Architect and adjunct professor of architecture Rewi Thompson has profoundly influenced a generation of architects in Aotearoa. On the occasion of Jade Kake and Jeremy Hansen’s new major book on Thompson, Architectus has supported the first major exhibition of works from his archives: KOHA: The speculative worlds of Rewi Thompson.

Opening at Objectspace on Friday 29 September, the exhibition is curated by Jade Kake and Jeremy Hansen to highlight Thompson’s expression of post-colonial possibilities that were fundamentally connected to place. They write, “Trained as a structural engineer before he went to architecture school, Rewi was as comfortable with the pragmatics of structure as he was with the possibilities of the architectural imagination.”

With the support of Architectus alongside The Warren Trust, The Purple Gift and Te Kāhui Whaihanga New Zealand Institute of Architects Auckland Branch, this exhibition at Objectspace profiles both built outcomes of Thompson’s extensive career and his unique and vibrant speculative drawings. These drawings — many of which were discovered recently in an undated folder labelled KOHA in Thompson’s University of Auckland archive — are presented to the public for the first time.

The opening celebration of KOHA is part of Tāmaki Makaurau + Te Tai Tokerau Architecture Week 2023 and promises to be an enthusiastic celebration of Thompson’s life work and Aotearoa architectural excellence. Register to join the festivities here.