In an evolution of the written series carrying The Single Object name, Objectspace and The Spinoff have teamed up again with the support of NZ On Air to create a new video series exploring the significance of seemingly everyday objects. New Zealand modernist icon John Scott and his use of the pou – a central column – in bringing Māori architecture into the mainstream is the latest subject in the series.

Deidre Brown (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Kahu), art historian and head of school at the University of Auckland School of Architecture and Planning, features in the video. She says of Scott, “He had this incredibly rich Māori background and understanding of space, yet he [also] had this experience of an architect in western ways of building. His kaupapa was to bring two worlds together.”

Scott’s whanau, including his daughter Emma Scott, son Jacob Scott and granddaughter who is also an architect Hana Scott, speak about the significance of his work in the video, noting how the spaces he designed connected with people and considered the land and mana whenua surrounding them.

The video goes on to explore the importance of the pou in Scott’s work. Brown explains that a pou inside a wharenui is seen as an anchoring column, in the physical sense and also the cultural and spiritual sense. Jacob Scott continues, “Pou helps to create space between the earth and the sky. And, we can live in that space and play in that space.” The pou within the Futuna Chapel is taken as a prime example of this anchoring of space.

The testimony and imagery included in the video offer an endearing and touching look at the work and impact of an architect who was one of the first to bring Māori architecture into the mainstream. 

The Single Object series is published by and first appeared on The Spinoff.