BRIEF

Wildbase Recovery is the temporary home for birds treated at Wild base Hospital at Massey University. Birds recuperate at Wildbase Recovery before being released back into the wild. These are wild animals who will return to live in their native habitats. To maintain each bird's comfort during their recovery and ensure their safety after their return to the wild, each animal's visual and acoustic contact with visitors will be kept to a minimum. Visitors will observe the 'patients' from 'viewing-hides' in the visitor areas of Wildbase Recovery. This acoustic and visual separation will be given dramatic form in the curving wall that defines the boundary between visitors and the surrogate 'wild' habitats.

CONCEPT

The boundary separating the public and aviaries is influenced by the two main exports of the Manawatu region during the early 1900’s. These exports were timber and flax, both harvested alongside the Manawatu River. The flax plant was an important resource for local people and birds, providing food, medicine, materials and shelter. This design uses the traditional weave on a large scale as a screen to hide the public from the birds in rehabilitation. To view the birds, the public are encouraged to engage with the wall, peering through the small gaps.