Fearon Hay is the tenderly nurtured brainchild of Auckland architects Jeff Fearon and Tim Hay.  Since the partnership was formed twenty years ago, their artistic collaboration has enabled them to become one of New Zealand’s most celebrated architectural firms, winning Home NZ magazine’s prestigious Home of the Year award in only their second year of business.

Since then they have broadened their horizons, and in addition to creating flawlessly executed homes they have since moved into the commercial and civic arena. Now a team of fifteen, they are able to cater to almost any brief, working both nationally and internationally.

They credit much of their success to the ‘two heads are better than one’ theory, and that healthy creative debate is a key part of their design process. Furthermore, although the team acknowledge that they have become known for a certain type of building, they are proud of their ability to create “a diverse body of work”.

Their most recent project has been the redevelopment of a 1,500 metre 1940’s brick warehouse in Parnell’s Faraday Street. The idea originally stemmed from the firm “wanting a really good office space”, with “a sense of history and heritage”. The success of this building with its cleverly functioning spaces for a diverse mix of tenants is a testament to their design talent, while also showcasing their ability to don a Developers hat.

The duo have been awarded numerous accolades during their twenty years in business. Receiving extensive national recognition, they have also securely positioned themselves on the world stage, and in 2014 they made New Zealand history; being the first firm to win two top awards at the World Architecture Festival (WAF) held in Singapore.