MTG Hawke’s Bay building wins two awards

MTG Hawke’s Bay building wins two awards

MTG Hawke’s Bay featured twice as award winners in two sections of the New Zealand Institute of Architects' 2013 Gisborne/Hawkes Bay Architecture Awards. MTG won both the the Public Architecture and Heritage awards, announced at Church Road Winery, Taradale, on Friday 8 November 2013.

Napier architect Marie Fleming, convenor of the Awards jury said "There was an exciting breadth of entries into the Awards, ranging from small projects through to large public buildings. It was good to see architectural quality demonstrated across projects of every scale, materiality, budget and brief."

The judges went on to say the cultural and architectural landscape of Hawke's Bay has been enhanced through the re-development of, and an addition to, the region's long-standing museum and art gallery, a building that features twice in the Awards.
Designed by Richard Daniels of Opus Architecture the new wing of MTG Hawke's Bay stood out for its innovative handling of a strong architectural heritage. In a city where the Art Deco movement is enthusiastically embraced, Fleming said it was pleasing to see buildings that gave "a definite nod to history, without blindly following a style", and that melded well into their streetscapes. It is, the jury said, a "self-assured and carefully detailed" contemporary expression of a classical design that hints at Napier's Art Deco legacy.
The second award was in the Heritage category. The jury said the architects were respectful of Louis Hay's original design in this refurbishment of an early 1930s building, sensitively reinstating the Art Deco entry and the central circulation zone in manner that has allowed visitors to "rediscover the building's 'lost' architectural style".
All winners of the 2013 Gisborne/Hawke's Bay Architecture Awards are eligible for consideration for the top tier of the annual Architecture Awards programme, the New Zealand Architecture Awards. These awards will be announced in May 2014.
Jury citations:
Public Architecture - MTG Hawkes Bay New Wing
Opus Architecture
The new contemporary design creates both a civic face and a welcoming entry to the HBMTG building. The simple elegant palette of interior materials provides a backdrop for the display of art and objects, and circulation is clear and invites the visitor to move through the gallery spaces which are intimately scaled while still providing totally flexible spaces to show off the institution’s collections. Orientation within the city is created through first floor protrusions, which also nod to the Art Deco context. This is a self-assured, carefully detailed building which will become a must-visit destination for locals and visitors alike.

Heritage - MTG Hawkes Bay Redevelopment Project
Opus Architecture
The reinstatement of the original Louis Hay-designed Art Deco entry has created a focal point to the Herschell Street façade. Inside, the original octagonal entry space has been reinstated to provide a clear circulation pattern within the building, and the gallery space has had its original detailing restored to stunning effect. The refurbished building allows visitors to step back into the 1930s to rediscover the buildings ‘lost’ architectural style.

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