Vernon Akitt Brown was an architect and university lecturer.
Born in Liverpool, he studied at the Northern Polytechnic School of Architecture.
Vernon and family emigrated to Auckland in 1927, going to work for Grierson, Aimer and Draffin. One of his early tasks was to detail the lettering on the Auckland War Memorial Museum.
He also began writing a regular feature on decoration and design for Monocle magazine. Home and Building also featured his work through the lens of Frank Hofmann.
In 1940, Vernon won the New Zealand Institute of Architects (NZIA) bronze medal for domestic architecture. From 1942 he was studio instructor at the School of Architecture at Auckland University College.
Audio: Brown in a ‘ZB citizens’ forum, 1948
Vernon Akitt Brown
Died 1965
Block Z, Row 024, Plot 066 – Ashes were disinterred on the 28th of February 1997 however Vernon’s plaque remains.
Image: Vernon Brown, c1940 (Auckland Libraries Heritage Collections 34-B131)
