AUCKLAND ARCHITECTURE.

Auckland Star, Volume LX, Issue 283, 29 November 1929, Page 8

AUCKLAND ARCHITECTURE.

"AMAZING CHANGE" NOTED. TRIBUTE TO 'VARSITY SCHOOL. "The greatest difficulty we have is to keep the members alive in the work of the institute," declared Sir. E. R. Wilson, of Invercargill, the president of the New Zealand Institute of Architects, when addressing the annual meeting of the Wellington branch. "There is usually a general Indifference when things are- going along smoothly. Prosperity in ordinary life usually spelt decay."

After tracing the factors which led to the founding of the institute, Mr. Wilson drew attention to the tremendous progress of architecture in Xew Zealand. Particularly was this to be seen at Auckland, where an amazing change had taken place during the past twenty years. He ventured to predict that the change would be still more marked in another few years. The pupils of the Auckland School of Architecture had not yet had time to filter through the country. Though education had been their greatest trouble, the members would find that there would bo something in the scheme, and that the school's work would make a marked impression. A great achievement was that the Wellington War Memorial competition was being run on the lines laid down by the institute. They were deeply indebted to the Mayor. Mr. Wilson said ho believed that while they should try and protect and strengthen their profession in every way, their work would do more in that direction than they would accomplish by trying to force the position by legislation. A bungling architect provided people with plenty of powder and shot, and the members of the institute should see to the practical side of their work. More than once work had been ruined because the architect was not man enough to take off his coaf and go down among the cooks in the kitchen and see what they wanted. The result was a lot of grumbling, alterations, and expense. Eeferring to the question of town planning. Mr. Wilson thought it a pity that architects as a whole had not taken town planning so seriously as they might have done. There was a great tendency to neglect it, and if they were not careful it would drift into the hands of the engineers and the surveyors, particularly the surveyors.