Forest of Decisions

Founders of the award winning architectural firm Tennent Brown Architects, Hugh and Ewan have sustained a consistent values-based vision that has progressively become more influential. Their work shows us the responsibilities we face as a profession and illuminates pathways for others to follow. They’ve daylighted ideas (and a waterway) that others have barely dared to contemplate. Despite its onerous demands, they’ve embraced the Living Building Challenge (LBC), which pushes architects to address the industry’s significant contribution to the climate crisis. Ghost Forests is a photographic and video project that explores the ecological histories hidden within New Zealand's architectural heritage. The work considers the relationship between buildings like the Wellington's Old Government Buildings—one of the world's largest surviving timber (Kauri) buildings—and the forests that supplied its construction material. The project proposes the idea of architecture as ecological heritage. Historic timber buildings are often discussed through the lenses of architecture, craftsmanship and preservation. Less frequently acknowledged are the forests that made them possible. Ghost Forests asks visitors to consider buildings as repositories of environmental memory. A huge thank you to Critical Signals for hosting this exhibition and the discourse it aims to provoke.