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Story: Public, commercial and church architecture

Bowen State Building, Wellington

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Bowen State Building, Wellington

During the 1950s and 1960s the architectural division of the Ministry of Works designed a number of modernist government office buildings. They included the Bowen State Building and Broadcasting House in Wellington, which opened in 1962 and 1963 respectively. The 10-storey Bowen State Building featured a glass curtain wall with thin mullions; a subtle horizontal element was provided by projecting floor slabs. The ground floor entrance was recessed, providing a 'floating effect'. The two-storey Broadcasting House was of similar design. Together, the buildings made a pleasing ensemble behind Parliament House. This was destroyed when Broadcasting House was demolished in 1990.  

Using this item

Alexander Turnbull Library, Duncan Winder Collection (PA-Group-00395)

Reference: DW-0904-F

by Duncan Winder

Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page

Ben Schrader, Public, commercial and church architecture – Modernism, 1930 to 1970, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/44772/bowen-state-building-wellington (accessed 5 June 2026).

Story by Ben Schrader, published 28 March 2014.