Central Christchurch to Gain a $5m Creative
Hub
4 October
2018 – Christchurch's reputation as an artistic
and creative city continues with the announcement that
Yoobee School of Design and Design & Arts College New
Zealand (D&A) will merge into a completely renovated
state-of-the-art campus in central Christchurch in
mid-2019.
Yoobee is New Zealand’s leading specialised digital design school with several campuses around the country, and D&A has been providing quality graduates in fashion, makeup and graphic design for decades.
Historically, Yoobee has been located in the heart of the city, and now the opportunity has arisen to return, and be part of the regeneration taking place. Attracting students back into a vibrant centre is important to Yoobee campus staff, who have had several moves since the earthquake. With the Hoyts flagship theatre opening this week, and also just a block or two from the new campus, the central bus exchange, and enticing new eateries, the area is transforming in exciting new ways.
In addition, with increased demand for places at both colleges, establishing a creative hub to support emerging young talent nestled in a central city location and supported by major transport links, shops and a mall within easy walking distance was a must for the Design Brief.
The campus is designed to
ensure teaching environments are inspiring creative learning
environments. Each space has been carefully designed to
best meet tutor, staff and student needs.
Box 112, who is developing the building, is well known for their mission to help create the world’s most liveable city. They have completed numerous projects in the area with a strong focus on curating finer grain offerings with beautiful and artistic surroundings that are built for people. This has led to the organic evolution of South Town – an area emerging as the creative centre of the city, now further strengthened with Yoobee’s commitment to the area.
Architect Daniel Grinter from Unispace has been busy working on the final design. Features will include:
• Purpose-built facilities including labs and
interactive class spaces for programme
delivery;
•
• Exhibition and event space to
support emerging talent;
•
• External green space
to merge the environment with learning and improve the
public space offering to street
frontage;
•
• Internal Streetscape with soft
seating and collaboration spaces throughout the circulation
spaces on each floor; and
•
• Abstract street
art, custom art work.
•
•
Creative and IT
Colleges Chief Executive Ana Maria Rivera, said, “We are
excited to be able to announce this fantastic news to our
students, staff and the wider region. Our teams are now
working hard to create a truly unique campus which will
inspire our students. This is a great reward for our
dedicated staff in Christchurch who have helped so many
creatives turn their dreams into careers in some of New
Zealand’s fastest growing sectors. We are investing in a
state-of-the-art facility to cater for domestic and
international students, industry and the creative sector as
a whole”.
The current colleges have a combined
student roll of around 350 students, and the new campus will
have the capacity to accommodate around 700 students. Due
to its central location, an exciting new range of evening
classes and weekend courses will also be on offer to the
public.
Programmes on offer at the new campus will
include Digital Graphic Design, Animation, Film, Web,
Fashion, Make-up, Game Art and Development, and with the
ability to expand into other areas of the Creative and Tech
sector in the future.
Yoobee School of Design and
D&A are part of the Creative and IT Colleges encompassing
Animation College, Ames Institute of IT and South Seas Film
School. The colleges are part of New Education Group, the
vocational division of ACG Education. This gives capacity
to open up new programmes and ensure students have optimal
learning options leading to sustainable
employment.
About Yoobee School of
Design
Yoobee School of
Design is New Zealand’s largest specialised digital design
school delivering practical, innovative training for careers
in graphic design, filmmaking, animation and 3D graphics,
game art and development, and web development. We keep
students plugged into industry advances and at the top of
their game, at our state-of-the-art campuses in Auckland,
Wellington, Christchurch and online. Animation College New
Zealand is a Category 1 provider, and as the registered PTE,
awards all of the qualifications that are offered by Yoobee
School of Design, Animation College, Ames Institute of IT,
South Seas Film School and Design & Arts College.
Design & Arts College of New Zealand
(D&A)
For decades D&A has
been providing quality graduates in fashion, makeup and
graphic design. Based in Christchurch, students are trained
in a unique studio environment that encourages creative
collaboration and applied imagination. All qualifications
offered by D&A are awarded by registered private training
establishment Animation College New Zealand, an NZQA
Category 1 provider.