Description:

Te Nohoaka o Tukiauau, situated on the Taiari Plain south of Dunedin, is a remnant of one of New Zealand’s largest and most abundant wetland systems. This landscape sustained generations of iwi Māori through practices such as mahika kai (food gathering), rokoā (medicine), and the intergenerational transmission of mātauraka Māori (Māori knowledge). But colonial land-use practices drained and reshaped the wetlands for agriculture. These transformations not only caused environmental degradation but fractured the deep ancestral relationships between mana whenua and their wāhi tūpuna (ancestral places), disrupting the whakapapa that once bound people, land, and knowledge.

The design of Nohoaka, meaning “place to sit”, responds to the question of how the integration of mātauraka Māori in architectural practice can support the connection between people and wāhi tūpuna at Te Nohoaka o Tukiauau. This architecture moves beyond a static representation of Māori knowledge; it is a reimagining of the dynamic and reciprocal relationship between takata (people) and whenua (land), guided by the principles of mātauraka Māori, whakapapa, and kaitiakitaka.

Te Nohoaka o Tukiauau: A Place to Stand responds to a pressing disconnection between people and whenua, and the cultural knowledge once tied to the wetland. While architecture alone cannot restore what has been lost, the design acts as a living vessel for intergenerational knowledge transmission — a threshold that invites engagement with the wider landscape. Mātauraka Māori is not merely displayed but woven into lived experience, offering opportunities for active participation and deeper connection. Through this process, visitors are encouraged to carry knowledge forward, reshaping their relationship with the land and their role as kaitiaki.

Guided by the whakataukī He taoka nō te whenua, me hoki anō ki te whenua (“what is given by the land should return to the land”), Nohoaka embraces a Māori worldview where architecture, like all living things, must eventually return to Papatūānuku (Earth Mother). It rejects colonial ideas of permanence in favour of cyclical renewal, care, and decay.

The site is anchored by two pavilions: Wāhi Toi (Place of Arts) and Wāhi Takata (Place of People). A central tāhuhu (ridge beam) aligned north–south symbolises the journey of spirits and the continuum of knowledge across generations. Wāhi Toi, inspired by the form of a hīnaki (eel trap), uses woven harakeke sails, tōtara beams, and rammed earth walls to create a porous, breathing structure that responds to the environment. Wāhi Takata provides flexible spaces for seasonal gathering, learning, and extended stays, oriented to face the wetlands as both environment and ancestor.

Across the wetland, carved pou mark significant features and ancestral stories. Two red-dyed pou represent the lakes and mātauraka lost to colonisation, rooting memory in the landscape and guiding visitors through the site’s whakapapa.

Biodegradable, locally sourced materials—such as raupō, clay, mussel shells, and timber—reinforce the reciprocal relationship between people and land. The buildings require ongoing care: re-thatching, rewoven sails, and pathway maintenance ensure the architecture remains alive. Nohoaka becomes more than a building; it becomes a living act of stewardship, cultural regeneration, and enduring connection.