THE INSTITUTE OF ARCHITECTS.

Progress, Volume XVIII, Issue 6, 1 February 1923, Page 130

THE INSTITUTE OF ARCHITECTS.

N.Z. Council Meets at Christchurch.

The seventeenth annual meeting of the Council of the New Zealand Institute of Architects was held in the Provincial Council Chambers on Wednesday, February 7th., and the annual conference of the Bth. and 9th. Mr. W. M. Page, of Wellington in the absence of the President of the Institute, Mr. C. R. Ford, of Wanganui, who is at present in America, presided. The following delegates were present: —Messrs. W. Gray Young, W. Fielding, W. Crichton, F. E. Greenish (Wellington), L. D. Coombs, H. Mandeno (Dunedin), F. J. Barlow, E. J. Greenstreet G. Penlington (Christchurch), L. C. Miles (Timaru), W. H. Gummer, M. K. Draffin, H. C. Gnerson, B C. Chilwell (Auckland), C J. Brodenck (Invercargill), and J. Greig (Gisborne).

DELEGATES WELCOMED. The Mayor, Dr. Thacker, in formally opening the conference, extended a hearty welcome to visiting delegates. He was particularly gratified, he said, at the appropriateness of the conference being held in the Provincial Council Chambers, which building was undoubtedly one of the architectural gems of Australasia. The building itself really belonged to the city of Christchurch, although both it and the site upon which it was situated had been confiscated by the Government many years ago. Citizens of Christchurch, however, were now endeavouring to secure the building for the city, and it was hoped that before long the project would be an accomplished fact. Continuing, he said that members of the architectural profession have as much to do with matters concerning public health as any other body of professional men. It lay with them, not only to prepare pleasing exteriors for public appreciation. but they also had to appeal to citizens with the interior of their buildings. There was yet much work for architects in New Zealand to accomplish. It lay with them to prepare proper ventilation, and make allowances for a generous amount of sunlight for dwellings and other buildings. Even at the present time there existed some deplorable examples of lack of ventilation. An instance was the present Parliament Chambers. He had had personal experience of its vitiated atmosphere, and to his mind it was an extraordinary thing that the Chamber should be as badly ventilated as was actually the case. He referred to the absence of the President of the Institute (Mr. C. R. Ford, of Wanganui), who was at present on a visit to America, where he was gaining a knowledge of the latest architectural developments in that country, which, stated his Worship, was years ahead of other lands in the advance of social

civilisation. He hoped that New Zealand as a whole would derive no small benefit as a result of Mr. Ford’s visit to the fJnited States. It lay with architects to consider and formulate schemes for town planning, etc. There was great need, he said, for the application of town planning ideas to the city of Christchurch. Take, for example, the south-east corner of the Square itself, he said. Here a large company had a back right-of-way which was not an asset to the city. The Triangle, in the very centre of the city itself, was greatly in need of improvement, while portion of Colombo Street, from Armagh Street, left a great deal to be desired. It was not the fault of the architects of Christchurch that these buildings existed. It was the fault of the Government and the governing local bodies. They should get rid of these old buildings and erect new and beautiful ones, he said. This was not the only period in history where magnificence and splendour in architecture had been known. He referred to' that perior 2000 8.C., when splendid structures had been erected by the Pharoahs. They all knew of the work of the early Roman architects, but the profession was proceeding apace to-day, and in the Bridge of Remembrance, which was now in course of construction in Christchurch, they would have one of the architectural gems of the world. He referred to' the erection of a Town Hall in Christchurch, and hoped that this proposal would soon win popular favour and the work would be commenced in the near future. In conclusion, he wished the conference every success, and hoped would enjoy their stay in Christchurch.

The chairman, in response, thanked the Mayor for his kindly welcome. He claimed for the Institute a distinctly important place in the life of the community, but said that the architects of New Zealand could render more valuable service to their fellowcitizens should they be freely granted opportunities to do so. The question of benefit to the community engaged the attention of architects a great deal mom than was generally realised. It had been stated that citizenship was the making of cities and living in them properly. This architects ever endeavoured to carry out. He appealed for a more sympathetic relationship between architects and various public bodies, and continued that he felt sure members of his profession would be able to render much greater service to the community if they were taken into confidence to a greater extent by governing public bodies.

A hearty vote of thanks was passed to the Mayor for his countesy in officially opening the conference.

FINANCE REPORT. The report of the Finance Committee stated that the excess of expenditure over receipts amounted to £IBO 2s. iod., and the accumulated fund stood at £399 16s. 6d. Three items of the exlenditure during the year, totalling £3lO, would not be likely to recur. Provision had been made for the issue of the "Journal" during the coming year. The receipts derived from subscriptions showed a decrease of £125 9s, as against last year. This decrease was attributed to the fact that a number of young members who had been in practice had accepted positions and were now in employment. Some £797 16s. in subscriptions remained unpaid, and had caused considerable inconvenience, and it was hoped that members would make every endeavour to meet their obligations. The committee recommended a policy of caution until an accumulated fund had been built up. The report was adopted. Some discussion centred on the matter of unpaid subscriptions, and Mr. Barlow moved that the Council take steps to recover subscriptions from all members whose dues remained unpaid. The motion was seconded by Mr. Greig and carried.

EDUCATION REPORT. The Committee of Architectural Education reported that the past year had been a notable one for the general impetus in architectural education. The improved facilities which had been afforded, as well as the higher standard aimed at in the new syllabus had contributed to this and a marked improvement in the results obtained from students had been experienced. The activity of the Students' Association had had remarkable results in the various centres. A debt of gratitude was owed to Mr. W. H. Gummer for preliminary preparation and organisation, and also to the Auckland sub-committee — Messrs. Grierson, Draffin, and Wallnutt—who, with Mr. R. Owen, had carried out the preparation of subjects, etc. It was hoped that the success of the competitions movement in Auckland, Wellington, Hawke's Bay, and Otago. would induce other students' associations to be formed and linked up with a general scheme. Early in the year the committee had under consideration a letter from the Royal Institute of British Architects, asking if the Institute would be prepared to hold the special war and final examinations in Mew Zealand. It had been decided to reply, suggesting that, as the standard of this Institute's examination had been raised considerably, certain measures of reciprocity in examination be agreed to. This would avoid any confusion by holding two similar examinations. Although no definite reply had been received regarding reciprocity, the war examination had been held, and eight candidates had presented themselves. The subjects of design and the report of the committee set up to deal with the matter had been sent forward to the R.1.8.A. for final decision. The working syllabus of the New Zealand Institute's examinations had proceeded without difficulty. Exam-

inations had been held in the four centres from December 4th. to December 9th., and the following number of' students had presented themselves for examination:—First professional, 16; second professional, completion of the late intermediate examination, 7; final examination, 9; total candidates, 32, Of these 10 were examined in Auckland, 12 in Wellington, 2 in Christchurch, and 8 in Dunedin. In commenting on the results of the examination, the committee stated that there seemed to be an improvement in the work done as testimonies of study. Apart from the fact that the students probably had grasped the idea of what was needed in these drawings, it was a most significant fact that the best testimonies were received from the centres where the Students' Associations were most active in taking part in the competitions organised by the Institute. The committee.regretted to have to record the loss sustained by the departure of its chairman, Mr. J. F. Munnings, for Sydney. His position would be hard to fill, and he had proved a most active and enthusiastic member. The report was adopted. It was decided, after some discussion, to. submit to the incoming Executive Committee a proposal whereby all examinations could be centralised, by being held in Wellington.

BENEVOLENT FUND. The Benevolent Fund Board of Control, consisting of Messrs. Greenstreet, Collins and Penlington, reported that since its inception it had held two meetings to discuss the proposed regulations governing this fund, and had unanimously approved of the same. The Board urged that this fund be established as soon as possible by setting aside a certain sum from the annual subscription of each member of the Institute, with any other moneys that may be given to the fund. It was also reported that the matter of raising funds generally should be brought before and discussed at the annual conference, and considered that unless the necessary funds were forthcoming immediately, the Board was, in a measure, premature. The report was adopted. Members of the Institute were the guests of Mr. and Mrs. C. Wood at luncheon at Ballantyne's tea rooms. Reports from the following district branches were read and adopted:—Taranaki, Wanganui, Auckland, Wellington, Hawke's Bay, Canterbury, Otago, and Southland.

DISTRICT BRANCH REMITS. In introducing a notice of motion by the Auckland branch to the effect that a South Auckland branch of the Institute, with headquarters at Hamilton, be formed, Mr. H. C. Grierson stated that Hamilton was one of the rising towns of the Dominion, and it would be beneficial to the profession throughout the Dominion if a branch were set up there.