Evelyn Reynolds

The Powerhouse Museum in Sydney has unveiled a new large-scale public installation as part of its architecture commission series.
Launched in 2018, the series provides emerging Australian architects with the opportunity to design and build a project for the museum’s Ultimo site, taking into account the constraints, location and the needs of the visiting Powerhouse community. Architects are invited to transform the public space into an immersive, multifunctional environment.

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The commission emerged from a desire to recontextualize objects and space. Image:

Zan Wimberley

As the third instalment in the series, the 2022 commission “Cadeau,” by Newcastle-based Curious Practice, is a moveable, modular installation that can be enjoyed by individuals or large groups. Borrowed from the French word for “gift,” Cadeau was inspired by artist Man Ray’s 1921 sculpture of the same name.
The installation is a habitable, prefabricated structure intended to enhance Powerhouse’s central courtyard space. According to Curious Practice directors Warren Haasnoot and Greg Lee, the collection of individual pieces creates a verandah space that visitors can explore and engage with. The moveable nature of the modular components also means the installation can adapt and change with the conditions of the future site.

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The moveable nature of the modular components means the installation can adapt and change with the conditions of the future site. Image:

Zan Wimberley

Haasnoot and Lee said that, like the 1921 sculpture, the commission emerged from a desire to recontextualize objects and space. “Cadeau takes domestic architectural elements and plays with their scale, exaggerating and fusing components to create a new, shared narrative between site, installation and those who visit it,” the pair said.
The commission was created in collaboration with engineering firm Arup and Australian Sustainable Hardwoods (ASH). Cadeau is made using American oak by ASH, which was selected for its uniquely straight plain, and the dark coating helped to accentuate its crown cut grain, and finished with a black Rubio wood cream.
Cadeau follows two previous commissions: “Four Periscopes” by Trias and “Agora” by Penhale and Winter. More

Construction has commenced on The Standard, Fitzroy, six months after the announcement the international hotel brand was preparing for a Melbourne arrival. Architecture practice Woods Bagot has designed the building, with interior design practice Hecker Guthrie taking on the task of the interior fit out. Reportedly costing $60 million, the project will feature 126 rooms […] More

Kerstin Thompson Architects’ (KTA) collaboration with Hume City Council on the Town Hall Broadmeadows has received best in category for Architectural Design in the Victorian Premier’s Design Awards.
The category accepts entries for architecture, interior design, landscape design and urban design. It focuses on the design and planning of buildings, interior and exterior spaces, with particular emphasis on space creation, and factors that influence our engagement with the public environment.

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Historic elements like the distinctive steel-and-timber detail have been preserved. Image:

Dan Preston

The brief for Town Hall Broadmeadows required maintaining the cultural significance of the site while reviving the aesthetic quality and community relevance of the existing town hall.
KTA’s approach for the renewal was recognized for its sensitivity to the building’s fabric while simultaneously being able to lift the building to better respond to the contemporary needs of the community.
“Kerstin Thompson has been able to maintain [the building’s] grandeur by upgrading and improving the [its] performance without diminishing its capacity to trigger memories of the past,” said Celina Clarke, jury chair of the Victorian Premier’s Design Awards. “This is a virtuoso example of what can be achieved when outdated community builds are skilfully reused and improved, rather than simply replaced.”
KTA was careful to conserve as much of the original two-tone brick facade, so intrinsic to the hall’s character, in the redevelopment.

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Where possible, the original two-tone brickwork has been repurposed into the renewal. Image:

Dan Preston

Key historic elements like the grand staircase have been preserved, while a new hub has been added to the south of the hall to provide additional floor area. The civic character of the Town Hall has been preserved, while the new design incorporates a new level of flexibility and amenity to accommodate future needs and functions.
“Clever internal planning carefully considers each new element while the best of the existing fabric is respected and championed,” the jury citation reads.
Hume City Council co-ordinator of major projects Dan O’Loughlin said, “Since its construction in the 1960’s, the Town Hall Broadmeadows has played a central role in the civic and social life of the Broadmeadows community.
“The redevelopment expands on this legacy through adaptive re-use, transforming this culturally significant building into a landmark contemporary facility, tailored to meet the needs of residents and businesses in Broadmeadows.”
O’Loughlin said the renewal has ensured that the Town Hall will retain its place in the social and economic matrix of the Broadmeadows community for years to come.
KTA’s renewal of Town Hall Broadmeadows was selected from a shortlist of 15 finalists. Springvale Community Hub (by Lyons, Rush Wright Associates and City of Greater Dandenong) and ACMI Renewal project (by BKK Architects, Razorfish an ACMI) were also highly commended by the jury.
The Victorian Premier’s Design Awards for 2021 were announced as part of the 2022 Melbourne Design Week. Managed by Good Design Australia on behalf of the Victorian Government, this was the 25th anniversary of the award, recognizing achievements in design strategy, fashion design, architectural design and more.
Australia’s first emission-free, full-sized, high-performance electric motorcycle, the Savic C-Series designed by Dennis Savic and David Hendroff, received the top accolade, the Victorian Premier’s Design Award of the Year.
The complete shortlist of Architectural Design 2021 finalists, and winners and finalists of the other categories, can be found on the Victorian Premier’s Design Awards website. More

A draft masterplan for the next phase of the Victorian government’s Revitalizing Central Dandenong project has been released. The draft masterplan calls for a new central hub, at least 470 new dwellings, a hotel and conference centre, offices and community spaces. DKO Architecture is the architect behind the designs, which also include plans for the […] More

A Melbourne studio has won the $20,000 first prize in an ideas competition to design affordable and sustainable housing in South Australia.
The Living Village Design Competition was a partnership between the South Australian Housing Authority, CityLab, the Australian Institute of Architects and the City of Unley. Submissions for the competition closed in December 2021, with the winner announced at the Institute’s Lost Opportunities Symposium in March 2022.
The brief called for designs that showcased high-quality and affordable residential housing that built upon the principles of energy efficiency, environmental sustainability, cultural sustainability and community building. The brief also specified that designs incorporate an existing building – the Mornington House – into the plans as a potential community hub.
The competition provided an opportunity for emerging architects to showcase their ideas in the affordable housing space, with the eligibility criteria specifying that entrants had to have graduated within no more than 15 years at the time of submission, and to have been registered for no more than 10 years.

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Inclu Design Architects’ site plan for the Living Village. Image:

Inclu Design Architects

Inclu Design, formally established in 2020, submitted the winning proposal, which applied the principles of regenerative design and championed the tenets of affordability and ecological integration.
“The design celebrates existing place assets, transforms the site into a network of shared spaces and creates comfortable and sustainable homes for diverse and growing communities,” said Angelica Rojas, co-director of Inclu Design.
“Cost-effective strategies include carefully considering the size of the dwelling, rationalized structure and form and standardisation of services. Our proposal was also to integrate each design element so that it serves multiple purposes.”
Co-director Marco Cubillos, added, “When people talk about what is great about living in a ‘village’, the most common words used to describe this experience are community, relationships and safety. Our proposal does not take these three words for granted and combines spatial elements that enable these qualities in the site.”

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IncluDesign Architects design director Marco Cubillos and creative director Angelica Rojas. Image:

IncluDesign Architects

The jury said the winning proposal was a “highly considered submission” that offered a nuanced sense of community through a variety of shared and opened spaces.
The jury was made up of a panel of six industry experts from a variety of backgrounds including housing authorities, architectural practices, councils and industry publications. They were: Andrew Atkinson (SA Housing Authority), Shannon Battisson (Australian Institute of Architects President-Elect), Erin Crowden (EmAGN), Julie Eizenberg (Koning Eizenberg), Laura Harding (Hill Thalis Architects and architectural writer), Jeremy McLeod (Breathe Architecture), and Peter Tsokas (City of Unley).
The second place prize was awarded to WW and P and David Parsons Architects received third place. The competition entitles the winner to $20,000, with second and third prizes receiving $10,000 and $5,000 respectively.
More information about the Living Village Design Competition is available on the CityLab website. More

“Up to Us” is a multidisciplinary, mixed media, collaborative exhibition produced by art director Sally Piskuric and creative partner Alison Lasek.
The exhibition brings together 22 all-female Australian creatives to generate a creative response to the question: “What if it is up to us?”

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Creator Sally Piskuric and creative partner Alison Lasek. Image:

Ying Ang

Lending from the Melbourne Design Week pillar, “Design the world you want,” this exhibition explores the link between idealism and tangible social change.
Exhibiting designers have partnered with female practitioners from other creative disciplines to provide a uniquely female perspective on issues from disability through to motherhood, and everything in between.
Piskuric believes utopianism can be a powerful catalyst for transformation, and the exhibition explores the nirvana of a world of equal pay, founded on a level playing field and free from sexual and physical violence.

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Piskuric believes that dreams are an important vehicle for social change. Image:

Ying Ang

“At a time like this, with extreme social, political and ecological uncertainty, it’s instinctive for designers to dream of utopian solutions,” said Piskuric.
“We know, because we see it time and time again, that by dreaming big and working together, we shift radical ideas into the mainstream and create movements for change.”
Inspired by historic milestones including women’s right to vote and marriage equality, “Up To Us” demonstrates how dreams can help materialize the version of the world we want.
The exhibition is an achievement in female solidarity, a celebration of diversity and an exercise in social optimism that is not only thought provoking, but visually spectacular.

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HERS by Evi O. Image:

Ying Ang

There is a mixed media installation by Pascale Gomes-McNabb and Tai Snaith; a stacked glass light installation by Amanda Dziedzic and Kate Stokes; a collection of dishes from Beci Orpin and Ella Reweti; and more.
Proceeds from ticket sales and merchandise will be donated to two charities supporting women’s wellbeing: Djirra, which supports Aboriginal women experiencing violence, and Safe Steps, Victoria’s family violence response centre.
“Up to Us” is showing for ten days from 17 March until 27 March at Le Space Gallery for Melbourne Design Week. Click here to view the exhibition details. ArchitectureAU is a media part of Melbourne Design Week. Artichoke magazine is a media partner of Up To Us. More

A major survey of the Australian architecture profession has found that personal wellbeing among the profession is “an urgent area of concern.”
A comprehensive report of the survey results was launched at the Australian Institute of Architects Lost Opportunities Symposium in Melbourne on 20 March.
More than 2,000 individuals responded to the survey, which is part of a longitudinal study undertaken by Monash University academics Naomi Stead, Julie Wolfram Cox, Maryam Gusheh and Brian Cooper, and Kirsten Orr, Registrar of the NSW Architects Registration Board. The majority of respondents were registered architects or those in the process of registration.

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The survey found architects scored lower than average on every measure of personal wellbeing.

The survey found that people working in architecture have lower than average quality of life than Australian norms, scoring lower than average on all measures of personal wellbeing with the lowest being “future security.”
Architects also scored higher than average on measures of psychological distress, including anxiety and depression and have higher than average levels of burnout.

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The survey found architects have higher than average levels of psychological distress.

Of the survey respondents, 42 percent reported that their career had a generally negative impact on their wellbeing and a large proportion also reported that their education also had an overall negative effect on wellbeing.
The survey report states that a number of factors are contributing to the poor wellbeing of architects, including compressed timelines, unrealistic deadlines and inadequate fees.
Working more than contracted hours was also found to be rife within the industry.
Dissatisfaction with remuneration was also a contributor to poor wellbeing; however, satisfaction increased with age with older respondents more likely to be satisfied with their remuneration than younger respondents.
The survey results will ultimately contribute to creating resources for workplaces and education providers to help improve wellbeing and change the culture within the industry.
The researchers have also launched a website of resources where the full report of survey results can be downloaded. More

Construction is scheduled to resume on Probuild project Uno Melbourne after it stalled following the company’s untimely collapse in February 2022.
The major Australian construction company fell into administration after its South African parent company WBHO pulled financial support.
The Australian Financial Review reports that Uno’s developer, SP Sepia, will directly fund the Probuild team to finish the project.
Probuild had 15 projects active projects across the nation at the time of its collapse, leaving hundreds of workers unemployed and $5 billion worth of projects grinding to a halt.
Designed by Elenberg Fraser, Uno Melbourne is planned to be a 65-level residential tower at 111 A’Beckett Street and was scheduled for completion in 2023.

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Uno Melbourne is planned to be a 65-level residential tower commissioned by Malaysian developer SP Setia Image:

Elenberg Fraser

The majority of Probuild’s incomplete projects are in Victoria, with others in New South Wales, Queensland. They include ‘The Ribbon’ – a $1 billion accommodation and entertainment complex designed by Hassell in Sydney’s Darling Harbour, and the corporate headquarters for pharmaceutical giant CSL, designed by Jacobs Group.
Uno is the third project to resume since the Probuild’s collapse. Two more are also being directly funded by their developers, including the second stage of the $1.2 billion Caulfield Village project.
Builder Roberts Co is reportedly considering the takeover of Probuild’s Melbourne projects, according to the Australian Financial Review.
However, it appears Roberts Co is nearing the end of its 10-day due diligence period without coming to a decision.
The AFR anticipates that it and Probuild’s administrator, Deloitte, are likely to agree to an extension to the due diligence period before coming to conclusion.
The fate of the five remaining Melbourne projects is still uncertain, while in Sydney, Roberts is also bidding to take over The Ribbon project. More