Description:

The Client wanted to reinvigorate and modernise their existing airport terminal. The Brief was to create a calm, coherent and welcoming environment with an enduring local and cultural identity.

The existing terminal was bland and uninviting, cluttered and lacking identity. Visitor feedback indicated a disinclination to linger.

At the beginning of the project a Cultural Narrative was developed with a Cultural Advisor.

The key design ideas of the Cultural Narrative included ideas of Waharoa, Manaakitanga and Kotahitanga: gateway, to be a good host and unity.
A place for all. A place to stop, pause and transition between earth and sky.

The use of colour was an integral consideration in the development of the terminal interiors. Airports are filled with emotion. Colour can help create order and calm. The colours within the interior not only help in the differentiation of space, but make reference to the natural realms (Papatuanuku and Ranginui) and relate to function, congregation and movement.

The colour and material palette, evoke the natural world. The Ground Floor responds to Papatuanuku (Earth Mother) the Mezzanine to Ranginui (Sky Father).

The perforated plywood ceiling gives cohesion to the interior - a cloak of unity.
It symbolises the crossing of paths, people coming together, a shared humanity.
The timber has a blonded stain, to create a sense of uplift and light. It evokes warmth, comfort and the natural world.
Three perforation sizes are used, adding texture and grain, inset laminate creates the black lines in the recesses, responding to the rhythm of the structure.
Darker timber battens of differing profilers and shade are used on the walls and low ceiling – alluding to the forest, protection, shelter.
Acknowledge the past, be in the present and look to / look after the future.

The carpet is a bespoke tile design, designed especially for the refurbishment. The colour and pattern of the carpet varies throughout the terminal. In spaces for congregation, colour intensifies. In spaces of movement, grey textured carpet predominates. In areas of transition, geometric tiles feature. Colours reference the Waikato. The ground floor has earth greens (Papatuanuku), the mezzanine blues of the sky (Ranginui). Grey, Kirikiriroa, meaning long stretch of fertile gravels.

Each member of the wider design team translated the Narrative within their field of expertise. The collective interaction of the clients and design team has given the interior a coherent story, enhancing mana whenua presence and creating a strong sense of place and identity.

The airport is now a place we can be proud to call our own - a strong connection to the local community has been woven throughout the terminal design and the artwork in the terminal was created by artists with Waikato whakapapa so that home, looked like home. The use of colour is a key element within this; the texture, grains, patterns, and colour of the Cultural Narrative envelop you and stay with you after you have left the space.