Miles Warren
Miles Warren was a prominent New Zealand architect, born in 1929, who significantly influenced the architectural landscape of the country from the 1950s onward. He began his architectural studies at a young age and completed his training at the University of Auckland. After gaining experience in both Christchurch and London, where he developed a distinctive style inspired by Scandinavian design, Warren co-founded the architectural firm Warren and Mahoney in 1958. His notable projects included the modernist Christchurch Dental Nurses' Training School and the renowned Christchurch Town Hall, completed in 1974.
Warren was recognized for his contributions to architecture with several prestigious awards, including being named a Knight Commander of the British Empire in 1986, making him the first New Zealander knighted for architectural work. He played a crucial role in the restoration of heritage sites, including his own estate, Ohinetahi, which he gifted to the public in 2012. His legacy is commemorated through the Sir Miles Warren Award for Commercial Architecture and a bronze bust on the University of Canterbury campus. Warren passed away on August 9, 2022, leaving behind a lasting impact on New Zealand's architectural heritage.
Miles Warren
- Education: University of Auckland
- Significance: Miles Warren was a famous New Zealand architect. He introduced a different style of architecture to New Zealand in the 1950s, and its influence spread across the country.
Background
Miles Warren was born in New Zealand in 1929. When Warren was just sixteen years old, he began studying architecture in the evenings. He studied at Christchurch Atelier with well-known architect Cecil Wood. At the same time, Warren did on-the-job training to further his education. He finished his architecture training at the University of Auckland's School of Architecture. Warren graduated and returned to Christchurch, where he worked at an architectural firm. Warren then moved to London in 1953. He was one of thousands of architects working in the city at the time, as the city needed major repairs after the bombings of World War II (1939–1945). In London, he started designing buildings and creating his own style of work. Warren's work was greatly influenced by Swedish and Norwegian styles. Warren's work became well known for having steeply pitched roofs, single stories, and low door heights.
Life's Work
After developing his style, Warren moved back to Christchurch. There, he wanted to start his own architectural firm. He and a classmate named Maurice Mahoney came together to start their own business. In 1958 they established the architecture firm Warren and Mahoney Architects. Their first project was the modernist Christchurch Dental Nurses' Training School, which was completed in 1959. The school and the other buildings the team built early in their career came to define their work. The projects also greatly influenced architectural design in and around Christchurch. By the 1970s, the firm had grown to employ a number of architects. It also began working on several larger projects, which included contracts with the New Zealand government.
In the early 1970s, Warren worked on the Christchurch Town Hall, which was a very complex project and became one of his best-known designs. The building was finished in 1974, and it was a symbol of modernism and of Warren's changing tastes and eclecticism. Warren worked on a number of other buildings for the firm throughout the 1970s and 1980s. Some of the most important buildings included St Patrick's Church of Napier and Rotorua's Civic Centre. Warren retired from the firm in 1994. However, he continued to do some architectural work, specifically for his longtime client Christ's College.
Warren was awarded many times for his successful career. In 1974 he was awarded Commander of the British Empire (CBE) because of his long career and was named Knight Commander of the British Empire (KBE) for services to architecture in 1986. That made Warren the first New Zealander to be knighted for work in architecture. In 1995 he received entry into the Order of New Zealand. He received the New Zealand Institute of Architects (NZIA) Gold Medal in 2000. He was also named a New Zealand Living Icon by the New Zealand Arts Foundation in 2003.
In celebration of Warren's eightieth birthday, the art exhibition "Miles: A Life in Architecture" was presented at the Christchurch Art Gallery. The exhibit featured a review of his architectural career, samples of architectural watercolor paintings he created, and submissions he made to design contests.
After his retirement, Warren remained an important figure in architecture. His home, which was built in the 1860s, was an important heritage site. The estate was called Ohinetahi. Warren had worked to restore the home and the grounds, as both had fallen into disrepair after years of neglect. Warren worked with his sister, artist Pauline Trengrove, and his brother-in-law, architect John Trengrove, to restore the gardens and the house. Some of the plants on the estate had been planted in the 1870s by Thomas Potts, New Zealand's first botanist. Although much of the vegetation on the property had died, many old trees and some plants were able to be saved. The restoration project took more than two years. In 2012 Warren gifted his home in a trust to the public. Ohinetahi was put in jeopardy in early 2017 when wildfires burned close to the property. Despite significant damage from the fires in the area, Warren's home was not damaged.
Ohinetahi and other buildings Warren designed in Christchurch were damaged in 2011 during a series of earthquakes. Warren had to remove one of the floors of his home to keep the building intact. Further, some of the buildings he designed, including the Christchurch Town Hall, suffered damage in the quakes. The city discussed demolishing the town hall, and its fate became a controversial topic in Christchurch. Warren himself helped support a proposal that would contribute millions of dollars to renovate the well-known buildings. Many of the buildings surrounding the town hall had already been demolished because of earthquake damage. In 2013 the city council voted to adopt the proposal and renovate the building, saving one of Warren's best-known designs in the city.
Impact
Warren was one of the most influential architects in New Zealand in the twentieth century. He helped introduce a new style, sometimes called New Brutalism, to the island, and that style had influenced many other architects working there. In the late 1950s and 1960s, many other New Zealand architects were influenced by Warren's work. Because of Warren's great influence on his country's architecture, the New Zealand Institute of Architects created an award in his name. The Sir Miles Warren Award for Commercial Architecture is awarded to architects in New Zealand for successful, prolific careers.
An enormous bronze bust of Warren was sculpted by Mark Whyte as part of the sculptor's Twelve Local Heroes, a series of busts on the campus of the University of Canterbury. Warren's plaque reads, "Eminent architect, at the forefront of building design for over 50 years, generous supporter of the arts and tireless worker for the betterment of Christchurch."
Personal Life
In 2008 Warren published his autobiography. Titled Miles Warren: An Autobiography, the memoir provides watercolor illustrations of many of his projects and offers insight into the decades-long career that brought Warren around the world. Warren passed away on August 9, 2022, at the age of ninety-three.
Bibliography
"Christchurch Fire Nears Ohinetahi Homestead, Sir Miles Warren Refuses to Leave." New Zealand Herald, 16 Feb. 2017, www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c‗id=1&objectid=11801689. Accessed 9 Oct. 2024.
"Obituary: Sir Miles Warren." Architecture Now, 14 Sept. 2022, architecturenow.co.nz/articles/obituary-sir-miles-warren-1929-2022/. Accessed 9 Oct. 2024.
"Sir Miles Warren." The Arts Foundation, 28 May 2024, www.thearts.co.nz/artists/sir-miles-warren. Accessed 9 Oct. 2024.
"Sir Miles Warren, 1929-2022." Christchurch City Libraries, my.christchurchcitylibraries.com/miles-warren/. Accessed 9 Oct. 2024.
"Sir Miles Warren Award for Commercial Architecture." NZIA, www.nzia.co.nz/awards/named-awards/sir-miles-warren-award-for-commercial-architecture. Accessed 9 Oct. 2024.
"Vote Saves Christchurch Town Hall." New Zealand Herald, 29 Aug. 2013, www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c‗id=1&objectid=11116363. Accessed 9 Oct. 2024.