Allan Arthur Wild (20 February 1927 – 11 February 2019) was a New Zealand architect and architecture academic. He was a founding member of the Architectural Group in

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

, which made an important contribution to

modern architecture Modern architecture, also called modernist architecture, or the modern movement, is an architectural movement and style that was prominent in the 20th century, between the earlier Art Deco and later postmodern movements. Modern architectur ...

in New Zealand, and later served as head of the School of Architecture at the

University of Auckland The University of Auckland (; Māori: ''Waipapa Taumata Rau'') is a public research university based in Auckland, New Zealand. The institution was established in 1883 as a constituent college of the University of New Zealand. Initially loc ...

from 1969 to 1993.

Early life and family

Born in

Feilding Feilding is a town in the Manawatū District of the North Island of New Zealand. It is located on New Zealand State Highway 54, State Highway 54, 20 kilometres north of Palmerston North. The town is the seat of the Manawatū District Council. ...

on 20 February 1927, Wild was the son of Geoffrey Victor Wild and Harriett Newport Wild (née Porter). He was educated at

Hutt Valley High School Hutt Valley High School is a State school, state coeducational secondary school located in central Lower Hutt, New Zealand. A total of students from Years 9 to 13 (ages 12 to 18) attend the school as of making the school one of the largest ...

Lower Hutt Lower Hutt () is a list of cities in New Zealand, city in the Wellington Region of New Zealand. Administered by the Hutt City Council, it is one of the four cities that constitute the Wellington#Wellington metropolitan area, Wellington metropoli ...

, where he was a contemporary of Bill Toomath. Wild went on to study architecture at

Auckland University College The University of Auckland (; Māori: ''Waipapa Taumata Rau'') is a public research university based in Auckland, New Zealand. The institution was established in 1883 as a constituent college of the University of New Zealand. Initially loca ...

, graduating Bachelor of Architecture in 1951.

Architectural practice

After leaving school, Wild worked in the office of the Government Architect in

Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...

during 1944, before going to Auckland to study architecture. While at university, he was a founding member of the Architectural Group, participating in the construction of the "First House" and "Second House". Returning to Wellington in 1952, Wild found employment as an architect with the

Wellington City Council Wellington City Council is a Territorial authorities of New Zealand, territorial authority in New Zealand, governing the city of Wellington, the country's capital city and List of cities in New Zealand#City councils, third-largest city by popul ...

, and quickly won promotion to architect-in-charge. From about 1956 to 1958, he partnered with

Anthony Treadwell Anthony Lawrance Treadwell (27 February 1922 – 15 September 2003) was an early member of the Wellington Architectural Centre and an accomplished modernist architect, architectural educator and painter. His architectural work has been published ...

in the firm Treadwell and Wild in Wellington, practising modernism and the development of a national and regional style of architecture. Buildings designed by the practice during this period include the Etherton House, Hope House, Dobbie House, Doreen Blumhardt House, and Hazel Court, a modernist apartment building. Both Wild and Treadwell were active members of the

Wellington Architectural Centre The Architectural Centre Inc is a nonprofit organization in Wellington, New Zealand, for architects and laypeople with an interest in architecture which offers lectures, site visits, tours and exhibitions. History of the centre The centre was es ...

. Between 1959 and 1964, Wild was an associate at Porter & Martin, and from 1964 to 1969 he was a director of the architectural division of William's Holdings.

Academic career

Wild was appointed professor of architecture at the

in 1969, serving as head of the School of Architecture and dean of the Faculty of Architecture until his retirement in 1993. Upon his retirement, he was accorded the title of

professor emeritus ''Emeritus/Emerita'' () is an honorary title granted to someone who retirement, retires from a position of distinction, most commonly an academic faculty position, but is allowed to continue using the previous title, as in "professor emeritus". ...

Honours

Wild was a Fellow of the

New Zealand Institute of Architects Te Kāhui Whaihanga New Zealand Institute of Architects (NZIA) is a membership-based professional organisation that represents approximately 90 per cent of registered architects in Aotearoa New Zealand and supports and promotes architecture in ...

and a

Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce, commonly known as the Royal Society of Arts (RSA), is a learned society that champions innovation and progress across a multitude of sectors by fostering creativity, s ...

. In 1992, he was made a life member of the New Zealand Institute of Architects.

Death

Wild died in Auckland on 11 February 2019, nine days before his 92nd birthday.

References

External links

Photograph of Allan Wild during construction of "Second House"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wild, Allan 1927 births 2019 deaths People from Feilding People educated at Hutt Valley High School University of Auckland alumni New Zealand architects Academic staff of the University of Auckland Modernist architects Fellows of the New Zealand Institute of Architects