84 | ARCHITECTURE PAUA Architects Waikato’s local building experts Light Commercial • Office and Classroom fit-outs Education • Renovations & Extensions asapcontracting.co.nz 0800 ASAP NOW wes@asapcontracting.co.nz Call For A Free No Obligation Quote Today 021 0221 7384 morag@placegroup.co.nz placegroup.co.nz Resource Consenting • Project Management • Facilitation • Policy Writing and Implementation • Community and Stakeholder Engagement • Biosecurity and Biodiversity Management • Ecology Handling a broad spectrum of projects PAUA’s project focus over the years reflects what’s happening in local communities as they grow and mature. T T Virginia Wright It’s 30 years since Antanas Procuta set up his architecture practice in the Waikato on his return from overseas. Having graduated with degrees in Architecture and Building Science in 1986 he worked for several years for an architectural practice in Cambridge in the UK which involved several projects for the University of Cambridge and some of its colleges, laying a solid understanding and foundation for his architectural career. What began in 1995 as Antanas Procuta Architects, with Antanas working out of Cambridge New Zealand, is now called PAUA Architects Ltd, an acronym for Procuta Associates Urban + Architecture, with the practice long-established in Hamilton. PAUA delivers a broad spectrum of projects, and their impressive capabilities includes Urban Design and Masterplanning along with civic and cultural, heritage, residential, commercial and Te Ao Māori Architecture, and project management. PAUA’s project focus over the years reflects what’s happening in local communities as they grow and mature. Among other urban and comprehensive planning projects over the years PAUA has developed masterplans for both private and state schools, and for residential precincts such as Cambridge Park. which is now finished having started over twenty years ago back in 2003. The Cambridge Park urban design project of 330 residences involved working with the essential design philosophy of Cambridge’s original 1863 town design and layout, explained Antanas. Whereas for school projects, masterplanning involves considering the school’s trajectory over the next 15 to 30 years, understanding the culture of the school, and working with Boards of Trustees to explore the long-term vision and aspirations for the school and their students. “I learnt a lot in Cambridge in the UK about shaping architecture to create meaningful outdoor spaces and character, such as cloisters and courtyards: total environments that people and institutions can be proud of. “These iconic places take into account geographical location, the nature and context of a site and how best to conceptualise an environment that’s conducive to a modern education,” he says. PAUA Architects was successfully engaged by the Hamilton Boys’ High School (HBHS) Board of Trustees to design a school marae hub, that the students can be proud of, with integrated learning spaces. The school instigated consultation with the Kiingitanga (Māori King movement) to ensure the design properly aligned with cultural protocol and traditional narrative. PAUA then worked with the traditional form of marae and whare, and the material selection allowed by school guidelines, to provide a modern interpretation of the idea of a ‘marae’ as a place for all and many uses, in an educational context, The Whare Ako was completed last year and won the 2025 NZIA Waikato and Bay of Plenty Architecture Award in the Education category. The building design represents the story of Tāne ascending to the heavens to retrieve the three baskets of knowledge, while the repeating poutama pattern in the building fabric signifies a stairway where each step represents a level of attainment in the journey towards knowledge and achievement. As the jury noted, the space “embodies inclusiveness, landmarks the school and exudes ‘mana’, while accommodating heavily used multi-use spaces and classrooms on a highly restricted school site.” PAUA is a diverse, multicultural practice, with respect and understanding for the unique context in the Waikato and in Aotearoa New Zealand, designing spaces and buildings that represent the people and place around them. PAUA Architects’ carefully considered designs, whether it’s a contemporary building that nevertheless sits comfortably with its heritage neighbours, or a highly functional reinterpretation of a traditional marae for a thriving secondary boys’ school, are proof that PAUA achieves exactly what their clients aspire to accomplish.
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