BRITISH ARCHITECTS

Dominion, Volume 27, Issue 221, 15 June 1934, Page 9

BRITISH ARCHITECTS

Centenary of Royal Institute • NEW ZEALAND WORK Some months ago the New Zealand Institute of Architects was asked to forward to the Royal Institute of British Architects samples of the later work of New Zealand architects iu photographic form, from which it was proposed to make selections for display in the British Institute’s Centennial Exhibition, to be held in London in the autumn of this year. Since then the London committee appointed for that purpose has made a selection of five plans from those submitted. Three of these were selected from plans forwarded through the Wellington institute to London by Messrs. Gray Young, Morton and Young, of Wellington, while the other two were the work of Mr. Stanley Eearn, of Wellington, and Mr. Cecil Wood, of Christchurch. As the London committee is entirely disinterested, and is without- personal knowledge of the architects who submitted the plans, the honour of securing four out of the five exhibits is one of which Wellington has every reason to be proud. The successful architects have been written to personally from London, by Mr. H. S. Goodhart-Rendel, chairman of the exhibition committee. The following is a copy of the letter forwarded to Mr. W. Gray Young:— “As you are probably aware, tbe Royal Institute this year celebrates a double event—the centenary of its foundation in 1834, and the opening of the new headquarters in Portland Place, London. As the first big undertaking in the new building the council have decided, on the recommendation of the R.1.8.A. exhibition committee, to hold an exhibition of contemporary architecture in the autumn of this year, as it is felt that the occasion presents a striking opportunity for presenting a very full exposition of the importance of architecture to-day, at the same time obtaining valuable publicity both for the institute and the profession as a whole. “The arrangements for this important international exhibition have been entrusted to the exhibition committee, whose policy has been to formulate touring exhibitions representing a high standard of architecture which would ultimately form the basis of a permanent record of the . various types of construction upon which architects are engaged, and the latest building methods in all parts of the world. This record would take the form of a collection of photographs and models, with key-plans, which the committee could keen up-to-date by the addition from time to time of photographs of the latest examples of modern architecture. This collection would be catalogued and so arranged that the whole or part of any particular section covering a specific subject would be available for exhibition at short notice in any part of the world. Sjnce the institution of this policy two extremely successful , exhibitions have been arranged and sent on tour -the Modern Commercial Architecture Exhibition in 1929. and the Modern Transport Exhibition two years later and these, together with tbe forthcoming exhibition. will provide the committee with the foundations of the permanent international collection at which they are aiming. . “Through the kind co-operation ot the Overseas Allied Societies a selection of photographs of recent architectures in the Dominions has been submitted to the committee for consideration in selecting the exhibits for the 1934 exhibition. j.he photographs submitted included a number of illustrations of your work, and the exhibition committee have asked me, as chairman, to say that they very much hope it will be possible for you to assist them toward the success of the exhibition bv undertaking to provide enlargements for the exhibition of the photographs which they have selected and of which a list is appended. . “At the conclusion of the exhibition m London the photographs will be sent on tour to those allied societies which desire to have them, and finally it is hoped that vou will agree to present your photographs to the institute’s permanent collection.” ..