Week 2 – Site Visits

Living close to the Auckland Domain I have the advantage of easily being able to go to site anytime. The surrounding area is one I am very familiar with as I pass through the domain daily on my way to the city and use the area for exercise most days however I have never actually visited the Wintergardens. After our first class online where we were introduced to the brief I went for my first site visit to the Wintergardens to have the time to absorb the surroundings and not feel rushed. Due to being in a level 3 lockdown I was unable to enter the gardens themselves but I spent several hours walking the perimeter, taking photographs and sketching some details that stood out to me. I was lucky to visit when I did as a few days later the temperate glasshouse was blocked off to the public with a fence and boarding put up while seismic upgrades are being carried out.

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Site Visit 1 – Monday 1st March, mid afternoon (During 5 day lockdown)
– Sunny, hot, bright, defined shadows
– Not much traffic
– Many people out exercising (social distancing in place so no interaction between people)
– Fairly peaceful, sounds of birds, people, dogs, hospital in distance, port and occasional ship horn in distance

First Impressions
Personally I really like the style of the Wintergardens, I am a fan of heritage buildings and the detailing in them and feel they stand out nicely in a fairly ‘young’ country like New Zealand. I feel as though the Arts and Crafts Style in which the Wintergardens were constructed transports you out of current day Auckland and into another more romanticised era. Although I’m not really big on plants or gardening in general I appreciate their beauty and the thought and design behind the layout and display of them. The glasshouses make me reminiscent of time spent overseas as glass and steel structure and the curvature of the building reminds me of train stations, particularly Paddington Station. Paddington station for me is a place I spent a lot of time transiting through and waiting at and was both the beginning and end of many trips and I think of it fondly. Trains (and therefore stations) came around during the industrial revolution, the same as glasshouses (notably Crystal Palace) so it’s easy for me to see where the clear connection in architectural styles comes from.

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Site Visit 2 – Tuesday 9th March, late morning
– Overcast, slightly chilly, no shadows cast
– More traffic than the first visit
– Fewer people out exercising, others walking to work
– Peaceful, more subdued feeling, less bird song, people, dogs, hospital in distance, port and occasional ship horn in distance
– Conversation with gardener about fernery and visiting birds, statues and history of site

My second visit to the site was with a friend to take photographs of the interior of the site. The only people in the gardens were my friend and I and two gardeners though whilst we were there a few people came in and out briefly. The feeling of the site was much more subdued on this visit, potentially the overcast weather made it feel less lively and since we were out of lockdown most people were back to work and so less activity in the domain itself. The near empty site was good for photographs and taking the time to really explore the interior spaces. At this stage the temperate glasshouse was blocked off so we could only access the fernery, courtyard and heated glasshouse. This was my first proper visit to the Wintergardens and I took the time to explore and examine all the new spaces and to think about what it was that interested me most now that I had done some research.

In this visit I noticed the space that felt lacking in comparison to its surroundings was the courtyard. You enter through a brick and timber pergola covered in greenery which feels alive into a large grey space without much colour that feels dull and bland. The fernery is full of colour and movement from the wind and birds flitting about. The greenhouse also is an expanse of colour and movement coming from the varied heights, shapes and texture of the plants it houses. All these spaces felt almost magical to me except the courtyard which felt like it wasn’t even really a part of the site.

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Site Visit 3 – Wednesday 10th March, early morning (First class visit)
– Overcast, slightly chilly, no shadows cast
– Average traffic for a weekday
– Fewer people out exercising, others walking to work
– Less peaceful, less bird song, more people due to it being a class visit, more conversation, dogs, hospital in distance, port and occasional ship horn in distance
– Tour of surrounding area and gardens by Ian Henderson and Penny Cliffin

The 3rd visit to the Wintergardens was with the rest of the class for our first group visit. We were joined by Ian Henderson and Penny Cliffin who are both members of the Garden Society of NZ. Having their knowledge was really helpful in uncovering some more history and information about the site and its surrounding area. This visit I focused more on observing the site and how others move around and react to it. Having been a few times prior I already had plenty of documentation and found it useful to just observe and listen, and it was interesting to hear other people’s thoughts on the space as the previous visits I hadn’t really had others input.

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Site Visit 4 – Monday 22nd March, early morning (Second class visit)
– Sunny, crisp morning, lots of shadows and natural lighting effects
– Average traffic for a weekday
– Fewer people out exercising, others walking to work
– Peaceful, bird song, more people due to it being a class visit, more conversation, dogs, hospital in distance, port and occasional ship horn in distance
– Less structured visit

In week 4 we went for another class visit to the site this time working in our study groups to discuss keywords and mind maps and how we relate them to the site. I found this visit was the one where I was able to connect some dots and began to generate some more substantial ideas. I was able to think about the site in a more abstract sense, this helped me to stop overthinking and in turn be more open to the site and its possibilities. Discussing with our study groups was extremely useful in getting some initial feedback and furthering initial ideas whilst also raising more questions.

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