It’s nice to try new things from time to time, isn’t it? So you might notice a couple of exciting changes in this year’s Here Awards. When we analysed previous years’ entries, we noticed every one of them could sit comfortably in one of four categories: New; Reuse and Renovation; Density; and Small Project. We’ve also awarded a number of categories in some years but not others, depending on what we liked at the time.

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So, for 2024, we decided to simplify things a little. You’ll now enter each built project – and more on that in a moment – into one of those four categories, though you can enter as many different projects as you like.

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And we’re also excited to announce a whole new award: Unbuilt. A way of celebrating projects with the potential to be very special, this category is open to any consented design in Aotearoa – in other words, it must be physically and legally possibly to build it here. (Fantasies of AI need not apply.) We’d like to think that in a year or two these might be entered as finished buildings.

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But don’t worry, previous awards, including Interior, Sustainability, and Colour, Craft and Detail, haven’t disappeared entirely. They’ve now become discretionary prizes for the rōpū to award when making their deliberations. And, of course, all finalists are eligible for Best House Aotearoa 2024.

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Beyond those changes? The kaupapa of the awards endures. With a focus on architecturally designed housing in Aotearoa, we seek to celebrate a diversity of projects.

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Here has always been about luxury and humility, and we welcome a continued variety of entries. Previous winners of Best House Aotearoa include an ethereal reimagining of a heritage villa by Jack McKinney, a house at Ōtama that is both beautiful and environmentally minded by Pac Studio and Kristina Pickford, and a minor dwelling for a retired vet on an almost impossible site by Oli Booth. Along the way, we’ve visited multi-million-dollar builds and small-scale interventions; affordable housing and luxury apartments. We love them all, and we can’t wait to see this year’s entries.

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We are grateful to our returning sponsors Città, Resene and Blum – and proud to welcome our vehicle partner Volkswagen, along with our event partner, The Hotel Britomart. Get your entries in!

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Entries open‍

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Entry is online here and is open until 5pm Friday June 28. For further information, download an entry pack, or email us with any questions.

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Categories

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+ New

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+ Reuse and
Renovation

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+ Density

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+ Small Project

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+ Unbuilt

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All finalists are eligible for Best House Aotearoa 2024

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‍2024 Dates

April: Call to entry

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June 28: Entries close

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August/September:g

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October: Awards announced

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Te Rōpū

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Oli Booth – Oli Booth Architecture

Poppa’s Palace – the house Booth designed for an old family friend on a seemingly impossible site in Grey Lynn, Tāmaki Makaurau – was both charming and smart, winning the Density category and Best House Aotearoa in last year’s Here Awards. As Poppa’s showed, Booth seeks to elevate the experience of a building beyond the ordinary, celebrating the beauty to be found in details and materials, and by carefully considering his clients’ routines. Booth is particularly interested in the New Zealand landscape, and how our buildings fit into that.

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Prue Johnstone –Johnstone Callaghan Architects‍

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Johnstone is a founding director of Johnstone Callaghan Architects. Based in Ōtautahi Christchurch, the studio has made a name for itself with thoughtful, highly detailed work across hospitality, houses and retreats – including The Cabin, which featured on the cover of Here 12 and was the winner of the Small Project Architecture category at the 2022 New Zealand Architecture Awards. Johnstone views every project as an opportunity to design simple, considered spaces to be enjoyed and lived in by generations beyond our own – and to have fun while doing it.

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Simon Farrell-Green – Here‍

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Simon is the publisher and editor of Here, which he started in 2020 during a pandemic lockdown with a desire to make something progressive, different and real. He drives the cars, orders the drinks and carries the bags on the Here Awards judging tour. 

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