1.
Renaissance Revival architecture
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The divergent forms of Renaissance architecture in different parts of Europe, particularly in France and Italy, has added to the difficulty of defining and recognizing Neo-Renaissance architecture. The movement grew from scientific observations of nature, in human anatomy. Neo-Renaissance architecture is formed by not only the original Italian architecture, in England the Renaissance tended to manifest itself in large square tall houses such as Longleat House. Often these buildings had symmetrical towers which hint at the evolution from medieval fortified architecture and this is particularly evident at Hatfield House built between 1607 and 1611, where medieval towers jostle with a large Italian cupola. If this were not confusing enough, the new Neo-Renaissance then frequently borrowed architectural elements from the succeeding Mannerist period, mannerism and Baroque being two very opposing styles of architecture. Mannerism was exemplified by the Palazzo del Te and Baroque by the Wurzburg Residenz, as a consequence a self-consciously Neo-Renaissance manner first began to appear circa 1840. By 1890 this movement was already in decline, the Hagues Peace Palace completed in 1913, in a heavy French Neo-Renaissance manner was one of the last notable buildings in this style. Charles Barry introduced the Neo-Renaissance to England with his design of the Travellers Club, the style is characterized by original Renaissance motifs, taken from such Quattrocento architects as Alberti. These motifs included rusticated masonry and quoins, windows framed by architraves and doors crowned by pediments, if a building were of several floors the uppermost floor usually had small square windows representing the minor mezzanine floor of the original Renaissance designs. However, the Neo-renaissance style later came to incorporate Romanesque and Baroque features not found in the original Renaissance architecture which was more severe in its design. Like all architectural styles the Neo-Renaissance did not appear overnight fully formed but evolved slowly, one of the very first signs of its emergence was the Würzburg Womens Prison, which was erected in 1809 designed by Peter Speeth. This building foreshadows similar effects in the work of the American architect Henry Hobson Richardson whose work in the Neo-Renaissance style was popular in the USA during the 1880s, richardsons style at the end or the revival era was a severe mix of both Romanesque and Renaissance features. This was exemplified by his Marshall Field Warehouse in Chicago, however, while the beginning of Neo-Renaissance period can be defined by its simplicity and severity, what came between was far more ornate in its design. This period can be defined by some of the opera houses of the Europe, such as Gottfried Sempers Burgtheater in Vienna. This ornate form of the Neo-Renaissance, originating from France, is known as the Second Empire style. By 1875 it had become the style in Europe for all public and bureaucratic buildings. In England, where Sir George Gilbert Scott designed the London Foreign Office in this style between 1860 and 1875, it also incorporated certain Palladian features. In Austria, it was pioneered by such names as Rudolf Eitelberger
2.
Auckland CBD
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The Auckland central business district, sometimes referred to as Central City or Downtown, is the geographical and economic heart of the Auckland metropolitan area. The area is made up of the citys largest concentration of skyscrapers and businesses, the CBD is one of the most densely developed places in New Zealand, with many commercial and some residential developments packed into a space of only 433 hectares. Bounded by several motorways and by the harbour coastline in the north. Located on the shore of a narrow isthmus, the CBD extends from the Auckland waterfront on the Waitemata Harbour southwards along Queen Street. The CBD has an area of 433 hectares, similar to the Sydney CBD, the CBD is to a substantial part located on reclaimed land of the Waitemata Harbour. For a closer discussion of this aspect, see the Commercial Bay, the town of Auckland was created in 1840 with the first European colonisation of the area, marked by an official ceremony on the now non-existent Point Britomart. The initial centre of the new town was focused on what is now the corner of Shortland and Queen Streets, Shortland Street tended to be the location of the more important businesses and most of the luxury shops of the mid 19th century. The 1850s onwards saw a number of businesses, and especially retail, locating further south along Queen Street. During the remainder of the 19th century, Commercial Bay was progressively filled in, allowing an extension of Queen Street and the creation of Fort Street, Customs Street. The part of Queen Street north of Customs Street is today referred to informally as Lower Queen Street, up until the middle of the 20th century the centre of town still contained a large number of small factories including clothing manufacturers. This was mirrored by the development of shopping malls which enticed retailers to vacate the inner city as well. Attempts by the council to halt this pattern by constructing numerous public car parking buildings met with varying success, residential numbers in the inner city were also declining in the 20th century from as early as the 1920s. Around 24,000 apartment units exist as of 2010, the CBD of Auckland has been the leading centre of New Zealands business and economic development for nearly two centuries. The area of todays CBD was the site of the original European settlement of Auckland, oriented along the coastline and then Queen Street, in a southward direction. From those origins, it has grown progressively, and become more densely built-up, now being an area of high-rise buildings mainly used for commercial. It has the highest concentration of arts, culture and higher education institutions, some commentators have noted that the recent decades have not been kind to the aesthetics and the community values of the inner city. In an attempt to reverse the decline of aesthetics in the CBD, previous Auckland City Councils and these include the recent redevelopment of Aotea Square in 2010 and the upgrade of Saint Patricks Square in 2009. The Auckland CBD is one of the few places in New Zealand that has skyscraper-sized buildings, such as the Vero Centre, ANZ Centre or the Metropolis, with the Sky Tower rising above them
3.
Auckland
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Auckland is a city in the North Island of New Zealand. It is the most populous area in the country. Auckland has a population of 1,495,000, which constitutes 32 percent of New Zealands population, a diverse and multicultural city, Auckland is home to the largest Polynesian population in the world. It has also been called Ākarana, the Māori pronunciation of Auckland, the Auckland urban area ranges to Waiwera in the north, Kumeu in the northwest, and Runciman in the south. It is not contiguous, the section from Waiwera to Whangaparāoa Peninsula is separate from its nearest neighbouring suburb of Long Bay, the surrounding hills are covered in rainforest and the landscape is dotted with dozens of dormant volcanic cones. The central part of the area occupies a narrow isthmus between the Manukau Harbour on the Tasman Sea and the Waitemata Harbour on the Pacific Ocean. It is one of the few cities in the world to have harbours on two major bodies of water. The isthmus on which Auckland resides was first settled around 1350 and was valued for its rich, Māori population in the area is estimated to have peaked at 20,000 before the arrival of Europeans. After a British colony was established in 1840, the new Governor of New Zealand, William Hobson and he named the area Auckland for George Eden, Earl of Auckland, British First Lord of the Admiralty. It was replaced as the capital in 1865, but immigration to the new city stayed strong, today, Aucklands Central Business District is the major financial centre of New Zealand. Auckland is classified as a Beta World City because of its importance in finance, commerce, media, entertainment, arts, education and tourism. Aucklands landmarks such as the Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, the Harbour Bridge, the Sky Tower, the isthmus was settled by Māori around 1350, and was valued for its rich and fertile land. Many pā were created, mainly on the volcanic peaks, Māori population in the area is estimated to have been about 20,000 people before the arrival of Europeans. As a result, the region had relatively low numbers of Māori when European settlement of New Zealand began, there is, however, nothing to suggest that this was the result of a deliberate European policy. Auckland was officially declared New Zealands capital in 1841 and the transfer of the administration from Russell in the Bay of Islands was completed in 1842. However, even in 1840 Port Nicholson was seen as a choice for an administrative capital because of its proximity to the South Island. After losing its status as capital, Auckland remained the city of the Auckland Province until the provincial system was abolished in 1876. Each of the four settlements had about 800 settlers, the men being fully armed in case of emergency but spent nearly all their time breaking in the land and establishing roads
4.
New Zealand
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New Zealand /njuːˈziːlənd/ is an island nation in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. The country geographically comprises two main landmasses—the North Island, or Te Ika-a-Māui, and the South Island, or Te Waipounamu—and around 600 smaller islands. New Zealand is situated some 1,500 kilometres east of Australia across the Tasman Sea and roughly 1,000 kilometres south of the Pacific island areas of New Caledonia, Fiji, because of its remoteness, it was one of the last lands to be settled by humans. During its long period of isolation, New Zealand developed a distinct biodiversity of animal, fungal, the countrys varied topography and its sharp mountain peaks, such as the Southern Alps, owe much to the tectonic uplift of land and volcanic eruptions. New Zealands capital city is Wellington, while its most populous city is Auckland, sometime between 1250 and 1300 CE, Polynesians settled in the islands that later were named New Zealand and developed a distinctive Māori culture. In 1642, Dutch explorer Abel Tasman became the first European to sight New Zealand, in 1840, representatives of Britain and Māori chiefs signed the Treaty of Waitangi, which declared British sovereignty over the islands. In 1841, New Zealand became a colony within the British Empire, today, the majority of New Zealands population of 4.7 million is of European descent, the indigenous Māori are the largest minority, followed by Asians and Pacific Islanders. Reflecting this, New Zealands culture is derived from Māori and early British settlers. The official languages are English, Māori and New Zealand Sign Language, New Zealand is a developed country and ranks highly in international comparisons of national performance, such as health, education, economic freedom and quality of life. Since the 1980s, New Zealand has transformed from an agrarian, Queen Elizabeth II is the countrys head of state and is represented by a governor-general. In addition, New Zealand is organised into 11 regional councils and 67 territorial authorities for local government purposes, the Realm of New Zealand also includes Tokelau, the Cook Islands and Niue, and the Ross Dependency, which is New Zealands territorial claim in Antarctica. New Zealand is a member of the United Nations, Commonwealth of Nations, ANZUS, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Pacific Islands Forum, and Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation. Dutch explorer Abel Tasman sighted New Zealand in 1642 and called it Staten Landt, in 1645, Dutch cartographers renamed the land Nova Zeelandia after the Dutch province of Zeeland. British explorer James Cook subsequently anglicised the name to New Zealand, Aotearoa is the current Māori name for New Zealand. It is unknown whether Māori had a name for the country before the arrival of Europeans. Māori had several names for the two main islands, including Te Ika-a-Māui for the North Island and Te Waipounamu or Te Waka o Aoraki for the South Island. Early European maps labelled the islands North, Middle and South, in 1830, maps began to use North and South to distinguish the two largest islands and by 1907, this was the accepted norm. The New Zealand Geographic Board discovered in 2009 that the names of the North Island and South Island had never been formalised and this set the names as North Island or Te Ika-a-Māui, and South Island or Te Waipounamu
5.
John James Clark
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John James Clark, an Australian architect, was born in Liverpool, England. Clarks 30 years in service, in combination with 33 in private practice, produced some of Australias most notable public buildings. John James Clark, commonly referred to as JJ, was born in Liverpool, England on 23 January 1838 to parents George, Clark was one of six children. The family relocated from Liverpool to Melbourne, Australia in March 1852, whilst other family members took up employment working in the gold fields, 14-year-old Clark pursued his interest in Architecture and was employed as a draftsman for the colonial architects office. JJ continued in service until 1878 when he was retrenched in the Black Wednesday dismissals. Clark took a sabbatical in 1858 to tour Europe In 1865 Clark married Mary Taylor Watmuff they remained married until her untimely death at the age of 26 in 1871. The couple had one child, Edward James, in 1868, in 1889 when Edward was 21, Clark took him on a tour of Europe and America, mirroring that of the one Clark took in his own youth. In 1880 Clark set up practice in central Melbourne. Between 1881 and 1896 Clark relocated several times between Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland and Western Australia in pursuit of commissions and employment, one of Clarks most notable achievements, during this time, was his appointment as Queensland Colonial Architect. In 1896 Clark and his son formed a partnership that lasted until his death. Clark died at his residence in St Kilda, Melbourne on 25 June 1915, J J Clark is the subject of a biography to be published in 2011 by UNSW Press. Old Treasury Building Old Treasury Building is considered by many as one of the finest examples of Renaissance Revival architecture in Melbourne, Clark began designing this building in 1857 when he was nineteen. Construction began in 1858 using bluestone, sourced from Broadmeadows for its foundations, the building was completed in 1862. Originally the treasury was designed to hold Victorias state gold, in 1874 the Treasury offices were relocated, however the building was still used weekly for meetings with the Governor General. In 1992 the building was restored, and from 2005 it was the home of the City Museum, Melbourne City Baths Designed by Clark and his son Edward James in 1904, the Melbourne City Baths were the result of a winning competition entry to redesign the existing baths. A significant example of the Edwardian Baroque style, the uses a bold two tone palette of red brick and cream yellow rendered concrete. These motifs also reflected a mesh of architectural styles popular in England, Queen Victoria Womens Hospital Clarks original design for the Queen Victoria Hospital occupied an entire block in Melbournes CBD. In later years the hospital was relocated and subsequently a significant portion of the building was deconstructed, currently all that remains of the original design is one of the three pavilions that ran along Lonsdale Street
6.
Heritage New Zealand
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Its current enabling legislation is the Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga Act 2014. It is governed by a Board of Trustees, currently chaired by Shonagh Kenderdine, past chairs include Dame Anne Salmond. The head office is in Antrim House, Wellington, while regional and area offices are in Kerikeri, Auckland, Tauranga, Wellington, Christchurch and it publishes the quarterly magazine New Zealand Heritage. Buildings owned by Heritage New Zealand include the Mission House, the Stone Store, the Canterbury earthquakes of September 2010 and February 2011 resulted in damage to a number of historic buildings in Christchurch. Post-earthquake redevelopment has caused a significant loss of buildings in Christchurch. The Māori Heritage Council sits within the New Zealand Historic Places Trust and was established by the Historic Places Act 1993, as of 2013 Sir Tumu Te Heuheu is the Chair of the MHC
7.
Queen Street, Auckland
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Queen Street is the major commercial thoroughfare in the Auckland CBD, Auckland, New Zealands main population centre. The early route of Queen Street led up the middle of a following the bank of the Waihorotiu Stream. This canal was culverted beneath the street from the 1870s onward, the course of the stream is still reflected today in the slight bend of lower Queen Street. From north of Shortland Street, Queen Street is built on land reclaimed from the sea in the late 19th century, there are several other Queen Streets in the greater Auckland area, mostly in suburbs that were separate towns before being absorbed by a growing central city. Auckland was also called the Queen City since before the turn of the 20th century, while the street was metalled in 1843, the natural stream still often overflowed its banks, and the area was still swampy. This led to canalisation and later covering-over of the stream, fires however still continued to plague the new town, with one in 1873 wiping out another 54 buildings in the Queen Street area between Wellesley Street West and Grey Street. The fires, amongst other things, led to the establishment of the Auckland Volunteer Fire Service, in the 1880s, the first horse-drawn buses began connecting Queen Street with areas such as Ponsonby Road and Remuera. In 1900, the first motorcar was admired on the street, and in 1902 the street was finally asphalted, the same year the first electric trams also arrived, to provide services until 1956. By that time, the street was popular for such as parades and festivities. During the second half of the 20th century, many of the buildings on Queen Street were demolished to make space for larger office buildings. Queen Street is known by all over the country, even by people who have never seen it. The street was immortalised by The Front Lawn with their song Queen Street, the street has been the site of numerous parades, marches and other events of political, cultural or sporting nature. Together with adjacent High Street, it is the retail precinct of the central city, with most national store, bank. Several important other local businesses, such as the Smith & Caugheys department store, have branches here. The street sees very high numbers, estimated by some as up to 10 times as high as on Broadway in Newmarket. Prior to a 2006–2008 street upgrade, Council figures showed that over 50,000 pedestrians,40,000 public transport users and 20,000 people in vehicles used Queen Street daily. The Council anticipated that the private car share would drop by around 15%, an editorial of The New Zealand Herald accused Council of using overestimated public transport user numbers for political purposes to support its bus lane plans. These junctions were at the intersections with Customs Street and Wellesley Street, since the closure of Aucklands tram network, Balaclava Junction on Melbournes tram network has been the sole grand union left in the Southern Hemisphere
8.
Governor-General of New Zealand
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The Governor-General of New Zealand is the viceregal representative of the monarch of New Zealand, currently Queen Elizabeth II. The office is mandated by letters patent and the officeholder is formally titled the Governor-General, when travelling abroad, the governor-general is seen as the representative of New Zealand, and of the Queen of New Zealand. For this reason, the governor-general is viewed by some as the de facto head of state, under the Niue Constitution Act, the governor-general also represents the monarch in Niue. The governor-general initially represented the British monarch and the government of the United Kingdom, therefore, many officeholders have been British statesmen. In 1972, Sir Denis Blundell became the first New Zealand resident to be appointed to the office, governors-general are not appointed for a specific term, but are generally expected to serve for five years. The current Governor-General is Dame Patsy Reddy, who has served since 28 September 2016, administrative support for the governor-general is provided by the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Appointment to the Office is made by the Queen on the advice of the Prime Minister of New Zealand, the Prime Ministers advice has sometimes been the result of a decision by Cabinet, although there is no requirement for this. The appointment of Anand Satyanand met with the approval of every leader in the House of Representatives, by convention the Leader of the Opposition is also consulted on the appointment, however this too has not always been the case. This suggestion was in turn criticised by the Government, as Sir Edmund had backed Labour in 1975 as part of the Citizens for Rowling campaign, however, the right granted by the convention was not exercised directly by a New Zealand Prime Minister until 1967. Although non-partisan while in office, there have been a number of appointments of Governors-General to the office that have attracted considerable controversy, despite their political backgrounds, neither of these appointments could be said to have discharged their duties in a partisan way. There has often been speculation that a member of the Royal Family might take up the position, before the Governor-General enters office, his or her commission of appointment is publicly read in the presence of the Chief Justice of New Zealand and the members of the Executive Council. The Governor-General must take the Oath of Allegiance and the oath for the due execution of the office, from time to time, there have been proposals to elect the Governor-General. When first drafted by then Governor George Grey, the New Zealand Constitution Act 1852 contained provision for the Governor to be elected by New Zealands Parliament. This provision was removed from the enactment, probably because the Colonial Office wanted to keep a check on New Zealands colonial government. In 1887 Sir George Grey, by then also a former Premier, the Bill was narrowly defeated 46–48, being opposed by the government of Harry Atkinson. In 2006 political commentator Colin James suggested that the Governor-General could be elected by a 60% majority of votes cast in Parliament, James argued that the New Zealand public should be given the ability to choose the Queens representative, and that the current system is undemocratic and not transparent. National MP Nikki Kaye queried whether several one-member parties in parliament could veto the decision, the Republican Movement responded that the method would ensure appointments were made that most MPs and parties found acceptable. The Governor-General holds office at the pleasure of the Queen, under clause II of the Letters Patent
9.
Brixton
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Brixton is a district of London, located in the borough of Lambeth in south London. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London, Brixton is mainly residential with a prominent street market and substantial retail sector. It is a community, with a large percentage of its population being of Caribbean descent. It lies within Inner south London and is bordered by Stockwell, Clapham, Streatham, Camberwell, Tulse Hill, the district houses the main offices of the London Borough of Lambeth. Brixton is 2.7 miles south-southwest of the centre of London near Lambeth North tube station. The name Brixton is thought to originate from Brixistane, meaning the stone of Brixi, Brixi is thought to have erected a boundary stone to mark the meeting place of the ancient hundred court of Surrey. The location is unknown but is thought to be at the top of Brixton Hill, at a road known at the time as Bristow or Brixton Causeway, Brixton marks the rise from the marshes of North Lambeth up to the hills of Upper Norwood and Streatham. At the time the River Effra flowed from its source in Upper Norwood through Herne Hill to Brixton, at Brixton the river was crossed by low bridges for Roman roads to the south coast of Britain, now Brixton Road and Clapham Road. The main roads were connected through a network of country lanes, such as Acre Lane, Coldharbour Lane, Brixton Water Lane and Lyham Road. The area remained undeveloped until the beginning of the 19th century, with the opening of Vauxhall Bridge in 1816, improved access to Central London led to a process of suburban development. One of a few surviving windmills in London, built in 1816, is just off Brixton Hill, Brixton was transformed into a middle class suburb between the 1860s and 1890s. Railways linked Brixton with the centre of London when the Chatham Main Line was built through the area by the London, Chatham, in 1880, Electric Avenue was so named after it became the first street in London to be lit by electricity. By 1925, Brixton attracted thousands of new people and it housed the largest shopping centre in South London at the time, as well as a thriving market, cinemas, pubs and a theatre. In the 1920s, Brixton was the capital of South London with three large department stores and some of the earliest branches of what are now Britains major national retailers. Today, Brixton Road is the shopping area, fusing into Brixton Market. A prominent building on Brixton High Street is Morleys, an independent department store established in the 1920s, on the western boundary of Brixton with Clapham stands the Sunlight Laundry, an Art Deco factory building. Designed by architect F. E. Simpkins and erected in 1937, the Brixton area was bombed during World War II, contributing to a severe housing crisis, which in turn led to urban decay. This was followed by slum clearances and the building of council housing, in the 1940s and 1950s, many immigrants, particularly from the West Indies, settled in Brixton
10.
Seat of local government
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In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre, a guildhall, a Rathaus, or a municipal building, is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city or town council, its associated departments and it also usually functions as the base of the mayor of a city, town, borough, or county / shire. By convention, until the mid 19th-century, a large open chamber formed an integral part of the building housing the council. The hall may be used for meetings and other significant events. This large chamber, the hall, has become synonymous with the whole building. The terms council chambers, municipal building or variants may be used locally in preference to town hall if no such large hall is present within the building, the local government may endeavor to use the town hall building to promote and enhance the quality of life of the community. In many cases, town halls serve not only as buildings for government functions and these may include art shows, stage performances, exhibits and festivals. Modern town halls or civic centres are designed with a great variety and flexibility of purpose in mind. As symbols of government, city and town halls have distinctive architecture. City hall buildings may also serve as icons that symbolize their cities. The term town hall may be a one, often applied without regard to whether the building serves or served a town or a city. This is generally the case in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, english-speakers in some regions use the term city hall to designate the council offices of a municipality of city status. This is the case in North America, where a distinction is made between city halls and town halls, and is also the case with Brisbane City Hall in Australia. The great hall of the town-house or municipal building, now commonly applied to the whole building city hall. Conversely, cities that have subdivisions with their own councils may have borough halls, in Scotland, local government in larger cities operates from the City Chambers, otherwise the Town House. Elsewhere in English-speaking countries, other names are occasionally used, in London, the official headquarters of administration of the City of London retains its Anglo-Saxon name, the Guildhall, signifying a place where taxes were paid. In a small number of English cities the preferred term is Council House, this was also the case in Bristol until 2012, when the building was renamed City Hall. In Birmingham, there is a distinction between the Council House, the seat of government, and the Town Hall, a concert
