The Brief.

2019 saw the completion of some very customised commercial projects for Materialised and we are excited to share with you one of the largest, the ANZ building at Sylvia Park, Auckland.

The brief was for six different designs for four columns per floor, starting with Level 4 to Level 9. These were to reflect ‘Growth’ and were named ‘Cultivate’, ’Nurture’, ‘Grow’, ‘Thrive’, ‘Flourish’ and ‘Established.’

Carol McMillan from our New Zealand studio included work from one of our newest designers, Shannon Cheung of Typoflora, in her presentation to architects Warren & Mahoney. The response was a request to work with us and Shannon on custom designs.

ANZ Sylvia Park, custom Typoflora wall covering
‘Thrive’ – Level 7

Based on the given names, Shannon illustrated different stages of plants to represent the concepts of each.

Shannon tells us, “When Gary Price, owner of Materialised, first wrote to me about this new ANZ bank project at Sylvia Park, New Zealand, I was ecstatic. Working on a custom wallpaper design for commercial building, was something I hadn’t done before! Knowing that my illustration would be displayed in a location with such high traffic, was very exciting albeit a little daunting, as it was the biggest project I have ever undertaken!

The ANZ building is a completely newly built site starting from the construction of the building through to the interior details in each level. The planning principle for the building is based on an urban oasis, aiming to create the ideal workplace so people would want to work in. For the interior, our client has been inspired by the idea of growth and hoping to bring that concept in through each level.”

ANZ Sylvia Park, custom Typoflora wall covering
‘Thrive’ – Level 7 & ‘Flourish’ – Level 8

The Challenge

The challenge was three-fold…

Firstly, there is an area in the building that opens up, meaning people can see the columns continuing between two levels. The illustrations, therefore, needed to be connected vertically throughout.

Secondly, the illustrations also needed to repeat horizontally, to continue seamlessly on each face of the column.

Lastly, as close as the builder tried to make all columns the same throughout each level, there are always construction restrictions and issues that cause variations. Each of Shannon’s designs measured approximately 2m x 3m but not one of the columns had equal sides, nor were any of the columns identical.

Precise measurements were required for the different pattern repeats and to minimise the disjoint when installing the wall vinyl. This is especially challenging when working with such large-scale designs.

Level 4, Cultivate
LEVEL 4 – CULTIVATE
Level 7, Thrive
LEVEL 7 – THRIVE

Level 5, Nurture
LEVEL 5 – NURTURE
Level 8, Flourish
LEVEL 8 – FLOURISH
Level 6, Grow
LEVEL 6 – GROW
Level 9, Established
LEVEL 9 – ESTABLISHED

The Designs

We printed Shannon’s designs onto our beautiful wall vinyl substrate, Sandy Bank.

Shannon explains that, “With level 4, which is the lowest level, we created the illustration of seedlings breaking through the cracks of caves and rock dwellers symbolising the initial state of the plants. With level 5, we have fern unfurling symbolising sense of beginning. All the plants grow throughout the levels. When it gets to level 9, the illustration is a well-established fruit tree.

We also included many New Zealand native species through the illustration, for example reptiles and insects (such as Tuatara and giant Weta) at the lower levels, the ground birds (such as Kiwi and banded rail) around mid-levels and the flying birds and insects (such as Tui, Bellbird, Red Admiral) for the upper levels.”

Shannon’s favourite level? “Flourish’ on level 8. It is the most colourful, filled with a lot of New Zealand native flowers and plants. You can also spot many New Zealand native animals hidden in this lush oasis.”

ANZ Sylvia Park, custom Typoflora wall covering
‘Flourish’ – Level 8
ANZ Sylvia Park, custom Typoflora wall covering
ANZ Sylvia Park, custom Typoflora wall covering
‘Established’ – Level 9

The Result

An extremely happy customer! Definitely a project to be proud of.

Team & Credits