Evelyn Reynolds

Melbourne-based architecture and design studio Breathe have won the annual NGV Architecture Commission for 2024. Their design, titled Home Truth, will be on display within the NGV garden from 13 November until April 2025.
The winning design was selected from a shortlist comprising two other teams, including Office of Culture, Technology and Architecture; and Snooks and Harper, N’arwee’t Carolyn Briggs and Philip Samartzis. Interrogating the status quo of typical residential construction in Australia, Breathe’s winning project speculates on the ethical and ecological impacts of very large homes while envisioning a more environmentally sustainable, small-scale and community-oriented approach.
The project takes the form of a labyrinthine house-within-a-house. An outer house frame represents an oversized silhouette of the average Australian home, whose 236-square-metre footprint ranks as the largest average house size on earth. As visitors pass through the external door, they move through a maze of rooms and corridors before emerging within a reflective, timber volume. Representing a small-scale home, this space is also intended as a meditative space in which to contemplate Australia’s alternative housing future.
Reflecting current residential construction methodologies, the outer house frame and walls within are to be built from ubiquitous pine framing, while a skin of silver-flecked Saveboard, made from 100 percent post-consumer waste, is intended to symbolise the inadequate foil insulation used in new Australian homes.
A statement from the NGV noted that “by drawing attention to and contrasting […] these two structures, Home Truth highlights how small footprint housing could help curtail suburban sprawl, lessen the environmental impact of housing construction and create a better quality of life for communities.”
Having drawn inspiration Melbourne’s Cairo apartments and the Small Homes Service, Breathe aimed to highlight the historical precedent for affordable and architect-designed housing in under 100 square metres. The NGV statement remarked that “that their proposal is not part of some unattainable imagined future, but rather a return to a more thoughtful and appropriate scale of living that responds to the needs of others and the planet.” More

A national survey of 169 architecture firms has highlighted unanimous concerns around securing future projects amid rising construction costs, interest rates and living expenses, compounded by stringent budgets and regulatory limitations.

The Australian Architectural Billings Index, conducted by architecture marketing agency Office D.Sharp, is a new quarterly report that compiles practices’ financial insights, commentary and their expectations for the months ahead. The report takes its cues from the eponymous monthly report from the American Institute of Architects, published since 1995.
The inaugural report, released publicly in August 2024, captured financial data between the beginning of April and the end of June 2024. Among the key findings, firms shared similar sentiments on securing their future project pipeline despite experiencing nuanced state and territory growth patterns.
Overall, most practices reported a growth in billings (43 percent of practices reporting an increase and 29 percent reporting a decrease compared to the previous quarter). While a positive trend, this statistic could also reflect the widespread status of business cash flow conditions, with more projects potentially in documentation or on site rather than in early feasibility, concept and sketch design stages. As one architect commented, “We […] have projects underway which have carried us through so far but they are coming to an end.” Another noted that “enquiries increased but lots of people won’t sign fee proposals due to uncertainty.”
Contributing at least in part to project programming difficulties, many architects voiced their concerns toward increasing regulatory red tape and delays. One architect observed that “it has become much more arduous to get through each statutory process. Municipalities and building surveyors are asking so much more of architects in terms of documentation and administration. Planning and building permits were much easier to obtain in the not-too-distant past. This has had a significant impact on profitability because we haven’t been able to adjust our fees as quickly as this change has occurred.”
The downturn in firms’ prospective projects was evident across the board, with enquiries being less in both number and quality (44 percent of practices reporting a decrease in volume and 39 percent reporting a decline in quality). One respondent attributed this concern to an imbalance in costs and expectations, noting that “clients budgets aren’t increasing but cost of construction is. We’re getting the same briefs and budgets but less ability to achieve what they want.” Another architect attributed the decline in project quality to smaller budgets and clients’ desires to downscale or stage works.
Notwithstanding these shared sentiments, the report captured varying growth patterns and attitudes toward hiring that appeared contingent on both locale and practice size. In comparison to Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia, who generally reported less appetite to hire, business conditions appeared stronger in Queensland and thriving in Western Australia. The report also found that mid-size practices of around 11-25 people showed strongest billing growth (with 63 percent seeing an increase compared to the previous quarter) and while large practices faced a tough quarter (with only 18 percent percent reporting an increase in billing), most (64 percent) were optimistic and intending to hire into this quarter.
Founder of the Australian Architectural Billings Index Dave Sharp said he hoped the first report would prompt further data sharing and honest discussion around the challenges facing architectural businesses today and into the future.
View the full report online. More

Final design renders of a flourishing urban garden surrounding the National Gallery of Victoria and the Arts Centre in the Melbourne Arts Precinct have been released.
Along with the public release of final designs, the name Laak Boorndap (pronounced Lark – Born – Darp) was bestowed upon the garden by Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung Language Elder, Aunty Gail Smith, who explained the name signifies “a beautiful place for all people to visit and recognise our Country and our Wurundjeri ancestors. It’s not just a placename, it brings Sky Country, the heavens, and everyone back together on Country.”
The garden will span a substantial area of 18,000 square metres between City Road and Southbank Boulevard. The public space has been designed to serve as more than an attraction for tourists and locals to visit, functioning additionally as an access route between Princes Bridge, the Southbank Boulevard and the Arts Precinct. Once established, it will also be used as a site for hosting performances, workshops and events.

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Designed by Hassell and New York practice Solid Objectives with horticulturalists Nigel Dunnett and James Hitchmough, and plant expert Jac Semmler from Super Bloom, the garden will feature climate-resilient plants and an elevated planting deck above Sturt Street.
According to the design consortium, plant selections have been carefully considered to establish a garden that thrives year-round. A mix of native and introduced species, including trees, perennials, grasses and flora, will be planted to try to achieve this objective. The diversity of plants and a multi-layered planting design aims to create a landscape that continually evolves and appears distinct each season, ensuring repeat visitation.
The design features six distinct planting zones, with each of these zones reflecting an individual theme.
Principal at Hassell Ben Duckworth said Laak Boorndap will be “a place for people to be immersed in nature. A place for people to connect to each other, art and performance.”
To create a symbolic connection between the garden and its surrounding arts and cultural institutions, sculptures and artworks will be located throughout the garden. These works will include new commissions completed by First Nations artists.

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Katrina Sedgwick, director and chief executive officer of Melbourne Arts Precinct Corporation, said the new space “delivers biodiversity, beauty and social connection in a way that is diverse and ever-changing.”
“This new garden will become a destination in and of itself, building connectivity and wellbeing for visitors, workers and residents alike,” she said.
Laak Boorndap forms part of the Melbourne Arts Precinct Transformation masterplan, a major project which will involve the establishment of a new contemporary art gallery for the National Gallery of Victoria (named the Fox: NGV Contemporary) and upgrades to the Arts Centre Melbourne Theatres building. More

Tasmania’s Parks and Wildlife Service are in the process of finalising concepts for their Next Iconic Walk project in Tyndall Range within the state’s West Coast. Following the format of the established Overland and Three Capes Tracks, the new three-day/two-night hut-based bushwalk will connect Lake Plimsoll in the north with Lake Margaret Power Station in the south.

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Leading the design, Jaws Architects have proposed concept plans for the two hut sites that were signed off by the Steering Committee in October last year. Their portfolio includes the prefabricated and site-assembled Three Capes Track cabins that were completed in 2015.
Drop-in information sessions with the architects and project team are scheduled in Launceston on 11 September and Hobart on 17 September. Attendees will be able to view the proposed hut designs, maps of the track route and early interpretation themes.
According to the updated project timeline, the development application is due to be lodged with West Coast Council and advertised for further public comment in late 2024. Construction is expected to commence at the end of 2025.
Visit the website for details on the drop-in sessions. More

The South Australian State Planning Commission has released a draft of the Future Living Code Amendment to the state’s planning regulations, now available for public comment online. The amendment seeks to improve housing diversity and affordability by providing options for diverse household groups, stages of life and lifestyle choices while retaining the existing character, heritage and streetscape of the established suburbs within South Australia.

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An initiative from the Housing Roadmap, the draft planning amendment has been developed in partnership with University of South Australia and six city councils within Greater Adelaide. Chair of the State Planning Commission Craig Holden explained that “this is a rare opportunity to introduce a new form of housing to our planning system.” He commented that the draft planning regulations “complement and add to existing rules, such as building height limits and tree protections.”
Shifting away from a pattern of demolition and subdivision, the proposed legislation encourages existing homes to be retained, altered and extended to create ‘co-located’ housing. In this model, each home within a designated site is given similar stature, voiding the traditional hierarchy of, for example, a stand-alone house and backyard granny flat. Open space is shared among residents, helping to preserve mature trees and established gardens while fostering a greater sense of community.

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While originally conceived for elderly people wishing to downsize while remaining within their own community, the State Housing Commission expects the new housing model to appeal to a range of people looking for smaller and more affordable housing options. The intent is for the co-located development to be managed through a community title scheme, enabling each to be bought and sold separately.
It is hoped that the code amendment will create a model that could be rolled out across other areas of the state in the future. Holden said, “The State Planning Commission is now keen to hear feedback from the community and industry to help shape the final planning rules for co-located housing,” noting that councils “will await community feedback before making a decision to endorse the draft code amendment.”
South Australians are invited to submit feedback until 7 November 2024. More

An initiative of the local Yothu Yindi Foundation (YYF), the new Garma Institute will be designed by Troppo in collaboration with Greenaway Architects and landscape architecture studio Mantirri Design.
The institute is conceived as a Yolngu-owned and run tertiary and vocational education facility based at Gunyangara, and builds upon the existing Yolngu-centred curriculum offered to school students through the Dhupuma Barker School. The foundation’s chief executive Denise Bowden commented, “The Garma Institute will be a bank of Yolngu knowledge and wisdom, and the design of the building will embody the six Yolngu seasons found in the Arnhem Land ecosystem.”
Following the federal government’s $6.4 million dollar commitment to the project in the lead up to last year’s Voice referendum, the design appointment spotlights both local and indigenous expertise. YYF chief executive Denise Bowden noted that Greenaway Architects and Mantirri Design are both Indigenous practices, while Troppo has over 45 years’ experience working in Australia’s Top End.
Troppo, Greenaway Architects and Mantirri Design observed that “for tens of thousands of years Yolngu have learnt in place, growing and transferring knowledges to shape and enrich sustainable cultural practice.” The design team hope to uphold this tradition by fostering a contemporary setting for the transfer of local knowledge, noting “we – Troppo, Greenaway and Mantirri – are honoured to be able to collaborate with Yolngu in delivering a setting that is ‘just right’ for this new yet ancient way of learning. We expect that the outcome may reshape how we as a modern nation think about learning on our old continent.”
The architects are underway with the brief and construction is anticipated to commence by 2026. More

Brisbane’s contentious resort and casino precinct has opened, nearly a decade after the proposed development was first announced by the Queensland government.
The $3.6 billion Queen’s Wharf precinct includes four towers situated atop a seven-storey podium and a five-level basement. The towers take shape as distinct entities, before uniting approximately 30 storeys above ground level via a sky deck that overlooks the Brisbane river, the CBD and Mt Coot-tha.
The precinct is mixed-use, featuring several hotels, the Brisbane Star casino, retail tenancies, an event centre with ballroom, a public art gallery, and dining and beverage establishments.
The design prioritises access to the riverfront and the adjacent riverfront precincts. A new footbridge, named Neville Bonner after the first Indigenous Australian to sit in Australian Parliament, is suspended above the river, connecting Southbank to Queen’s Wharf.

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The project’s design partners include Jerde Partnership (lead design in masterplan, urban design and place-making), Cottee Parker (lead architects for integrated resort development), ML Design (heritage architects), Grimshaw (Neville Bonner Bridge architects), Urbis (landscape architects, heritage specialists, town planners and urban designers) and Cusp (landscape architects).
The project has received considerable backlash since it was first proposed, due to the site’s history as a former government precinct. Frequently regarded as the birthplace of Brisbane’s colonial history, the site was home to several historical government buildings – some of which have now been retained as part of the development, while others have been demolished.
The Neville Bonner Building, designed by Davenport Campbell and Partners in collaboration with Donovan Hill and Powell Dods and Thorpe, is among the now-demolished structures, despite the building having won the FDG Stanley Award for Public Architecture at the 1999 Queensland Architecture Awards.

Despite the project being contentious, Economic Development Queensland gave the green light to the plan of development application in January 2018, following assessments by different government entities.
Although many components of the precinct such as The Star Grand hotel, the Neville Bonner Bridge, the casino gaming floors, and numerous restaurants are currently accessible, more establishments are set to open in the upcoming months. The Dorsett and Rosewood hotels are expected to open by the end of 2026.

In a communique announcing the precinct’s opening, chief executive officer of the Star Brisbane Daniel Finch said the new precinct aims to contribute to the tourism sector and the cultural fabric of Brisbane. “Once fully operational, The Star Brisbane and broader Queen’s Wharf precinct are expected to attract approximately 1.4 million additional visitors to Queensland each year,” Finch said. More

The Australian Institute of Architects’ annual Super Studio design competition has been won by a team of University of Tasmania master’s students, comprising Luke Pendergast, Mia Larsen and Lachlan Sutton.
A national conceptual design competition, Super Studio is open to the Institute’s Student Organised Network for Architecture (SONA) members from all year levels and gives students license to explore highly creative responses to a design brief. This year’s competition tasked participants with designing radical and creative solutions to address the impacts of extreme weather.
Over 180 students from 20 universities participated, with 83 submissions presented to local juries across the nation. In the words of Tasmanian state juror Jonathan Buist, “The quality of thought and work presented at a state level was outstanding and all this occurred at the same time as the current semester study schedule.”
After careful deliberation, the national jury awarded the Tasmanian team’s Jingana Epicormic Resilient Community Housing Strategy project, which was lauded by the jury for exemplifying an innovative approach to disaster relief housing. Inspired by the resilient Jingana plant, the design mimics nature’s adaptability in the face of constant changes to climate.
The jury was impressed by the careful consideration of timescale in the response to the brief, such as the immediate rollout post-disaster, allowances for customisation and modification during occupation, and the capacity for repair and relocation in the longer term. The jury citation noted that “this strategy successfully balances the need for immediate respite and emergency shelter with the longer term needs of a community in recovery.” More