Art Deco Napier

162 people died when an Earthquake of magnitude Richter 7.9 struck at 10:47 am on Tuesday, February 3 1931. The quake destroyed most of the buildings in the city centre of Napier. Those buildings that were not destroyed by the earthquake, were swept by the fires that broke out soon after.

Napier architects - Louis Hay, Natusch & Sons, E A Williams, and Finch & Westerholm - banded together to pool resources as the Napier Associated Architects, aided by young graduates from the School of Architecture in Auckland who were conscious of the latest trends overseas. The total destruction of the old buildings provided a climate favourable to their new ideas, and the buildings reflect this break with the past, as well as providing the safety and economy that were important in the post-earthquake years.

At that time, to build a town of this size in just two years was not just unusual - it was almost without precedent. But what makes Napier unique is that it was built at a time when the building industry worldwide was in the depths of the Depression that followed the Wall Street Crash of 1929. There are no other towns or cities in the world built entirely in the styles that were popular in the late 1920s and early 1930s - chiefly Art Deco and Spanish Mission (although Miami’s South Beach and Los Angeles have some excellent examples of Art Deco). The few buildings in central Napier that did survive the quake had almost all been built in the preceding few years and are harmonious in style. Together these buildings merge into a townscape consistent in scale, materials and design, which relate to the Napier environment with Mediterranean climate, palms, Norfolk pines, and the nearby Pacific Ocean.

Napier citizens are justly proud of their claim that it is the Art Deco Capital of the World, and the city hosts many Art Deco tours throughout the year. Its Museum and Art Gallery have a permanent exhibition of Art Deco objet d'art. The most famous Art Deco building in Napier is the National Tobacco Company building (pictured above right), 1932-33, designed byLouis Hay, under the direction of Gerhard Husheer, director of the National Tobacco Company and a patron of Art Deco design.

For more information about Art Deco style click here.

"Today, [Napier’s] Art Deco buildings, with their pastel colours, bold lines and elaborate motifs are internationally renowned."
Eyewitness Travel Guide New Zealand

 
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