ARCHELLO YOUR CONNECTION WITH ARCHITECTURE

The Awataha Marae is located on Auckland’s North Shore. Established in the 1980s it currently includes teaching, administration, accommodation, health and child care facilities. The first Awataha Marae committee was formed with the single minded purpose of building the North Shore’s first Marae for the appreciation, preservation and advancement of Maori beliefs, values and customs. This narrow view changed over time as the realisation set in that in order to sustain the hopes dreams and aspirations of its people the organisation would have to develop an infrastructure capable of supporting its ambitions.

This meant widening its view to becoming concerned about developing an economic base, providing for the welfare of its people and providing education, well being and training initiatives. The new master plan for the expansion of the Awataha Marae is to incorporate an all-encompassing vision for the precinct that will come to symbolise the role model for “unity in the community” it hopes to become.

The Centre has a philosophy of inclusiveness and recognises that the modern day tribe is a mix of cultures. A conglomeration of tribal peoples have chosen the North Shore as their home and while they still relate to their tribal areas, their cultural needs, beliefs and aspirations are met by this organization, by this Marae.

The new architectural and master plan proposal provides a flexible guiding framework for growth and change. The site has been organised into layers of more of less accessibility depending on the status of the visitor. More public facilities are located on the fringes and are able to operate independently. Aged accommodation is perched on the hillside overlooking the facility and the school buildings bridge the two precincts of inner and outer sanctums.

The journey to the speech making ceremony in front of the Wharanui is an orchestrated pathway that follows a spiral trajectory around the core buildings and through the native produce garden and is shielded from view by a woven screen. Once through the ceremony, visitors are free to access the facilities within the inner sanctum and participate in other Marae events, ceremonies and activities.

An undulating timber frame with a continuous zinc roof connects all the interior functions along an elevated verandah. Ground floor activities include the workshops, restaurant, exhibition area, day to day teaching spaces and administration. Upper level activities are more secluded with sleeping spaces, library, language study and conference facilities. Gaps between the various functions invite impromptu meetings and informal education related activities.

Maori cultural expressions of tattooing, weaving and woodcarving are to be integral parts of the centre. The woven screen is tattooed with traditional Maori designs and the timber framing is to be interspersed with carvings. Flax, kauri pines and other native New Zealand plants will become part of the vegetated landscape available for teaching and harvesting and to develop habitats for native wild life. With the reinvigoration of the landscape, the all inclusive education, health and aged care facilities the centre is all about the future of all of our children.