The Architect and the Artists

How contemporary religious art and modernist architecture were fused

WINNER OF THE JUDITH BINNEY PRIZE FOR A BEST FIRST WORK OF ILLUSTRATED NON-FICTION AT THE OCKHAM NEW ZEALAND BOOK AWARDS 2022

A beautiful and important book about the remarkable collaboration between the modernist architect James Hackshaw (a member of the famous Group Architects), the painter Colin McCahon and the then young sculptor Paul Dibble on twelve New Zealand buildings — from churches to houses. Drawing on interviews with James Hackshaw before his death and on the McCahon archives, this book brings into the light a body of work and a collaboration that has been little known or examined, even by old McCahon hands.

Richly illustrated with Hackshaw’s plans, McCahon’s drawings, letters and journal entries, and contemporary images of the surviving buildings and artworks, expert essays by Peter Simpson, Julia Gatley, Christopher Dudman, Peter Shaw and Alexa Johnston complete the package.

To look inside, click here.

‘A set of powerfully evocative photographs by the author provide a strong visual argument on their own. Her work is an intimate tribute and a classic example of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts.’ — Ockham judging panel 2022 

‘A rewarding investigation into of one of the great artistic collaborations of twentieth century New Zealand’ — John Daly-Peoples, New Zealand Arts Review

‘Collaboration sits at the core of this wonderful book; it is in the subtitle, reinforced throughout the text – both academic and personal . . . The result is a successful reframing of the works of already well-published artists and architect, providing a simultaneous view of art through architecture, and architecture through art.’ — Lynda Simmons, Architecture Now

‘This is a meticulously crafted chronicle describing a symbiotic relationship between art and architecture . . .’ — Maggie Hubert, HOME

‘A superbly designed and illustrated volume showcasing, among other things, a little-known aspect of the painter Colin McCahon’s work’ — Jenny Nicholls, Waiheke Weekender