Miles: A Life in Architecture

Miles: A Life in Architecture 

Celebrating the achievements of one of the most illustrious alumni of the School of Architecture at The University of Auckland, this exhibition reveals Sir Miles Warren’s substantial contribution to modernism in New Zealand and his subsequent move towards a post modernist idiom, as well as his achievements as a draughtsman and watercolourist. Traversing the architect’s career, from the design of the Dorset Street flats to such landmarks as College House, the Christchurch Town Hall and the New Zealand Chancery in Washington, the exhibition includes seldom-seen watercolour perspectives of building projects.

Sir Miles, born 1929, has been at the forefront of architecture for more than 45 years. Completing his Diploma of Architecture at Auckland University College in 1951, he established Warren and Mahoney Architects in Christchurch in 1958 and completed the Dental Nurses’ Training School later that year. This building won the first of what would be many NZIA Gold Awards, and was followed by College House in Christchurch, which has enduring appeal due to its open space and carefully crafted buildings, the Harewood Crematorium, and the iconic Christchurch Town Hall. In addition to these significant achievements, he has also designed many nationally prominent buildings, including Christchurch Central Library, the Civic Offices of the Rotorua District Council, the Michael Fowler Centre in Wellington, Telecom House in Christchurch, the Christchurch School of Medicine, the Christchurch Convention Centre, and St. Patrick’s Church in Napier. In the United States, Sir Miles has designed the New Zealand Chancery in Washington, D.C. which won an NZIA Gold Award in 1981 and an American award for its brickwork.

Sir Miles is a Past President of the Canterbury Branch of the New Zealand Institute of Architects, was a Member of the Council of the Institute, and Chairman of the Education and Registration Authority. He was made a Fellow of the New Zealand Institute of Architects in 1965, was awarded a CBE in 1974 and became the first New Zealander to be knighted for services to architecture in 1985. With his retirement from the practice of Warren and Mahoney in 1995 he was given New Zealand’s highest honour when he was admitted into the Order of New Zealand. In 2001 he was awarded an honorary doctorate by The University of Auckland. In 2003 he was made an Icon by the Arts Foundation, an award limited to a living circle of 20 people of which he is the only architect.

PUBLIC EVENTS

Saturday 24 April, 1pm
Sir Miles Warren in conversation with exhibition curator, Dr Rodney Wilson. The architect will be available to sign copies of his 2008 autobiography after the event.

Saturday 1 May, 1pm
Dr Jessica Halliday, architectural historian and leader of the New Zealand Architects of the Postwar Period oral history project, will give a talk on Miles Warren and brutalism.

Saturday 8 May, 1pm
Linda Tyler, Director of the Centre for New Zealand Art Research and Discovery, gives a guided tour of the exhibition.

Saturday 15 May, 1pm
Visit to the Nathan House in Remuera where Anna Nathan, the original client, discusses the 1979 design with Peter and Amanda Stanes, the current owners. Numbers strictly limited. Bookings to (09) 9236806 or gusfishergallery@auckland.ac.nz

Saturday 22 May, 1pm
Paul Walker, Associate Professor in Architecture, Building and Planning at the University of Melbourne, will speak about Miles Warren’s contribution to modernism in New Zealand. Walker wrote the introduction to New Territory: Warren and Mahoney – 50 years of New Zealand Architecture published by Balasoglou Books in 2005.

Saturday 29 May, 1pm
A talk by Shannon Joe, principal of Warren and Mahoney on the design of the new student accommodation for The University of Auckland.

Posted on: April 12, 2010