Nearly 70 years after his death, Edward Walden's work lives on in Dunedin.
The Dunedin architect designed many commercial and public buildings in the city, including the former public library (now the Carnegie Centre), the Hallensteins Building in the Octagon, St Margaret's College, the Mayfair Theatre, the Andersons Bay Presbyterian Church and the soldiers' memorial on the Otago Peninsula.
Given the damage done to historic buildings in Christchurch in the past two years, his granddaughter, Patricia Ellis (71), of Wellington, is in Dunedin this week to photograph the buildings her grandfather designed, as part of her family history documentation.
"They were conventional for that period. Most of them were built in the 1920s, mainly out of brick or stone, with gables.
"They were designed and built to last," she said.
"Many of the buildings are historic, and depending on people's perspective, they could be considered art."
At present, Mrs Ellis said the only buildings she was aware of that had been designed by her grandfather in other cities were an insurance building on Hunter St, Wellington, and a hotel (the Pembroke) in Wanaka.
Although the buildings were built to last, she said they would not last forever, and so she wanted to record them in photographs for future generations, "in case there is any damage done by earthquakes like has happened in Christchurch recently".
Mrs Ellis had been researching her family's history for the past 12 years, but said it was nowhere near completion.
"It never ends. There's always little bits of information to be found.
"It's fun, particularly when you have a win."
