield Architects, provides a creative focal point for both the school and the community at large.

At the other end of the school spectrum Te Tipu–The Rabbit Patch Preschool in Burnside, Christchurch, won an award for architecture practice PRau.

"Te Tipu feels familiar and intimate, with a calm and neutral interior and a flexible framework that facilitates creativity, investigation and reflection," the jury said. "This building has become a teaching tool that celebrates the sensory experience of architecture."

The Awards’ Enduring Architecture category celebrates buildings at least 25 years old that continue to perform valuable service.

The award in this category went to Cox Street R C Webb Flats (1965) in Merivale, Christchurch, designed by Warren & Mahoney.

"The architecture is clearly domestic, but its brutal expression and austerity is almost commercial, prefacing the architects’ later contributions to that genre," the jury said. "It is this legacy that has elevated these houses beyond the norm and put them firmly on the map for architecture enthusiasts."

The Heritage category also has two winners. The first, the 1972 Christchurch Town Hall, has been the subject of very substantial restoration by Warren and Mahoney Architects.

After the 2010-11 Christchurch earthquakes, the jury noted, the demolition of the Town Hall was mooted, "but a public outcry saw the City Council commit to restoring the complex in 2015." The fundamental principle was "to do as little as possible but as much as necessary", the jury said, "and the architects have succeeded in increasing the value and amenity of the building without lessening its integrity." ⠀

The second Heritage category award was won by Herriot Melhuish O’Neill Architects for the practice’s renovation of a house by the acclaimed mid-twentieth century Christchurch architect Heathcote Helmore.

"The Fendalton House Restoration demonstrates the tenacity of a passionate client and the adroitness of a respectful architect," the jury said. "The restoration and significant structural upgrade of this historic house has been implemented with restraint and regard to the original architect."

Nine projects won awards in the Housing category, six of them in Christchurch and its suburbs.

Wrightmann House in St Albans, by Athfield Architects, is a home that doubles as a private art gallery. "The design deftly balances public and private space, announcing itself via a pared-back white gable form cantilevering over a black fence," the jury said.

Ship House by Banbury Architects and Upoko Architects is a series of four pavilions at the edge of the Redcliffs estuary. "A sense of calm and tranquillity infuses this home, which is a harmonious blend of Japanese forms and Kiwi craftsmanship," the awards jury said.

Park Terrace by PRau is "a post-earthquake rebuild that acknowledges and playfully interrogates Christchurch’s architectural heritage," the jury said. "This black gable form is exquisitely composed, and a raw industrial aesthetic is balanced by elegant detailing."

The jury said Terrace House in Cashmere, designed by Sheppard & Rout Architects and C. Nott Architects, is "a clear and considered response to this hill-side site", adding that on approach the house "evokes a sense of familiarity and warmth."

Hawthorne Street House in Strowan, by Sheppard & Rout Architects, is "a simple formal response to complex site constraints," the jury said. "A palette of robust materials creates a cosy and relaxed atmosphere, and beautifully detailed joinery articulates but does not dominate interior spaces."

Riverside House by Three Sixty Architecture is "an example of simplicity done well – an uncomplicated idea realised with resolute precision," the jury said. "On paper, the house is a pragmatic series of rectangular pavilions, stacked and arranged to create privacy on a busy corner section. In reality, the house is a sculptural composition of vigorous forms seemingly glancing past one another without direct connection."

On Banks Peninsula, New Work Studio / Tim Nees Architects designed Houhere, "a truly casual Kiwi weekender built with retirement in mind, that references the rural vernacular of DOC huts, resulting in an architecture that is unpretentious, functional and uplifting," the jury said. "The house is a celebration of sustainable construction and living, and expresses its integrity through its crafted timber construction and as a sustainable insertion into a powerful rural setting."

Chippindale House at Charteris Bay was designed as an architect’s own house by Stephenson and Turner NZ. "Sited on a lava flow embankment with views over Whakaraupo Harbour, the house, with its ‘Canterbury prickle’ detailing, evokes an earlier era, while being eminently fit for contemporary use," the jury said.

In Amberley, North Canterbury, AW Architects designed the award-winning Hursley Terrace. The awards jury clearly approved: "Despite the use of prefabricated and modular construction elements, this building feels anything but off-the-shelf. It is a simple, well-considered house that provides a new model for living more sympathetically within our grand landscapes."

One project won an award in the category of Housing – Alterations and Additions. Toto Whare by Bull O’Sullivan Architecture is a re-working of a state house on the steep slopes above Lyttelton Harbour.

"This house is what creating a strong, safe, and nurturing family home is all about," the jury said. "The hand of the architect is evident in the details, finishing and furniture of a project that is clearly the result of a robust collaboration with the client."

In the Housing – Multi-unit category there was also one award-winner – Paragon Apartments, Christchurch, by Sheppard & Rout Architects. "This carefully controlled development in Armagh Street exudes sophistication and grandeur, and fully satisfies the client’s brief for structural and personal security," the jury said. "A Vogue Living existence is promised to the fortunate occupants of these apartments."

Two projects won awards in the Interior Architecture category, the first, ANZCO Foods Head Office, Christchurch, by Jasmax, Sheppard & Rout Architects and Three Sixty Architecture. "In this enviable workplace a sophisticated interior alludes to the client’s industry in a tasteful and unpretentious manner," the jury said.

In the "beautiful, understated space of St Patrick’s Church, Lincoln’s Catholic community has a new home in which to celebrate its faith, move beyond the destruction of the Canterbury earthquakes and showcase its commitment to sustainability," the jury said of the project by WSP Architecture.

One award in the Planning and Urban Design category of the 2020 Canterbury Architecture Awards went to Tainui St and Town Square, Greymouth, by WSP Architecture.

"The revitalisation of Greymouth’s CBD has created a much-needed, high-quality public venue suitable for a wide range of events," the jury said. "An extensive engagement process has informed the realisation of a distinctive urban space that reflects the values and aspirations of the whole community, including and especially Ngāti Waewae, the local mana whenua.”

Two awards were made in the Public Architecture category. One went to Dark Sky Project, Lake Tekapo/Takapō, by Sheppard & Rout Architects. The observatory and ‘astro-tourism’ venue is "a bold insertion into the traditional context of Tekapo/Takapō," the jury said. "Dark Sky is a most welcome facility for Tekapo/Takapō, with an architectural aesthetic that will stand the test of time, and space."

All Souls Anglican Church in Merivale, Christchurch, by Warren and Mahoney Architects also won an award in the Public Architecture category. "The original stained-glass windows, recovered from St. Mary’s and St. Matthew’s churches, are brought together and arranged around the glazed sides of the tapering chapel cone," the jury noted. "This intimate space is a wonderful place for contemplation."

The final project among the award-winners was acknowledged in the Small Project Architecture category. The University of Canterbury Electrical Link Building Re-clad by Warren and Mahoney Architects "at first glance seems to be a simple makeover of an existing structure," the jury said.

"But, actually, it is a beautifully orchestrated response to a multitude of inherent and problematic design issues. The sharp hexagonal geometry of the existing floor plate has been celebrated and enhanced to create a vertical beacon within a predominantly horizontal neighbourhood."

The 2020 Canterbury Architecture Awards is a programme of Te Kāhui Whaihanga New Zealand Institute of Architects, supported by Resene.

Winners

Commercial

• Bathroom Pavilion, Ashburton by Architype
• The Welder, Christchurch, by Three Sixty Architecture
• Kathmandu Building, Christchurch , by Wilson & Hill Architects

Education

• McCombs Performing Arts Centre, Cashmere High School, Christchurch by Athfield Architects
• Te Tipu–The Rabbit Patch Preschool, Burnside, Christchurch, by PRau

Enduring Architecture

• Cox Street R C Webb Flats (1965), Merivale, Christchurch, by Warren & Mahoney

Heritage

• Christchurch Town Hall by Warren and Mahoney Architects
• Fendalton House, Christchurch, by Herriot Melhuish O’Neill Architects

Housing

• Wrightmann House, St Albans, Christchurch, by Athfield Architects
• Hursley Terrace, Amberley, North Canterbury by AW Architects
• Ship House, Redcliffs, Christchurch , by Banbury Architects and Upoko Architects in association
• Houhere, Banks Peninsula , by New Work Studio / Tim Nees Architects
• Park Terrace, Christchurch, by PRau
• Terrace House, Cashmere, Christchurch by Sheppard & Rout Architects and C. Nott Architects
• Hawthorne Street House, Strowan, Christchurch, by Sheppard & Rout Architects
• Chippindale House, Charteris Bay, by Stephenson and Turner NZ
• Riverside House, Christchurch, by Three Sixty Architecture

Housing – Alterations and Additions

• Toto Whare, Lyttlelton, by Bull O’Sullivan Architecture

Housing – Multi-unit

• Paragon Apartments, Christchurch, by Sheppard & Rout Architects

Interior Architecture

• ANZCO Foods Head Office, Christchurch , by Jasmax, Sheppard & Rout Architects and Three Sixty Architecture in association
• St Patrick’s Church, Lincoln, Christchurch, by WSP Architecture

Planning and Urban Design

• Tainui St and Town Square, Greymouth, by WSP Architecture 

Public Architecture

• Dark Sky Project, Lake Tekapo/Takapō, by Sheppard & Rout Architects
• All Souls Anglican Church, Merivale, Christchurch, by Warren and Mahoney Architects

Small Project Architecture

• University of Canterbury Electrical Link Building Re-clad, Christchurch, by Warren and Mahoney Architects