A sunny design for the Brick Bay Folly 2025

04 Dec 2025

The Brick Bay Folly 2025, named Yellow Post, was designed and built by George Culling, Oliver Prisk, Henry Mabin and André Vachias (onsite construction led by Elliot Western) using sustainably sourced glulam timber, polyester fabric, stainless steel fixings and joyful Resene paint.

Yellow Post marks the 10th Folly at Brick Bay, and with its vivacious colour, towering height and reference to the act of gathering, it is the perfect Folly for the anniversary.

The four team members, who have remained close since studying architecture together at Te Herenga Waka Victoria University, started with the playful thought: “how cool would it be to build a giant yellow tower at Brick Bay?” And that they did, in the bright golden yellow of Resene Broom.

Standing as a beacon within the natural landscape, the 2025 Brick Bay Folly is painted in Resene Broom.

Inspiration for the design came from traditional hākari structures learnt from the team in university lectures with Dr. Robin Skinner. The visionary paintings from European settlers of hākari built by Maori further sparked the their curiosity for this project.

Hākari were enormous scaffold stages which utilised resources of native hardwoods like kauri and puriri and latched together with torotoro vines. These enormous towers were used by iwi as markers for congregation, celebration and ceremony.

The completed Yellow Post stretches an impressive 11 metres high, a myriad of yellow beams forming a union of 108 intersecting nodes. There is a strong sense of geometry in the matrix, and of interconnectedness – a structural metaphor for the Folly’s intention of bringing people together.

Painted in the cheerful Resene Broom, the Folly has become a prominent beacon, signalling the arrival and departure of visitors to Brick Bay and becoming a place of congregation.

The team describe the Folly as having a ‘structural wonderness’. “No matter where you are, you will see it, and it will greet you,” says George.

Visit Brick Bay in person at 17 Arabella Lane, Snells Beach, to see the 2025 Folly and other incredible structures, or see more online. 

Published: 04 Dec 2025