Paramount to Scotts thinking was the idea of the building relating to the surrounding landscape – the building becoming a part of the landscape. It is these ideas that have been developed and form the basis for the new building.

The new Museum and Education Centre is to be located on a previously modified piece of land bounded by Tau Henare Drive to the west, staff parking to the north, access road and Visitor parking to the south and the existing Reception Building to the east.

The building will provide 260sqm of museum display + 210sqm of storage – all temperature and humidity controlled to the national museum standards.

The form of the new building is designed to replicate the slope of the existing typography. The long/low shape of the building has been cut into the landscape effectively reducing the buildings apparent height to a single storey.

The intention is to cover the building with a “living” roof, which would be planted with endemic low level vegetation. This roof will also serve as a planted resource for some of the rare species of flax used by local people for weaving.

The over-riding idea behind the design is to blend the building with the existing landscape. The solid precast concrete walls of the building will be treated with texture and colour to reflect an abstract of the shadow cast by the surrounding tree canopy.