Christchurch Modern

City’s Edge. University of Canterbury 1960 – 1975.

admin — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 06:35:58 +0000

Yeah, normally we do houses, but it’s a slow month and the University has put up some historical images of their world-class brutalist campus. The designs are mostly by the government Ministry of Works architects, but there’s also some sweeties from Warren & Mahoney, Charles Thomas, and the pick of the bunch, from Hall & Mackenzie. Check it.

Hall & Mackenzie designed the Registry, Computer Centre, Forestry and Fine Arts buildings. All are superb. Pictured above is the Computer Centre.

Forestry, Hall & Mackenzie

Student Union, Warren & Mahoney

The Elegant Shed. Behind the Garden.

admin — Sun, 19 Feb 2012 19:59:17 +0000

There aren’t too many TV shows about architecture (it’s boring) and even less about Christchurch (again, nodding off), but in 1984 David Mitchell made a show about both. And it’s excellent. Watch it online at NZ Onscreen, it’s a winner.

264A Waimairi Rd. Peter Beaven.

admin — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 00:51:01 +0000

It’s a lot of brown, but if you don’t mind the colour this is a very original 1960s home from the never-dull Peter Beaven, arguably still one of Christchurch’s best young architects.

68B Creyke Rd. Prof. Kerr House. Warren & Mahoney.

admin — Sun, 11 Sep 2011 01:46:55 +0000

This particular house is noteworthy more for it’s owner than architect. Professor Roy Kerr commissioned this house after returning to New Zealand in 1972. Kerr is a super-scientist, recipient of the Rutherford Medal and the subject of the semi-biographical book Cracking the Einstein Code. That aside, he had a pretty sweet house that’s subsequently been furnished like a cheap motel.

100 Office Road. Warren & Mahoney. For Sale.

admin — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 08:03:59 +0000

We don’t normally do real estate listings, but why not?
This townhouse is particularly good; designed around ’66 and renovated nicely in the noughties by Warren & Mahoney’s Richard McGowan (please contact Richard directly with any questions regarding the chequer plate stair treads). The building feels like the perfect prototype (and archetype) of the modern Christchurch inner-city home: beautiful and efficient in materials and design. At the open home make sure to say loudly, “mmm, very Miles”.

Poor Dorset Street.

admin — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 07:38:17 +0000

Brutalists don’t cry, but after this weeks shaking we’re not happy. These little bachelor flats are one of New Zealand’s most important post-war buildings and surely face the possibility of demolition. Next door, the lovely and underrated Dorset Towers are abandoned and round the corner the new kids Park Terrace & Establishment Apartments are also red-stickered. Save Ferris Dorset.

For sale. Warren & Mahoney’s best.

admin — Sat, 02 Apr 2011 06:24:13 +0000

The fine people at Home magazine have published some killer shots of the MJ Foster house on their blog. Miles, Maurice and the team really excelled themselves on this job. As they did on the Don Forbes house, also currently for sale.

The (almost) definitive W&M pics.

admin — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 01:15:35 +0000

Since that bastard earthquake local architect Justin has photographed pretty much all of the pre-1980 Christchurch W&M houses. He tells us the missing ones are RC Ballantyne (back section on Glandovey Rd), Hyslop flats, Fox House, Dorset Flats, Dorset Towers and Weston Flats (within the restricted CBD cordon). Quite an effort!

W&M earthquake casualties

admin — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 09:26:46 +0000

These are the facts: many of Christchurch’s post-war modernist buildings are badly damaged and will be demolished. Warren & Mahoney’s 1960s houses defined the Christchurch Style and a lot of them are poked:

ME Mahoney House (the best Pixie house) – badly subsided and cracked

MJW Davis House (the best hill house) – irreparably damaged

I Munro House – blockwork veneer missing and cracks evident

Dorset Street Flats (the original) – walls down and red stickered

Carlton Mill Flats – Collapsed and already demolished

MB Warren House (the first Pixie) – slumped and badly cracked

LJ Beatty House - blockwork veneer missing

Broderick Flats – red stickered, chimneys down

Arse.

Don Cowey.

admin — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 21:41:05 +0000

We were asked by the Dominion Post for some information on Don. Here’s what I wrote.

I met him just the once. He invited me and my friend Tim to his home. We had a cup of tea and he talked about his career and the houses he designed. He was modest, but proud of his achievements. He spoke kindly about his contemporaries and reverently about Peter Beaven whom he called “the master of space”.

He told his story happily, but quite factually and talked us through his designs, good and bad. Some houses he was fond of, others he said weren’t so great. I asked him about the inconsistency and he confessed he always felt like the ‘servant’ to his client. He said other designers, Miles Warren in particular, were able to dictate to clients. Don admired Miles for this, but admitted it just wasn’t his way and he yielded to his clients wishes as he felt “it was their house” and “I just did my best”. He wondered aloud if it were his Christian beliefs?
His most successful designs were for ‘enlightened’ clients: Professor John Walker in Halswell, Professor John McLauchlan and the artist Olivia Spencer Bower in Merivale and the Brougham Village, which won NZIA 2008 award for enduring architecture. He also won the NZIA merit award in 1967 for a house at the end of Burrowes Pl in Fendalton. It’s probably one of the country’s best examples of Japanese-influenced Modernism, now decaying and unappreciated in a suburban culdesac.

He was one of New Zealand’s great modern architects – a major figure in the “Christchurch Style” – and it’s important he’s recognised as such. He would never have said it himself, but he was a great architect.

The image is of Don & Jocelyn’s original home on Main Rd, Redcliffs (since demolished)