“Thrilling” Ironbank Wins NZ Architecture Medal

“Thrilling” Ironbank Triumphs In 2010 New Zealand Architecture Medal

The groundbreaking Ironbank centre in Auckland’s Karangahape Road has won the 2010 New Zealand Architecture Medal, the country’s highest architecture accolade for a building.

The New Zealand Architecture Medal is presented by the New Zealand Institute of Architects and only one medal is awarded each year.

The highly innovative building, designed by RTA Studio, was described by judges as “A rich, groundbreaking and thrilling tour de force”. It defeated 14 of the country’s other top new designs to take the medal.

Ironbank had already been named a winner in the commercial and sustainable architecture categories of the 2010 New Zealand Architecture Awards.

Architect Gerald Parsonson, convenor of the awards jury, said that Ironbank represented a rare synthesis of originality, visual impact, functionality and ecological sensitivity.

“Its towers of stacked boxes have a restless, sculptural quality and the raw, muscular materials harmonise perfectly with the inner city context,” said Mr Parsonson.

“The various occupancies are each afforded a measure of insularity, yet the open circulation encourages a healthy level of interaction.”

Jurors hailed the strong sustainability ethos that had driven the project from conception. This included the recycling of 90 per cent of existing buildings on the site. Features also include a cleverly conceived, space saving car park with innovative car stacking solutions.

Judges evaluated entries against criteria including the relationship of a building to its site and context, design quality, building form, structure and spatial qualities. User satisfaction and environmental aspects were also taken into account.

The main consideration for the judges in assessing projects is how well a project resolves key design issues and then builds on this solution to “contribute to the advancement of architecture”.

ENDS

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