Interior INTERIOR_18_201512

If anything, this has been a year of great conversations and, as the end of the year excuses a certain amount of reminiscence, here are a few of the chats that have fuelled the last four magazines and made our job so enjoyable. ¶ There was that night in Dunedin’s Doon Bar talking about the influence – or lack – of the built environment on the city’s legendary music scene. It is hard to separate certain types of music from the cities in which they were born: Detroit’s techno, soul and its African American urban roots, the Vienna sound, etc. There’ve been moves to define a “hip hop architecture”; perhaps it is not so far-fetched to seek its Flying Nun equivalent. ¶ There was many a discussion of the importance…

HELEN FRANCES Writer HELEN IS A LONG-TIME CONTRIBUTOR TO INTERIOR AND IN THIS ISSUE, SHE EXAMINES THE NEW ZEALAND POST HOUSE PROJECT, P.50 WHERE ARE YOU RIGHT NOW, AND WHAT DO YOU HAVE PLANNED FOR THE DAY? I work from my home in Whanganui. Today’s plan: work (writing careers information), walk along the river and coffee with a friend. WHAT WAS THE STANDOUT FEATURE FOR YOU IN THE NEW ZEALAND POST FIT-OUT? The overall amalgam of elements – the balance of the industrial look with natural timber and bright splashes of colour; the variety of spaces and comfortable furnishings (moving around and communication is encouraged) – also the great views of the harbour and plenty of daylight. TELL US ABOUT YOUR OWN WORKSPACE… WHAT’S THE STANDOUT FEATURE THERE? My workspace…

NEW ZEALAND ARCHITECTURE AWARDS The highly anticipated New Zealand Architecture Awards dinner took place on 30 October 2015 at the Auckland War Memorial Museum. The celebration recognised the year􀀈s most significant contributions (and contributors) to the local built environment and honoured enduring buildings. Here is a selection of the commended commercial projects. INTERIOR AWARDS 2016 JURY The race to find the country’s best interior spaces is soon to commence. These are the industry professionals in charge of selecting them. ( from left to right) Harry Rowntree is a principal at Unispace, where he specialises in workplace design and strategy for complex commercial clients. His experience includes residential architecture as well as a decade of working in Tokyo alongside several renowned local architects. During his previous role at Jasmax, Harry was…

“I was acutely aware that, being in London, I was amongst some of the best architecture firms in the world and that I wouldn’t be living there forever. I wanted to gain experience at a scale, budget and typology applicable in New Zealand.” Daniel Lewis FM: First of all, congratulations on your win. Where were you when you found out Burntwood had been selected for the Stirling Prize? DL: I was lucky enough to be in London at the ceremony – after I heard the first sound of ‘B’ for Burntwood, everything was a-buzz for at least a few minutes – certainly lots of whooping and hugs! FM: What was your role in the project? DL: I was the project architect, working with director Paul Monaghan and associate director Ben Gibson,…

This issue celebrates the winning, highly commended and shortlisted projects in the 2015 Eat Drink Design Awards. We present Australasia's best designed restaurants, cafés, bars, temporary environments, retail spaces for food and drink and visual identities for all. Enjoy the following fourteen pages of awards coverage. For more, visit eat-drink-design.com. WINNER BEST BAR DESIGN Smalls DESIGNER — FIONA LYNCH OFFICE LOCATION — SOUTH MELBOURNE, VICTORIA JURY COMMENT Smalls by Fiona Lynch Office is a very welcome addition to the local bar scene. Rather than screaming its presence, it whispers in a husky Belgian accent of its European aesthetic roots. This is partly achieved through the colour and materials palette – moody, muted putties, flat blues and concrete greys offset by the occasional glimmer of glassware and brass – but also…

I RECENTLY heard the story of a mother telling her young daughter that mobile phones had not been around when she was a child. The daughter replied incredulously: how did you google? Indeed, mobile phones are no longer just for calling people, and telecommunication companies are no longer dealing simply with calling plans and dollar-perminute deals. Telecom realised this and saw the need for a change from its more staid, traditional, corporate image to a youthful brand that comprehends the latest technology – hence the launch of Spark. Spaceworks was contracted to bring the new brand’s image into its stores. Christy Ormand, Head of Retail Design at Spaceworks, said the first step was to look at where the company was as Telecom and where it wanted to be as Spark.…