NZ visual diary - entry 4

South British Insurance Building

Those familiar with my photography portfolio, and notably my images of commercial buildings in the city centre of my former home (Lexington, Kentucky), will easily recognise why I was attracted to this commercial building in Auckland's central business district.

As an architectural photographer, I have sought out buildings that express my love of clean lines and bold curves rendered in rhythmic patterns and complex geometries. With its emphasis on stylised and repeating geometric and ornamental forms, the Art Deco style captivates me.

Among several decorative features of the entrance, elements that epitomise the Art Deco style, two stand out for me:

• The lamps that frame the entrance are brilliant examples of design refinement -- at once elegant and contained, and yet audacious

• The elaborate and delicate metal work that adorns the concrete door lintel is a marvellous design element, offering as it does a striking but successful contrast to the staid solidity of the block foundation