b"T hose making a trip to Snells Beach north of Auckland have more than majestic rolling hills and a pristine coastline to look forward to. Visitors interested in having a sip of locally-produced wine and checking out the Brick Bay Sculpture Trail will be greeted by Te Reo o te Hau (The Voice of the Kkhau), a recently completed folly. The folly was created as part of the annual Brick Bay Folly competition,whichprovidesarchitecturalgraduatesaunique opportunity to design a concept for a whimsical or sculptural structure that serves no formal purpose beyond bringing joy. Brick Bay Folly winners take anDesigned and built by architectural graduates William Creighton, Mathew Green, Chris Gandhi and Seth Trocio, Te Reo o te Hau innovative, interactive approach was selected as the latest winning project. In many ways, their to connect their design and site. design does far more than simply bring joy. Through a strong connectiontoitssite,itbeautifullyweavesinstorytelling, thoughtful considerations of sustainability and a reverence for local iwi Ngti Manuhiris cultural heritage.Previous Brick Bay Folly teams have been made up of two or more students who grew up together or were classmates in university. The latter was the case for this project team, who found one another during their architectural studies at Victoria University of Wellington. Originally hailing from different cities, theydrewfromthediversityoftheirbackgroundstobring a shared vision for their folly to life. And unlike the many past folly teams, they were able to benefit from having some previous experience in woodworking and construction among their ranks.MattGreen,whoworksforHierarchyGroup,grewupin Christchurch. He didn't always want to be an architect, but it was something he figured out as he got older. I was interested ingraphics,informationandcommunicationstechnology (ICT)andwoodwork.Ifinishedschoolsoonafterthe2011 Canterbury earthquakes occurred and decided to start a building apprenticeship. Four years later, I was qualified but keen to keep upskilling. I began my Bachelor of Architecture studies at Victoria University of Wellington and never looked back, he says.Seth Trocio was born in Manila, Philippines and immigrated to New Zealands Hutt Valley when he was seven before choosing to study architecture at Victoria University of Wellington. Today he works for Warren and Mahoney Architects. Growing up, I was exposed to two very different cultures. In terms of career, architecture became a sort of outlet for my creativity and interests in the built environment and how our identities, cultures and history shape it.Chris Gandhi grew up in Porirua and now works for Athfield Architects in the firms Wellington office. When I attended Aotea 68 blackwhitemag.com"