The He Tohu exhibition houses New Zealand’s three most important constitutional documents: 1835 He Whakaputanga o te Rangatiratanga o Nu Tireni (Declaration of Independence of the United Tribes of New Zealand), 1840 Te Tiriti o Waitangi (Treaty of Waitangi) and 1893 Women’s Suffrage Petition (Te Petihana Whakamana Pōti Wahine).
Closely working with Archives NZ, National Library, and Studio Pacific Architecture, 335 undertook consultation, design and construction monitoring for the building services. The design required careful attention to delivering a lighting solution that minimised light exposure on the documents but provided enough light for visitors to negotiate the exhibition. Operating in concert with the five humidity controlled document display cases, the room maintains to a set temperature and humidity (during closing hours) with the aid of a dual redundancy mechanical air handling system.
The project has received numerous design and construction awards, one of note is the IESANZ Lighting Design Award of Excellence 2017 that covers both technical performance and aesthetic that we are most proud of with the close link to document preservation and the visitor experience.