Sheep and Dog Buildings, Tirau
The small town of Tirau, New Zealand, has the unofficial title of ‘Corrugated Capital of the World’.
By the late-1980s, Tirau, which had once been a thriving farming community, was in serious decline. A local businessman Henry Clothier, instigated a revival-of-sorts, by using discarded corrugated iron to create sculptures and structures, with the intention of attracting tourists passing by on the nearby highway.
The first building was the ‘Sheep’, constructed in the 1990s, and used to house a wool and craft store, making it a prime example of mimetic architecture. The building comprises a mixture of ground and first-floor showroom space, with a café and kitchen. The shop-owning family live on the first-floor in the self-sufficient mezzanine level.
The ‘Big Dog’ building was also built in the 1990s to house the visitor information centre, while the ‘Ram’ building adjoins the ‘Sheep’ and was completed in 2016 to increase showroom space and amenities.
[edit] Related articles on Designing Buildings Wiki
Featured articles and news
Mental Health Awareness Week with ABS
Architects Benevolent Society programme of activity.
CLC publishes domestic retrofit competency framework
Roadmap of Skills for net zero.
May 13-19: Moving more for our mental health.
Understanding is key to conservation.
Open industry engagement survey seeks responses
Institutions and the importance of engagement.
National Retrofit Hub unveils new guide
Digital Building Logbooks and Retrofit: An Introduction.
Top 50 firms awarded 52bn of projects in the last year
New engineering data shows.
Enhancing construction site reporting efficiency
Through digitisation and the digital revolution.
Noise in the built environment
BSRIA guide TG 20/2021.
17,000 people suffer conditions as a result of exposure to excessive noise at work.
Turning down the noise: Auditory health
A pervasive risk with far-reaching consequences.
Getting the most out of heat pumps and heating
How heat pumps work and how they work best.
Plumbing and heating for successful retrofit and renovation
Low temperature underfloor systems and heat pumps.
Cost-of-living crisis and home improvement plans
Starting on the right footing and top tips for projects.
Delays on construction projects
Types, mitigation and the acceleration of works.
From Chaucer to Fawlty Towers.
Electrotechnical excellence, now open for entries.
Net zero electricity grids BSRIA guide NZG 5/2024
Outlining the changes needed to transition to net zero.
CIOB Global Student Challenge 2024
Universitas Indonesia wins for second year running.