Evelyn Reynolds

In his latest exhibition, digital craftsperson Marcus Piper expands the definition of drawing through experimental compositions involving light, sound, objects and viewer interaction. The exhibition also draws on Piper’s background in graphic design, industrial design, art, music, photography, typography, printmaking and publishing. The exhibition Optic 01: Drawing Parallels is on show at Useful Objects in Collingwood until August 30.
The exhibition features a series of mirror-based sculptures, darkroom photograms and digitally-animated prints that challenge conventional boundaries between mediums. A key highlight is a sculptural coffee table that “draws itself” — a suspended drawing within its frame shifts in depth and form through internal reflections as the viewer moves around it.

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“This exhibition is about a way of viewing the world. Or, seeing it differently – with you in it,” says Piper. “It draws heavily on my enduring habit of marking parallel lines and creating depth from a two-dimensional plane through experimentation with processes and materials.”
A consistent monochrome palette runs through the show. From photograms created using transparent sculptures and 15 seconds of refracted light, to digital animations generated from a six-hour musical score, the works span the analogue and the digital — a space Piper calls home.
“I wouldn’t be me if I didn’t challenge things,” Piper says. “Challenging the idea of perfect is also part of it and inviting the process into the outcome.”

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One installation, the Nota triptych, demonstrates Piper’s performative method. It began with the artist composing a full-length piece of music, which triggered movement in an animation of his drawings. Still frames from the resulting digital performance were then printed onto glass and mirror.
“Everything I do is crafted,” Piper explains. “My tools are (generally) digital but I bridge the analogue era. I am also a person. It is that simple but really important as a definition outside the pigeon holes of designer or artist.”

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The exhibition doesn’t just invite viewers to look — it requires their presence. Three wall mirrors printed with drawings reflect both the audience and the room around them. The drawings shift with light, angle and perspective, creating an experience that’s never the same twice.
“I love the idea that you create the drawing and it will never be seen the same twice,” Piper says. “Ultimately, I just want to share that experience of being ‘in the drawing’ with anyone who comes across the work.”
Presented by Useful Objects, Optic 01: Drawing Parallels is on until August 30. More

The Queensland government have announced that expressions of interest (EOI) are open for the preparation of an integrated masterplan for Brisbane’s Victoria Park precinct, which will form the heart of the city’s 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The news follows the an EOI period for the design of four new and upgraded sporting venues that opened earlier this month and closed less than a week ago.
In a media communique, the government asserts that the “co-location of key 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games infrastructure provides the opportunity to create a world-class recreation and lifestyle hub” at Victoria Park.
The inner-city precinct, which includes the Brisbane Showgrounds and surrounds, is envisioned as a place for recreation, events, entertainment and lifestyle.
At its heart, the Queensland government notes, “The main stadium at Victoria Park will become the new, world-class, 63,000-seat home to AFL and cricket in Queensland, and attract major national and international events, leaving a lasting legacy for 2032 and beyond.”
During the 2032 games, this stadium will host the opening and closing ceremonies, as well as athletics events.
Together with the neighbouring National Aquatic Centre at the Spring Hill Centenary Pool site, the main games stadium is a major part of the jointly funded $7.1 billion Games Venue Infrastructure Program being rolled out over the next seven years, in which the state and federal governments will deliver 17 new and upgraded venues across Queensland.

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The government’s EOI invites Queenslanders to shape the future of Victoria Park precinct through community consultation.
In its first phase, the project involves the development of the precinct masterplan, which will include technical site investigations, planning, and design activities to support infrastructure delivery.
Alongside the main stadium and aquatic centre, the precinct includes the Brisbane Athlete Village at the showgrounds site, which will deliver housing post-games.
The state government notes that “the masterplan will identify the major pieces of connectivity and public realm infrastructure required for the precinct to operate both during the games and the decades beyond,” and “will focus on world-class and iconic public and green spaces.”
Deputy Premier and Minister for State Development, Infrastructure and Planning Jarrod Bleijie emphasised that the project “is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for industry leaders” to help deliver significant civic infrastructure.
“With the precinct to include Brisbane Stadium in Victoria Park, the National Aquatic Centre in Spring Hill and the Brisbane Athlete Village in Brisbane Showgrounds, it will become a key part of Queensland’s Games legacy,” Bleijie said.

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The Queensland government notes that it is working closely with Brisbane City Council, the Royal National Agricultural and Industrial Association of Queensland (RNA), and other key stakeholders to ensure integrated design outcomes across the precinct.
According to the government’s communique, community feedback on the Victoria Park Precinct Master Plan will play a pivotal role in shaping features such as open spaces, public realm enhancements and parklands.
Brisbane Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner welcomed the opportunity for Brisbane residents to have their say.
“We reimagined Victoria Park from a golf course into a vibrant, world-class precinct with more for residents to see and do,” he commented. “We’ve delivered a pump track, picnic shelters, an urban common and Brisbane Metro, which already provides direct access to Victoria Park ahead of the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games.”
“This is a great opportunity for us and the community to have input into the State Government’s vision for this incredible precinct,” Schrinner added.
The EOI for master planning principal contractors and sub-contractor teams can be accessed online, and will close on Friday 1 August 2025, ahead of a request for tender process to shortlisted proponents. More

Built-to-rent platform Novus, and M and G Real Estate have announced that they have secured approval of a residential development in Chatswood, designed by Rothelowman.
The project is the fourth overall and the second Sydney build-to-rent (BTR) scheme from Novus and Rothelowman. It follows approval of the duo’s Novus on Harris project, located in Parramatta, in April last year.
Rothelowman Principal Ben Pomroy noted, “Novus on Albert continues our growing partnership with Novus, built on a shared commitment to housing. Prioritising the occupant experience, the design encourages engagement between people and place through layered landscape, crafted detail, and robust materials – contributing meaningfully to Chatswood’s evolving urban fabric.”

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The $290 million Chatswood scheme is situated adjacent to the suburb’s major lifestyle and retail precincts – including Westfield, Chatswood Chase and the Concourse Arts Precinct – with direct connections to the Chatswood Transport Interchange.
Across 27 storeys, the proposal comprises 198 purpose-designed BTR apartments including studios, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments, along with a pool, wellness areas, co-working spaces, a rooftop lounge and outdoor terrace, and ground-floor retail.
A statement from Novus says that “the tower has been carefully designed to maximise solar access, amenity and privacy, while capturing panoramic views over the Lane Cover River to the west and Sydney’s CBD to the south.”

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Novus co-founder and chief development officer Jason Goldsworthy said the pathway to achieving state significant development approval “involved working alongside the NSW Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure, Willoughby City Council and Government Architect NSW to reach a positive outcome for Sydney’s Lower North Shore and aid in the housing shortfall being experienced across the state of NSW.”
“Novus on Albert is part of the new wave of sustainably designed and developed residential buildings,” Goldsworthy explained. He noted that the project includes initiatives to promote improved thermal performance, reduced reliance on mechanical air conditioning and increased energy efficiency, resulting in a 5-star Green Star rating and an average 7-star NatHERS rating.
Construction is due to commence in early 2026. More

The Northern Territory government has unveiled imagery of the latest plans for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Gallery of Australia (ATSIAGA) in the town centre of Alice Springs/Mparntwe.
Designed by a team comprising BVN and Susan Dugdale and Associates alongside landscape architects Aspect Studios and Clarsen and Clarsen, the plans for the institution at 7 Wills Terrace – previously called the National Aboriginal Art Gallery – were originally filed for development consent last year.
However, Minister for Logistics and Infrastructure Bill Yan said that due to cost blowouts, the NT government has recently “re-scoped the gallery to deliver a project that’s affordable, achievable and world-class.”
“This gallery will be a world-class cultural landmark that celebrates the world’s oldest living cultures, while driving jobs, tourism, and economic growth for Alice Springs,” Yan said.

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The architects’ new design for ATSIAGA is, according to the NT government, currently halfway complete. A development consent application for the redesigned project, which was submitted earlier this month, is now on public exhibition.
Reduced from five storeys, the new scheme is a three-storey, 4,000-square-metre building that includes 1,300-square-metres of exhibition space for major touring and international exhibitions, supported by specialist facilities, including a secure loading dock, conservation and registration spaces and staff areas.
On the proposed ground floor, an entry foyer and cafe are designed to connect to a landscaped forecourt to the east, which provides a buffer between the new gallery and the site’s neighbouring rotary club. According to the NT government, the project also includes “significant parking upgrades” for the over 50s community, the Anzac Oval and the proposed gallery.

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Yan said the project will transform Alice Springs into a national cultural hub while generating tangible economic and social benefits.
“ATSIAGA is about more than art, it’s about jobs, private investment, cultural tourism and strengthening our national identity,” he said. “It will empower Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander voices through co-curation with artists and communities and position the Northern Territory as a global leader in showcasing First Nations culture.”
The NT government anticipate that following development of the design and regulatory approvals, the gallery will take between 18 and 24 months to construct, and be ready for opening in late 2027.
The proposal is on public exhibition until 22 August. More

The Canberra Institute of Technology (CIT) has officially opened their Woden campus, approximately 10 kilometers south of Canberra’s CBD.
Designed by architecture practice Gray Puksand in collaboration with Infrastructure Canberra, CIT and Lendlease, the 22,500-square-metre facility will accommodate up to 6,500 students a year. Concept designs for the project were released in August 2022, three months after the architects were appointed.
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A press release from the architects notes that “the campus is designed to embed education within the public life of the local community.” At ground floor, activated street frontages, publicly accessible spaces and direct links to transport – including a public transport interchange currently in construction – are designed to dissolve “the boundaries between learning and civic participation.”
Partner at Gray Puksand Barry Hackett commented, “CIT Woden speaks to a broader evolution in institutional interiors, where civic buildings are designed not only for access, but also for comfort, dignity, and engagement. It is a campus designed not just to serve a curriculum, but to support how people live, learn and gather.
“In doing so, it reflects the evolving role of vocational education in Australian cities, where institutions are increasingly seen as a driver of community connection, urban renewal and economic opportunity,” said Hackett.

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According to their communique, Gray Puksand’s design for CIT Woden responds also to the identity of the campus’s setting on Ngunnawal Country. The architectural form draws from the surrounding landscape, with facade geometries referencing the Brindabella Ranges. At roof level, a circular oculus featuring a wedge-tailed eagle, or Mulleun, is intended to represent a totem of the Ngunnawal people.
The design process included consultation with Yerrabingin on the integration and expression of Country throughout the campus. The collaboration informed spatial strategies, cultural references and materials used across the public realm and interior design.
CEO and co-founder of Yerrabingin Christian Hampson said, “We applied our designing with Country practice Wanganni Dhayar, that brings together First Nations communities and built environment professionals to guide a Country centred approach to CIT Woden. This approach informed spatial planning to the expression of landscape and light.”
Each floor of the five-level building is distinguished by colour, with muted earth tones at ground level and lighter sky tones above encouraging clear wayfinding.
Smart classrooms, specialist labs and open collaboration areas are distributed throughout to support various work, training and study modes in industries such as business and management, creative industries, cyber and IT, hair and beauty, and hospitality, culinary and tourism.

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The campus design integrates sustainability as a core framework, with CIT Woden being declared by Gray Puksand as one of the first institutions of its kind to combine mass timber construction with fully electric systems.
The 6-Star Green Star campus incorporates approximately 1,200 cubic metres of engineered timber across both the exterior and interior, and is supported by 100 percent renewable energy from the ACT grid, rooftop planting, water harvesting and solar photovoltaic infrastructure.
Reflecting on Gray Puksand’s approach, Hackett noted, “Designing an educational precinct of this scale without fossil fuels pushed us to rethink every system and assumption. CIT Woden demonstrates that large, high-performance education buildings can meet ambitious sustainability targets without compromising functionality or long-term public value.”

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The architecture firm claims that the major investment into the campus and surrounding infrastructure will deliver broad and long-term civic and economic value, improving “pathways into training and employment across critical industries to support the territory’s future.”
Former acting CEO of CIT Christine Robertson added that the campus “gives our students a place they can feel proud of, one that reflects the quality of training provided and the vital role vocational education plays in the community. The campus will strengthen our ability to attract and retain learners, foster meaningful educational outcomes, and build workforce capability across the region.” More

Woods Bagot has announced the implementation of two regional hubs in South-East Asia, which extend the firm’s “hub model” already established in North America, Europe, Australia and the Middle East.
According to a release from Woods Bagot, Shanghai and Hong Kong have been chosen as regional hubs given their access to great design talent and ideal locations to service clients across China and South-East Asia. These hubs will be supported by on-the-ground teams in Shenzhen, Beijing and Singapore.
Principal and Hong Kong hub leader Christopher Lye commented, “This nested model strengthens our delivery and expands our design bandwidth. It also gives clients access to our 7C enterprises – including placemaking experts ERA-co, sustainability consultancy Impact Futures, and ultra-luxury specialists Customs Bureau – enabling a total design solution that makes our regional hubs both local and global.”
The wholly owned 7C model, launched in March this year, is formulated to provide an integrated approach to “total place design,” by drawing on specialist and international expertise.
Director and mixed-use sector leader in China Jean Weng added, “Our focus remains steadfast on creating vibrant cityscapes and driving urban renewal, ensuring our projects meaningfully contribute to the dynamic evolution of cities across China.” More

The National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) has announced a new August exhibition that will bring together the work of more than 50 Australian and international designers to spotlight products and systems designed to improve the health and wellbeing of people and the environment.
Exhibition curator, and curator of contemporary architecture and design at the NGV Gemma Savio said that the exhibited designers challenge entrenched systems of extraction, production and waste, with products that present innovative approaches to repair and rethink the everyday.
“Making Good: Redesigning the Everyday highlights a global shift in design practice – from minimising harm to actively generating positive impact,” she said.
“The exhibition presents tangible examples of how small design decisions applied at scale can transform entire industries and improve everyday life. It’s about seeing design not only as a problem-solving tool, but as a way of reconfiguring relationships between people, materials, and the environment.”

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Savio notes that the exhibition’s focus, which spans fashion, construction, food, wellbeing and social design, extends to innovative building materials and to projects that move the conversation beyond efficiency and toward regenerative and inclusive solutions.
She cites the example of Oyster Terrazzo, developed by Sydney-based architecture practice Besley and Spresser, which combines Sydney Rock Oyster shell waste from local restaurants with white cement, ochres and recycled marble. Savio explains that the new material “intercept[s] local waste streams while also providing ornamentation and narrative.”
Other products featured in the exhibition include a concrete mix made from coffee waste, developed by researchers from RMIT University; Pelagic’s POI Brick, which repurposes ocean plastics into blocks and pavers produced via mobile, decentralised factories; and a paint formula developed by Singaporean brand Gush that rids the air of pollutants.
Hotel Optimismo – a project from Melbourne-based Finding Infinity – is also included in the lineup. The project conceives of a high-rise, built from carbon sequestering materials, which generates energy, recycles waste and supports community life. In a similar vein, RetroFITting by RMIT Floppy Lab uses solar textiles to retrofit existing buildings for energy production, shade and support urban habitat.

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Deputy vice-chancellor of design and social context, and vice president at RMIT University, professor  Tim Marshall said, “Making Good showcases forward-thinking design that will inspire creativity, spark conversations and most importantly, drive change towards a more regenerative future.”
“We hope visitors leave with a renewed sense of optimism about the role design can play in shaping a better future,” Savio added.
The exhibition is set open from 29 August until 1 February 2026 at NGV Australia. Presented in partnership with Futures Partner, RMIT, the NGV will host a full-day symposium on opening day, which will feature panel discussions between exhibitors and designers. More

South Australia’s State Planning Commission has approved a $400 million development from 1835 Property for a new student accommodation tower in Adelaide’s CBD.
Designed by local architecture practice Brown Falconer, the 33-storey tower is sited within a current carpark at 88 North Terrace, behind Trinity Church – the city’s oldest church.
According to a release from the SA government, the construction of the tower will be accompanied by heritage upgrades across the church’s landholding, including a new ministry and administration facilities.
The government’s communique notes that “the project has received the support of the Trinity Church Network, which sees the development as a generational opportunity to renew and enhance its historic site.”
“We see this partnership to develop our site as a wonderful opportunity to enhance our ministry to the people of the City of Adelaide,” said senior pastor of Trinity Church Adelaide Paul Harrington. “This development will place us at the heart of a vibrant university precinct.”
Located nearby the new Adelaide University, and Adelaide’s biomedical, cultural and transport links, the project is envisioned as a central hub for student life.
Adelaide University co-vice chancellor professor Peter Høj commented, “Adelaide University welcomes this development because it will offer students, in particular those who move here from interstate and overseas, an excellent chance to experience the heart of our city while they settle into university life.”
The scheme’s 1002 rooms, which include a mix of studio, shared, and premium apartments, are supported by “best in class” student amenity and experiences, including a cinema, gym, dedicated yoga studio, collaborative study zones, social lounges, communal kitchen and dining spaces, cafe, and a landscaped public piazza.
Brown Falconer released a statement noting that their design “forms a striking contemporary backdrop” to the Trinity Church precinct. “The project establishes a new gateway to the city, offering students an unbeatable location and exceptional amenity, including an expansive rooftop terrace with views towards Adelaide Oval,” the statement reads.
Deputy Premier of SA Susan Close commented, “This approval is a win for our economy, for our universities and for our city’s vibrancy. It will not only provide world-class living and learning spaces for students, but also create hundreds of local jobs and breathe new life into the west of the city.”
“This landmark development marks a transformative moment for Adelaide’s city centre and for the thousands of students who will call it home,” Close said.
Construction is scheduled to commence in January, with completion expected by April 2028. More