Magnificent Home Improvements

From our archives: Our worst cover ever?

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">A gem from our archives that shows our predecessors didn't do everything right. This is from the unfortunate period in the 1960s and 1970s when the cover of the magazine was pretty much put up for sale. Here, a model in a field (in a fetching outfit, we must admit) holds an aluminium door frame leading to ... where exactly? We're baffled, but have to admit we kinda love it too. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTVipRKBpEkZ5Nj13ZDwlKWiakJMHD0GmGebrEG5YtaddH4gTC35iuYfEK4zvUTdWoukRC6313zPae_zOvKiZR0D86NPZAH1mlfeO0i1SP0EQiJBZZQUQOZnkeyDdvUfDvXPV_mbxszfll/s1600/Worst+cover+ever.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTVipRKBpEkZ5Nj13ZDwlKWiakJMHD0GmGebrEG5YtaddH4gTC35iuYfEK4zvUTdWoukRC6313zPae_zOvKiZR0D86NPZAH1mlfeO0i1SP0EQiJBZZQUQOZnkeyDdvUfDvXPV_mbxszfll/s400/Worst+cover+ever.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div align="left"></div>

From our archives: Our worst cover ever?

A gem from our archives that shows our predecessors didn't do everything right. This is from the unfortunate period in the 1960s and 1970s when the cover of the magazine was pretty much put up for sale. Here, a model in a field (in a fetching outfit, we must admit) holds an aluminium door frame lead…

30Sep2011

Travel: Copenhagen's Kastrup Sea Baths

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Copenhagen's Kastrup Sea Baths, designed by White Arkitektur AB and built in 2004, are a delighful invitation to take a dip. And we needed enticement the day we visited in August, during a month in which the Danes had been complaining about their cooler-than-usual summer. There was one other couple at the baths, but they'd already been in the water. The lifeguard on duty was bundled up in a fleece jacket and scarf. It was only 16 degrees, but we had to go in, as we'd come all the way from New Zealand. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXCnon2IqYtiqZq2gAMlHddrxmYLjjrXGG0Gg8cNNMIp3HiN2sjWtZO0HXmYTywV1ZkAu_cLxoG5Ipl2VIhJlRRe6fCEa_COIxlwIOOtrroOZ56Of-JdNqpoNr2E8DcLvJvhwzF3bpyYwb/s1600/IMG_1063H.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXCnon2IqYtiqZq2gAMlHddrxmYLjjrXGG0Gg8cNNMIp3HiN2sjWtZO0HXmYTywV1ZkAu_cLxoG5Ipl2VIhJlRRe6fCEa_COIxlwIOOtrroOZ56Of-JdNqpoNr2E8DcLvJvhwzF3bpyYwb/s400/IMG_1063H.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Besides, the baths themselves are fantastic - in reality they are not baths so much as a circular, sheltered platform at the end of a wharf that extends from the beach. (It's a short ride - about 15 minutes - on Copenhagen's new subway from the central city to a stop that's a few minutes' walk from the beach). The structure contains changing rooms and culminates in a diving platform. </span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZCSse4jylLlJMAZwayCMtRHKXVZnKYpLsLjd4QZsI_zlNiBfGQm5pNM0UP4hUIxA5beqU0MB7MEQpRGFDC4rkUbZROVEn6mprC6WhlX7welUhsb9xz5o3gl8KJppYXw2n56cciqZuIDZQ/s1600/IMG_1063L.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZCSse4jylLlJMAZwayCMtRHKXVZnKYpLsLjd4QZsI_zlNiBfGQm5pNM0UP4hUIxA5beqU0MB7MEQpRGFDC4rkUbZROVEn6mprC6WhlX7welUhsb9xz5o3gl8KJppYXw2n56cciqZuIDZQ/s400/IMG_1063L.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The great advantage of the circular timber structure is that there is always somewhere to shelter from the breeze.</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrERMHK2wxoj8wvVozopM12ilBBC_D0OPisZKfZ5G0RVDdVv9gzMnp1dS1ElT9ISRfIzSM3_1BTGpYSP7_WbhAc4AEG2h0qvTNpodfjx4TUf5oNqrvF0hJLB4Dj9jjvvgK7zhEYguy2AcT/s1600/IMG_1064A.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrERMHK2wxoj8wvVozopM12ilBBC_D0OPisZKfZ5G0RVDdVv9gzMnp1dS1ElT9ISRfIzSM3_1BTGpYSP7_WbhAc4AEG2h0qvTNpodfjx4TUf5oNqrvF0hJLB4Dj9jjvvgK7zhEYguy2AcT/s400/IMG_1064A.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">From the top of the diving platform, the view north towards central Copenhagen also takes in some of the offshore wind turbines. The images below show some of the other points from which swimmers can dive off the structure. </span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMCZWv-aqgvCrvCHHhjhRfKSP1UFNU6nqQHt93hZJvHQ2VF_fDrMP6db3WpG2X0s3u7kvyxs2BKibSC0TuR3jamuH9Dy8Xq6sBHoLkXSMZ2VxdbAq5M1wgLnl49_cNseZLJZ_s03OXPta0/s1600/IMG_1064O.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMCZWv-aqgvCrvCHHhjhRfKSP1UFNU6nqQHt93hZJvHQ2VF_fDrMP6db3WpG2X0s3u7kvyxs2BKibSC0TuR3jamuH9Dy8Xq6sBHoLkXSMZ2VxdbAq5M1wgLnl49_cNseZLJZ_s03OXPta0/s400/IMG_1064O.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The clear panel you can see in the image below contains outdoor showers where swimmers can rinse off with a view of the Oresund Bridge leading from Denmark to Sweden as well as Santiago Calatrava's 'Turning Torso' residential tower in Malmo across the water.</span><br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHjIkqyK0gO3WxXoH0v-gVhrMHAIBQjjskwKs1QCCH4cESIZCsC9iMVf06vXvmeMQ2Q7-m48UMOQUEBpTxcdXxGPjTAk29awKS_iAHyIZW-bUgJiA-Z9m84NG4GKKNyBrhXXOh6AsSpByL/s1600/IMG_1063P.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHjIkqyK0gO3WxXoH0v-gVhrMHAIBQjjskwKs1QCCH4cESIZCsC9iMVf06vXvmeMQ2Q7-m48UMOQUEBpTxcdXxGPjTAk29awKS_iAHyIZW-bUgJiA-Z9m84NG4GKKNyBrhXXOh6AsSpByL/s400/IMG_1063P.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br /></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">In the photographs below you can see white doors which lead to the small changing rooms. That's the lifeguard reading in her chair - the cool temperatures meant it wasn't a busy day at the baths, but we were still pleased we took the plunge. </span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxu4uuXgicS6ciN-8GZX7XlFPtIt3AfivohVXY8gaPpTQL0PGFYMrJMw0DGwNyjs2xXMGfAi_hjjypRXpK_5W6Ew5CHiifORuFULc7OWsx364BuCAfdGwHiTvNxWU4tka8o_eY5n2JlH6t/s1600/IMG_1064K.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxu4uuXgicS6ciN-8GZX7XlFPtIt3AfivohVXY8gaPpTQL0PGFYMrJMw0DGwNyjs2xXMGfAi_hjjypRXpK_5W6Ew5CHiifORuFULc7OWsx364BuCAfdGwHiTvNxWU4tka8o_eY5n2JlH6t/s400/IMG_1064K.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidnhzl4vSO4xtWkkS7po9BEFaYz1o7Gncq_G0JSPHhCJaKBtCHkzaEakyD5OGFMak3uGy9DTV5wVmC_TcXN29NSRVFQegGOyP25kgQVWlXq6fChdy4sKYuyfwluFeP5XJFbLv_SZ6G8TB1/s1600/IMG_1063X.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidnhzl4vSO4xtWkkS7po9BEFaYz1o7Gncq_G0JSPHhCJaKBtCHkzaEakyD5OGFMak3uGy9DTV5wVmC_TcXN29NSRVFQegGOyP25kgQVWlXq6fChdy4sKYuyfwluFeP5XJFbLv_SZ6G8TB1/s400/IMG_1063X.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: left;"></div>

Travel: Copenhagen's Kastrup Sea Baths

Copenhagen's Kastrup Sea Baths, designed by White Arkitektur AB and built in 2004, are a delighful invitation to take a dip. And we needed enticement the day we visited in August, during a month in which the Danes had been complaining about their cooler-than-usual summer. There was one other couple …

29Sep2011

Our new cover

Our new cover

Our new cover features a home by Matt Brew of Cantilever Architects on Waiheke Island, photographed by Patrick Reynolds. Subscriber copies should arrive on Friday September 30, with copies on newsstands on October 3. …

28Sep2011

From our archives: The gnomic celebration, 1945

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhN9Z4k1WeBJxIgH21KDvji7MoxknNw1RNRTwuRoMcHhiP8LORdHh_GApRkApBsqQLV0qndeWh81-kUJYzY5VTRUrm8mO5FhK1WxlqoCdWyUuqYmGyUmEUq0XWEpHhOFtWKRqzd2gE8OoV/s1600/HOMENZ_101220_OCT-OLDISSUES_0068-1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hca="true" height="262" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhN9Z4k1WeBJxIgH21KDvji7MoxknNw1RNRTwuRoMcHhiP8LORdHh_GApRkApBsqQLV0qndeWh81-kUJYzY5VTRUrm8mO5FhK1WxlqoCdWyUuqYmGyUmEUq0XWEpHhOFtWKRqzd2gE8OoV/s400/HOMENZ_101220_OCT-OLDISSUES_0068-1.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">You can understand everyone was a little giddy, what with the war ending and all ... to celebrate peace, <em>Home & Building</em> published a tribute to garden gnomes and other enchanting outdoor creatures. "Maybe this is all just fantasy, but these ornaments do make any garden colourful, don't you think?"</span>

From our archives: The gnomic celebration, 1945

You can understand everyone was a little giddy, what with the war ending and all ... to celebrate peace, Home & Building published a tribute to garden gnomes and other enchanting outdoor creatures. "Maybe this is all just fantasy, but these ornaments do make any garden colourful, don't you think?"…

27Sep2011

My Favourite Building: Sir Eion Edgar and Dunedin's new stadium

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4anmztMInOe6xr9DJy-0Wma3oWWwmbeoQom71OTpmyuOmDFSaycTyiExQUD_FDHOztGgAb2WJmkakNgVpvjDpCP52IUDQejwKVYSHBLekPmYAx-4-343Gx__hhmjNXD3PKJCtSTjaMMNK/s1600/GWP001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hca="true" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4anmztMInOe6xr9DJy-0Wma3oWWwmbeoQom71OTpmyuOmDFSaycTyiExQUD_FDHOztGgAb2WJmkakNgVpvjDpCP52IUDQejwKVYSHBLekPmYAx-4-343Gx__hhmjNXD3PKJCtSTjaMMNK/s400/GWP001.jpg" width="266" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">A sneak preview from our October/November: Sir Eion Edgar, chairman of Forsyth Barr, has chosen Dunedin's spectacular new stadium (by Jasmax and Brisbane-based Populous) as his favourite building. The photograph is by Graham Warman. You can read what Sir Eion has to say about the building in our new issue, on newsstands October 3. </span>

My Favourite Building: Sir Eion Edgar and Dunedin's new stadium

A sneak preview from our October/November: Sir Eion Edgar, chairman of Forsyth Barr, has chosen Dunedin's spectacular new stadium (by Jasmax and Brisbane-based Populous) as his favourite building. The photograph is by Graham Warman. You can read what Sir Eion has to say about the building in our new…

26Sep2011

Travel: London's Serpentine Pavilion

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">If you're lucky enough to be travelling to London before October 16 (or if you're living there), we highly recommend you visit this year's Serpentine Gallery Pavilion, by the Swiss architect Peter Zumthor. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;">From the outside, as you can see in the image below, it's an inscrutable black timber box. We haven't been able to work out what the timber is coated in, but it had a thick, hand-applied quality that lent an artisanal feel to the structure's exterior. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXFWre0DbKT8nJD0oJ98shyphenhyphenrVZ__lkksJ2bW98_g3dkpirckYCg4SyWcNpjWPdCyFWFlVBoFXAgbdYBIyOs-KArby-ciiWp07C90j21KG7z8tCHNs2Jjx43NOrAQetaY33lZrGZHxDB1yp/s1600/IMG_0729.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hca="true" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXFWre0DbKT8nJD0oJ98shyphenhyphenrVZ__lkksJ2bW98_g3dkpirckYCg4SyWcNpjWPdCyFWFlVBoFXAgbdYBIyOs-KArby-ciiWp07C90j21KG7z8tCHNs2Jjx43NOrAQetaY33lZrGZHxDB1yp/s400/IMG_0729.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">There are three door-sized holes in the pavilion's exterior. Visitors can pass through any of them (entry is free). You then arrive in a dark, narrow corridor leading to other openings. </span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5VLkDuqYzbd1NHxsrks-OwCpldh_5R2UGTv1hjRdRigUm5jpPfCrPbJcbNg5slAcjtEAqmNy61olrVJCtifi7w6bJkG1XD_q8y5DIPFxEzQJXrek0V6Bbf2gel6bWlKjNB0Rk93LjmH0N/s1600/IMG_0735J.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hca="true" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5VLkDuqYzbd1NHxsrks-OwCpldh_5R2UGTv1hjRdRigUm5jpPfCrPbJcbNg5slAcjtEAqmNy61olrVJCtifi7w6bJkG1XD_q8y5DIPFxEzQJXrek0V6Bbf2gel6bWlKjNB0Rk93LjmH0N/s400/IMG_0735J.JPG" width="298" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Georgia;">Once you've passed through these secondary doorways, you'll find the small miracle of a courtyard garden with planting designed by Piet Oudolf, the Dutchman who also had a hand in the planting on New York's High Line (along with a lifetime of fascinating projects (which you can read about <a href="http://www.oudolf.com/piet-oudolf">here</a></span>).<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs6HgzvY5ul9RyzWxQDv5gf8lTBVIcszv6J94xuJovRVS8VSfB3VDmYdxmINBnhkSTWQDxEnlSPVoMU6TYGYO6_lmmZunMit5GkoJmDW4MKDjW5_0YECibY9xis6mdXVcegb3pGehXhUkh/s1600/IMG_0735C.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hca="true" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs6HgzvY5ul9RyzWxQDv5gf8lTBVIcszv6J94xuJovRVS8VSfB3VDmYdxmINBnhkSTWQDxEnlSPVoMU6TYGYO6_lmmZunMit5GkoJmDW4MKDjW5_0YECibY9xis6mdXVcegb3pGehXhUkh/s400/IMG_0735C.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Zumthor's black walls throw Oudolf's pretty planting into sharp relief. It's a deeply contemplative space, surrounded by benches and tables and chairs with a view of the garden and the slice of sky above. On the way there, we'd wondered about the wisdom of Zumthor designing a garden space in the middle of Kensington Gardens, the enormous green space where the pavilion is located. But the courtyard garden works beautifully as a contrast to the open spaces outside, enhancing the appreciation of nature by confining it to this small space. </span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnZcKXJN9bdYSb74eTyzQlcPfL9oNh1QoMRblbLSYWb19_kv0nYapOUC2_5k7iwWUe3Jo5gj0M7zoPWYxZSq8egGHLp_mz-hkc486XoAql6E-A_tx5sMHpDVDuHR_v3KY41lTCu9hLVmBw/s1600/IMG_0732.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hca="true" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnZcKXJN9bdYSb74eTyzQlcPfL9oNh1QoMRblbLSYWb19_kv0nYapOUC2_5k7iwWUe3Jo5gj0M7zoPWYxZSq8egGHLp_mz-hkc486XoAql6E-A_tx5sMHpDVDuHR_v3KY41lTCu9hLVmBw/s400/IMG_0732.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The modest but magnificent simplicity of Zumthor's pavilion is apparently typical of his work (we haven't had the good fortune yet of seeing any other structures by him, but many of you will know of the Thermal Baths at Vals, which you can see more of at the link <a href="http://www.therme-vals.ch/en/">here</a>). His structures are rich in texture and materiality, but also inherently modest in their approach.</span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibIDnSsj3V6ZAPHvVTfcQ2Gx7E7ukdjdDdZBlzyA2inQTs528LKojuA-zqgpxNZT1Pr8krimsGlcOPs44ut2aANouwFW1mchC4BYKiC-LtwtKbjg3p5b9a1DzHvFtqYuQOsaIg3ePlKJ6W/s1600/IMG_0735E.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hca="true" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibIDnSsj3V6ZAPHvVTfcQ2Gx7E7ukdjdDdZBlzyA2inQTs528LKojuA-zqgpxNZT1Pr8krimsGlcOPs44ut2aANouwFW1mchC4BYKiC-LtwtKbjg3p5b9a1DzHvFtqYuQOsaIg3ePlKJ6W/s400/IMG_0735E.JPG" width="298" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Each year the Serpentine Gallery commissions an architect who has not previously had a project built in the UK to design a summer pavilion in its grounds (the pavilions are auctioned off at the end of each season). Zumthor's pavilion is an interesting, self-assured contrast to the architectural fireworks of some of the projects of previous years. You can see a slideshow of previous Serpentine Gallery Pavilions on The Guardian's website at the link </span><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/arts/gallery/2008/mar/26/architecture.art?INTCMP=SRCH#/?picture=360756235&index=0"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">here</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">.</span><br />

Travel: London's Serpentine Pavilion

If you're lucky enough to be travelling to London before October 16 (or if you're living there), we highly recommend you visit this year's Serpentine Gallery Pavilion, by the Swiss architect Peter Zumthor. From the outside, as you can see in the image below, it's an inscrutable black timber box. We …

25Sep2011

From our archives: Favourite covers, winter 1939

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigwUCwUA6W0CkpN1LjTFWGzThr4wIANzbvHD2GDRoNsAWe1F8u7IUuEM7rDLB0lA8kW21kZhF-0dKP_6tC-4os9G0QvGA0fnbii-AXI_kKkFbQpJniHqjwSVMonMfvwqYQ2t7T7bcc5Ftp/s1600/HOMENZ_101220_OCT-OLDISSUES_0040.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hca="true" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigwUCwUA6W0CkpN1LjTFWGzThr4wIANzbvHD2GDRoNsAWe1F8u7IUuEM7rDLB0lA8kW21kZhF-0dKP_6tC-4os9G0QvGA0fnbii-AXI_kKkFbQpJniHqjwSVMonMfvwqYQ2t7T7bcc5Ftp/s400/HOMENZ_101220_OCT-OLDISSUES_0040.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">A favourite cover from 1939, where an elegant combination of images reflects the magazine's desire to cater to a broad audience including architects, homemakers, and gardeners (then as now, the magazine included regular features on landscape design). </span>

From our archives: Favourite covers, winter 1939

A favourite cover from 1939, where an elegant combination of images reflects the magazine's desire to cater to a broad audience including architects, homemakers, and gardeners (then as now, the magazine included regular features on landscape design). …

25Sep2011

From our archives: A new series

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilyQqDSNxNJmuzpHcSVp6uvq6OlvTkM20dfDDXd5EzCADt42z_rcvgLdjBKWEEMb3nxRRB6-VCsEG9ers7Z7l58SMLt8HFDBYGPINqmLbJgEGbGysyDgan7NOw31W0JCJ2EUlXdfI-gGUf/s1600/HOMENZ_101220_OCT-OLDISSUES_0003.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hca="true" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilyQqDSNxNJmuzpHcSVp6uvq6OlvTkM20dfDDXd5EzCADt42z_rcvgLdjBKWEEMb3nxRRB6-VCsEG9ers7Z7l58SMLt8HFDBYGPINqmLbJgEGbGysyDgan7NOw31W0JCJ2EUlXdfI-gGUf/s320/HOMENZ_101220_OCT-OLDISSUES_0003.JPG" width="256" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Our next issue (published October 3) marks our 75th birthday: 75 years, that is, since Building Today magazine was first published (<em>Building Today</em> became <em>Home and Building Today</em> a few issues later, then <em>Home & Building</em>, <em>Home & Entertaining</em> in 1999, and <em>HOME</em> in 1997). </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Despite all the name changes, our trawl through the archives reminded us that our mission today remains pretty much the same as it was then: to showcase New Zealand's best homes (and buildings in general, in the early days) and celebrate great New Zealand architecture. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Georgia;">The image above is of our first-ever cover (now stored in binders in the safe hands of the Architecture Archive at the University of Auckland). We'll be showing you a range of goodies from the archives on the blog over the next few weeks. And, of course, there's a special 75th anniversary feature in the October/November issue of the magazine, which has just gone to the printing press. </span>

From our archives: A new series

Our next issue (published October 3) marks our 75th birthday: 75 years, that is, since Building Today magazine was first published (Building Today became Home and Building Today a few issues later, then Home & Building, Home & Entertaining in 1999, and HOME in 1997). Despite all the name changes, ou…

22Sep2011

Events: Sean Godsell in Auckland

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLCZcMpaAUyi591AeRYILhfX3Wa1hU7pXO2ZI2zLQlOGXtNVqL-j5j-zb7MhA8Msz9HWt8Y6C89Xu4Q1D8qYwehh4O_XFIbNVKoE5X2G0kaCs-cRINtRSQcscwOT5y4syaiYIWHvSD3Xx3/s1600/Sean+Godsell.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hca="true" height="305" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLCZcMpaAUyi591AeRYILhfX3Wa1hU7pXO2ZI2zLQlOGXtNVqL-j5j-zb7MhA8Msz9HWt8Y6C89Xu4Q1D8qYwehh4O_XFIbNVKoE5X2G0kaCs-cRINtRSQcscwOT5y4syaiYIWHvSD3Xx3/s400/Sean+Godsell.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Righto, we're back. Sorry about the silence, but we went on holiday and it seemed a good opportunity to allow you to watch our short web films of the homes shortlisted in our Home of the Year award. In any case, some news: Australian architect Sean Godsell is giving a talk in Auckland next Thursday September 29 at 6pm at the Dorothy Winstone Centre, Auckland Girls' Grammar School, 16 Howe Street, Auckland. Tickets are $25 from Ticketek (student tickets are $20) - you can purchase them at the link <a href="http://premier.ticketek.co.nz/search/SearchResults.aspx?k=sean+godsell">here</a>. For information on other Architecture Week events, visit the site <a href="http://www.architectureweek.co.nz/">here</a>. </span>

Events: Sean Godsell in Auckland

Righto, we're back. Sorry about the silence, but we went on holiday and it seemed a good opportunity to allow you to watch our short web films of the homes shortlisted in our Home of the Year award. In any case, some news: Australian architect Sean Godsell is giving a talk in Auckland next Thursday …

22Sep2011

Why Architecture Matters after Sept. 11

<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">I grew up in the suburbs of Manhattan in Long Island.  A trip to New York City was about as foreign an adventure as one could hope to have.  I remember taking the Long Island Rail Road into Penn Station and looking out the window the whole time. Right before you take the final plunge into the tunnels of  New York, there is this moment that you can see the skyline .  I remember being 12 years old and looking at that skyline thinking how impossibly tall the Twin Towers seemed. It would be many years later that I stood at the base of those buildings and looked up watching the towers disappear into the sky.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">On September 11, 2001 I was a young architect working in Manhattan for a large design firm.  Most of my clients were financial firms in lower Manhattan and I would routinely take the Path train in from Hoboken, where I was living at the time.  On that day, I would have been coming up from the Path around 8:45 AM if not for a last minute schedule change that put me in Midtown instead.  I remember coming up from the N/R subway line and seeing crowds around the TV's in the lobby of the GM Building.  The rest, as they say, is history.  I spent the better part of the day walking all over Manhattan trying to get back to New Jersey. I made it as far south as 14th street and as far north as 96th street. I watched ash covered people emerging from downtown as a chimney cleaner would emerge out of a chimney.  The loss of human life was incomprehensible.  It's the kind of thing you never quite get over.  Even 10 years later, the loss that we feel for those who died cannot be repaired.  Not with a memorial.  Not with the death of any terrorist leader.  Not with the sacrifice of thousands of others.  It will never heal.  Unlike Pearl Harbor, this attack was right in our face, in the wide open space of a beautiful morning and broadcast internationally for everyone to see.  It's not the kind of thing people will laugh about in 30 years.  It's the kind of thing that stirs up the same emotions every time you think about it. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">I don't know if it's because of my career or my personality, but I have always felt that the best tribute to those who died would have been to build those buildings back, exactly as they were.  I mean no disrespect to the families of the victims by saying this.  I realize that there were many bodies that were never recovered and those families will never be made whole again.  But I also believe that those buildings represented more to our country than just steel and glass. When built, they were innovative, iconic, and symbolic.  They represented the greatness of American engineering and were incredible works of Architecture.  There are few buildings that have been built in NYC in the last 40 years that could be identified by the average person on the street.  A visit to the top of the World Trade Center was nothing short of magical.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">Architecture is not exactly America's national past time.  There are few notable structures that really influence people's lives.  The destruction of life on Sept. 11 was irreplaceable.  The destruction of Architecture was replaceable.  I can't think of any better symbol of American resolve and unity than to put those buildings back exactly as they were.  It would have sent a message to the world that we will get back up.  And in that ascension we will heal together.  As far as I know they did not leave a big hole in the Pentagon.   I think the memorial that was built is moving and elegant.  I also think that it would have been just as elegant if it were a few blocks south.  To visit the site of the former World Trade Center a decade later and be staring at two holes in the ground only makes me feel sad. And while that might be the desired result, I don't want to feel sad anymore.  I would rather feel inspired and proud.  I think that Architecture could have done that.  I think that Architecture can do that.  I think Architecture has to aspire to that, otherwise what's the point?</span>

Why Architecture Matters after Sept. 11

I grew up in the suburbs of Manhattan in Long Island. A trip to New York City was about as foreign an adventure as one could hope to have. I remember taking the Long Island Rail Road into Penn Station and looking out the window the whole time. Right before you take the final plunge into the tunnel…

13Sep2011

What does 'modern' mean anyway?

<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">If you are one of the many people who attended a Design school of any type within the last 30 years you probably were taught to be somewhat forward thinking.  Most schools today try to best prepare their students for the world which they will enter upon graduation.  And let's face it, that world is a MODERN world.  It is a world full of technology and opportunity for those who wish to embrace it.  I don't know how many successful architects are still using a T-square and a drafting table, but I doubt it's very many (Glenn Murcutt may be the only one).  </span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">That being said, when the conversation turns to Architecture, the word 'modern' has a very negative connotation.  Modern buildings are thought to be harsh and cold, made of steel and glass and very often devoid of emotion.  Modern homes are thought to be reserved for movie stars and egomaniacs who like the idea of living in a place that looks like it's meant to be on display but not really 'lived in'.  Even the real estate industry has turned it's back on the word 'modern' by replacing it with 'contemporary' in its listings.  If no one disputes that we all live in a 'modern' world, then why are modern buildings so few and far between?  I don't see people driving around in Model T's, so why would people build their houses in the styles of by-gone eras?  I think the answer lies in the fact that no one really knows what 'modern' is.</span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Let's start with a textbook definition.  Modern is defined as 'of or relating to present or recent time'.  By that definition anything that exists today is Modern.  If you went out and built a pyramid tomorrow, it would be a modern pyramid.  This is part of the problem.  I don't really think that the definition of the word itself is applicable anymore based on how quickly our society changes.  Relatively speaking, a Sony Walkman relates to recent time.  Compared to a record player,  a Sony Walkman is modern.  It is also extinct.  </span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The next problem is that there are very few examples of great modern design.  If you open a trade publication you will find that most of the modern buildings that get published border on the ridiculous.  They may photograph well and appear very progressive but in fact are borderline dysfunctional and very expensive to maintain.  To me, this is not what inspires people, or at least, it doesn't inspire me.  Judging from the widespread lack of modern housing, I'm guessing it doesn't inspire alot of home buyers either.</span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">A few years back, the American automobile industry was headed for extinction.  For years they had just regurgitated the same old designs and relied on the American consumer to buy their cars regardless of the competition.  For 'the big three' there was only one way out  of the crisis and that way was 'modernization'.  They had to update their product lines, focus more on design and fuel efficiency in their fleets and start creating products that reflected the technology of the day.  They introduced features such as parking assist, voice commanded automation, and better engine technology.  All of this in sleeker more interesting modern designs.  It has been shown time and time again that creating well crafted, socially relevant products will yield great success.  To circle back, we have to ask ourselves:  "Is the building industry really doing this?  Are they giving modern design a good name?"</span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I think that modern architecture is not about building something that relates to present time.  I think it is about building something that relates to present life.  And in that pursuit it cannot be contained within an Architectural style.  When I look at the homebuilding industry at present, I see the automobile industry three years ago.  Unfortunately, there are no major homebuilders leading the way with socially relevant, modern designs.  They just keep reformatting different versions of the same thing.  If we as a society are truly to embrace modern design as a medium then we have to look at the most successful examples from Joseph Eichler to Steve Jobs and understand how the tools that we have available to us today can carry us into a better tomorrow.   </span>

What does 'modern' mean anyway?

If you are one of the many people who attended a Design school of any type within the last 30 years you probably were taught to be somewhat forward thinking. Most schools today try to best prepare their students for the world which they will enter upon graduation. And let's face it, that world is …

08Sep2011