The Nanette Cameron School of Interior Design is pleased to announce the Introduction of Gill Warren to the School in 2010.  Beginning in February, Gill will be offering courses in sustainable development and contemporary landscaping, complemented by workshops, talks and demonstrations throughout the year.

Gill Warren will be known to many as Gill Smith of Smith and Warren Ltd. Gill trained as an Interior Designer at the Chelsea School of Art in London before returning to Auckland where she worked at both Martin Hughes Associates and Elaine Conway Interior Design Ltd.  During those years Gill worked in both the commercial and residential fields, and established the successful two day design event 'Designers Saturday' for the Designers Institute of New Zealand.  Gill also undertook additional training at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, in Fine and Decorative Arts and the History of Furniture.

During the 80’s Gill retrained as a Landscape Designer through Unitec, Auckland to enable her to offer a holistic design service to her local and national clients. She has taught, spoken and written on both interior and landscape design, with work published in NZ and overseas.

Gill is looking forward to joining the Nanette Cameron School of Interior Design. As Gill says Nanette Cameron ‘is an industry icon and commands a huge amount of respect in Australasia.  It is an honour to work with the team under Nanette’s leadership as design driver’. 

Beginning in February 2010, Gill is offering three 4 week courses: ‘The Sustainable House and Garden’ ‘Contemporary Landscaping’ and ‘The New Gardener’ As Gill explains ‘these short courses are very complementary to the two year Interior Design course and are suitable for anyone wanting to make the most of their property’.  While Gill she sees it as a luxury to be entering an established school, she is excited about the opportunity to develop new courses alongside the classic Interior Design course as she says ‘they offer a valuable addition and natural progression for people interested in Interior Design’.  

And as a strong advocate of sustainable design practice Gill recognizes the importance of introducing environmentally-conscious design techniques in the design and management of outdoor spaces.  As Gill says, ‘when it comes to garden and landscape design it’s only natural to work with and not against nature and by adopting sustainable practices,  we are both saving money and reducing our impact on the environment’.

For those interested in enrolling, classes start in February.  To make an enquiry please phone Vanessa at Te Tuhi Centre for the Arts on 577 0138.