The conservation of places of heritage value is a significant means of identifying, appreciating and maintaining the achievements of human kind.

To quote the ICOMOS New Zealand Charter,

"The purpose of conservation is to care for places of cultural heritage value, their structures, materials and cultural meaning. In general, such places:

(i). have lasting values and can be appreciated in their own right;

(ii). teach us about the past and the culture of those who came before us;

(iii). provide the context for community identity whereby people relate to the land and to those who have gone before;

(iv). provide variety and contrast in the modern world and a measure against which we can compare the achievements of today; and

(v). provide visible evidence of the continuity between past, present and future"

New Zealand has a unique built heritage, which is being more widely appreciated by local and central government, and more importantly, by the public. Humans first settled in New Zealand about 1000 years ago and have modified the land and erected structures for their use ever since.

With an appreciation of the value of heritage comes the need for specialist expertise.

Ian Bowman is an historian and an architect who was the first New Zealander to obtain a post graduate degree in building conservation, gaining a Masters of Arts in Building Conservation from the Institute of Advanced Architectural Studies of the University of York in 1985. In addition he is the only New Zealand architect to have completed the ICCROM Stone and Earth building Conservation Courses and is able to offer a unique range of skills and experience in the conservation of all forms of built heritage for large and small scale projects.

Working initially for the Ministry of Works and Development who were architects to the New Zealand Historic Places Trust and then forming his own practice in 1992, Ian Bowman has advised on many conservation projects. These include buildings, structures such as bridges and tunnels and archaeological sites as well as planning advice in the form of district plan rules and design guidelines.

In 2001 two projects completed by Ian Bowman received New Zealand Institute of Architects awards.

These were the East Takaka School Hall restoration and, in conjunction with Tetrad Design, the restoration and adaptation of the Dominion Museum for Massey University. 

2002 projects will include conservation of churches, houses, shops, a municipal building, three museum buildings and a war memorial.

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