| 75 Malcolm Walker Architects Ltd ARCHITECTURE • Bars & Restaurants/Commercial • Villa and Bungalow • Contemporary homes • Restorations • Renovations• Extensions • New Builds • Renew double glazing Proudly Supporting Malcolm Walker Architects Ltd FINELY CRAFTED TIMBER WINDOWS & DOORS www.aucklandjoinery.nz 2 Taylors Road, Morningside| Ph: 846 0346 Cell: 021 660 346 | aucklandjoinery@gmail.com Auckland Joinery (2014) LTD Recognised Leader in Electrical Services Residential Industrial Commercial Conveniently based in Mt Roskill, Merrylees Electrical provides premium electrical installations and services throughout Auckland for industrial, commercial and residential clients. From Mitsubishi heat pumps and fully-integrated vehicle access gates to electrical fit-outs for commercial offices, we provide quality electrical solutions at affordable rates. Contact Us 09 440 5113 Mount Roskill and surrounding Auckland Suburbs merryleeselectrical.co.nz T T Virginia Wright Drawing inspiration from the icons Malcolm has completed a wide and extensive range of award-winning projects. Architecture may have evolved from pencil and paper to computers and 3-D CAD, (Computer Aided Drawing), but at its heart it’s still designing buildings, and that’s what holds the same attraction for Malcolm Walker as it always has. Malcolm set up his current architectural practice, Malcolm Walker Architects Limited, in Auckland over 40 years ago, having been a practicing architect since 1981. As a young man he moved from Hokitika to Christchurch to study physics at the University of Canterbury, and found himself staying at the Miles Warren-designed College House. “I’d never seen anything like it. It was one of the best mid-century buildings in New Zealand, and it showed me what architecture could do and be. It was an amazing place and still is,” says Malcolm. He heard Sir Miles speak several times, and at the same time was inspired by a Hawke’s Bay house he stayed in, which had been designed by another iconic architect, John Scott. “Something in me was triggered. I was drawn to architecture and John became a friend and mentor.” Forty years later, Malcolm still believes in architecture as a craft, and chooses his projects as carefully as ever. “If I’m asked to do something I don’t think is right, I don’t do it. We’re small enough to be able to do that. We stay on the job from beginning to end, which is a stable and enjoyable way to work.” Malcolm Walker Architects avoids having their concepts go to someone else to draw up, unless it’s someone in-house with whom they already work closely. This ensures that as the design develops through the drawings, everything is consistent, everything fits together as it should, and everything is carefully and efficiently designed to meet the budget, Malcolm explains. “That’s the actual joy of architecture is that we’re generalists. We’re thinking of the context, of the land, of how the people live, and pulling it together to give one answer. It’s general, it’s technical, and it’s also a social way of thinking.” Alongside his architecture, Malcolm is also a political and architectural cartoonist, which he says draws on the same essential principle. “Cartooning’s the same thing. You take a whole lot of complicated things and distill them down into an essence to put something on paper, which is relevant to them all. That’s what makes good buildings and good cartoons.” Over the years, Malcolm has completed a wide and extensive range of award-winning projects. Today, more than 50% of the workload remains residential, an aspect of the job Malcolm has always enjoyed. “We’ve made good friends over the years, and we’ve still got people happily living in houses we designed for them 40 years ago, so we must be getting some things right.” Along with their commercial and residential work sit two heritage projects that are close to Malcolm’s heart, as someone who grew up in Hokitika. He was part of the successful campaign to save two examples of its architectural history: the old Government Building (Seddon House), which is being restored ready for new tenants; and the 1907 Rentons Building, which he and other family members bought a few years ago and are slowly bringing back to life.
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