“The selection process behind what we showcase in the magazine is always a bit of a process, because while we love to feature the regional and national winners, we also try to look beyond the more obvious options to identify other projects that also deserve to have their stories told.”
One of the key narratives woven through this year’s magazine will shine a spotlight on smaller, smarter homes. A number of featured projects in the issue are dedicated to celebrating this sustainability centric phenomenon - an asset to New Zealand’s built environment.
“The smaller footprint is a key inclusion this year. We’ll showcase examples ranging from Mitchell Coll’s (of Coll Architecture) award-winning rusted Corten steel-clad workingman's cottages in Madras St, through to David Maurice’s (of LTD Architectural) Back Country House.
“The clever use of space and storage makes it very interesting and we’ve developed a side story looking at space utilisation. When you’re building on a smaller footprint, you need to use every square metre wisely.”
Pippin Wright-Stow’s (of F3 Design) 94 square metre property on the slopes of quaint port town Lyttelton will also make an appearance, paying homage to the smaller homes theme. “The thing about Pippin is his ability to repurpose and upcycle from other properties, which is often seen throughout his various designs.”
Adding some compelling variety into the mix, Issue Five will also profile the Nightingale Project in Australia. “This is about finding solutions to growing urban challenges. This medium density social housing initiative is a very interesting project.”
Colour trends featuring Resene will be explored, as will the growing popularity of natural timbers with an interview profiling a NZ native timber company.
“An interesting addition to the magazine will be the Distinction Dunedin Hotel Carpark. For me, carparks are generally such boring looking buildings. The fascinating thing about this project is that they were able to achieve an aesthetically attractive exterior and also create a seamless look and feel with the rest of the area where it is situated, which happens to be a historical precinct.”
Keep an eye out for the magazine landing at your New World, Countdown, Paper Plus and Relay stores end of October.
