Tour E4 - Auckland Grammar School Sports Complex

Contact Details

55-85 Mountain Road, Mt Eden

Venue Overview

Completed in 2006, the new Auckland Grammar School Gymnasium is a vast complex that incorporates multiple facilities to enhance the physical education and sports program for students at the school.

The major element of the gymnasium is a 36m x 36m volume with provision for volleyball, badminton, basketball and a full range of gymnastic facilities. A linear arrangement of support facilities wraps two sides of the gym volume: changing rooms, entry foyer and equipment storage on the lower level, and viewing galleries with office and teaching spaces on the upper level.

One of the key drivers in the design was to provide flush playing surfaces to the internal facades of the gym proper. This fundamental concept was carried through to from inception to completion, informing the architectural detailing, material selection and integration of structure and services.

The gymnasium is sited on the edge of the Number 1 rugby field, overlooking the basalt cliff to the lower fields and the southern motorway beyond; the linear brick facade with its band of clerestory glazing beneath a floating roof, clearly visible from the motorway. The chosen materials and colours reflect the context of the gymnasium; the undulating brick facade speaks to the adjacent Specialist Block with its oblique folded brick openings (a previous Architectus project completed in 2004) and recalls the volcanic origins of the site and the conceptual idea of shifted terrains.

Site Visits

This page last updated: Tuesday 19 March 2013