Legendary architect missed dearly, but his legacy lives on

The last remnants of sand were probably still clinging to Rewi Thompson as he arrived late to the first class of the year, fresh off the back of competing at the New Zealand Surf Life Saving Championships.

He was wearing a Hawaiian shirt, complemented by shocking pink jandals, which became his signature look.

Classmates Patrick Clifford and Malcolm Bowes say Rewi’s character seemed larger than life, but the University of Auckland’s School of Architecture and Planning student quickly proved his exceptional talent.

His first project of the year was drafting a Piha bach, which he drew in a felt pen that matched his infamous footwear.

“It didn’t take very long for him to establish himself as a leader in our year,” says Malcolm.

“He would do several of the projects on offer and he did it without breaking a sweat. He was very talented. He did it very naturally, he was very comfortable in what he was doing. It was effortless, but there was no lack of passion.”

They admired their friend, who somehow found time to take on extra coursework for fun, coached rugby and hosted them for summer camping trips in Tolaga Bay in their student years.

Rewi, of Ngāti Porou and Ngāti Raukawa descent went on to become one of New Zealand’s leading architects and became an internationally renowned indigenous architect. He set up his own practice in 1983 and quickly rose to prominence.

Rewi described his work as focusing on land and people. He received dozens of architecture awards for his work, including a UNESCO International Award for a house design for urban Māori, and numerous New Zealand Institute of Architects awards.

He brought a culturally-based perspective to each of his projects which reflected his belief that wellbeing could be enhanced through Māori design and connection to the landscape.

In 2002 Rewi was appointed Adjunct Professor at the University of Auckland’s School of Architecture after a number of years acting as a guest critic in studio. He also developed a rich cultural focus and coined the term ‘Te Pare’ or ‘The Threshold,’ with special concern for the faculty’s Māori students, and later, developed this pedagogy for other cultures who wished to draw on their heritage in their design projects.

Rewi passed away in 2016 and Patrick says they miss their friend.

“He had a great sense of humour and he always enjoyed a good conversation, the longer, the better.

“He was a pretty well rounded person, he had lots of interests and was good at a lot of things. He was quite a big person with a big presence and a small MINI (car).”

Patrick and Malcolm are directors of Architectus, along with Michael Thomson, who was also a classmate of Rewi’s. They admired Rewi’s work throughout his career and in honour of their legendary friend, Architectus established the Rewi Thompson Undergraduate Scholarship in Architecture. The $8000 endowed scholarship supports a Māori student enrolling in a Bachelor of Architectural Studies.

“It is something we wanted to do because we admired him and think that it’s totally appropriate that his name carries on in a field that he greatly enjoyed and we have also,” says Patrick.

“Diversity is a critical issue and we want to help ensure that the profession of architecture in Aotearoa embraces a diverse group of people.”