Architecture

Artemus Group have announced plans to develop the next stage of its Howard Smith Wharves precinct along Brisbane’s riverfront, having submitted a code-assessable development application to Brisbane City Council on 23 September. The proposal overhauls the developer’s previous transformation of the precinct, which commenced on site in 2017 and first opened in November 2018.
Founder and director of Artemus Group Adam Flaskas commented, “We believe this next chapter at Howard Smith Wharves will play a central role in the Brisbane 2032 Olympics and Paralympics, where the river is our stage to showcase Brisbane and Queensland to the world.”
Designed by Little Boat Projects, the proposal includes construction of a nine-storey, 77-room hotel with ground floor retail and a music hall, replacing the existing Felons Barrel Hall. It also involves the insertion of a new pool, bar and dining precinct in the place of the current Rivershed and redevelopment of the single-storey Bougainvillea House event venue into a two-storey building. Improved public access is also addressed in the scheme, which includes two new cliff lifts and riverfront pathways and parklands.

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Project architect Mark Damant said, “This project puts people at its heart. The design is welcoming, comfortable and engaging, creating a space that is truly for everyone.” Damant’s sentiments were reiterated by Artemus Group CEO Luke Fraser, who noted that “as Brisbane grows into a global city, this precinct will set a new standard in design and sustainability. We’re proud to present a vision that will play a pivotal role in shaping Brisbane’s future.”
According to Damant, the design “incorporates subtropical landscape elements, integrating rooftop gardens and facade greenery, while […] initiatives focus on reducing environmental impact and enhancing liveability.” One such effort to reduce packaging waste and traffic movements across the precinct involves the insertion of 12 beverage storage tanks across three locations on the site.

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The proposal qualifies as “expected development” under the Brisbane City Plan 2014. As such, it will be assessed against the city plan’s benchmarks and will not require public notification prior to approval. More

Western Sydney University has announced the recipient of the Frasers Property Australia’s Master of Architecture (Urban Transformation) Scholarship for Women as Amanda Eessa. The $60,00 prize will support Eessa to complete the two-year graduate degree.
Eessa, who grew up and currently lives in Western Sydney, was also recently shortlisted in the student category of the New South Wales Pattern Book Design Competition. Continuing her involvement in local development, Eessa hopes to use the scholarship to focus her interests on public and community architecture, particularly in Sydney’s west.
“I’m leaning towards public infrastructure and amenity that targets lower socio-economic areas. I want to focus on community-based design — designs that speak to various communities. There are lots of spaces that really need some love and good design,” said Eessa.
Frasers Property Australia executive general manager development Emily Wood commented that the scholarship’s aspirations were to ensure “architecture isn’t just male-dominated” nor “seen as a career only available to those from blue chip private school pipelines.”
Brian Falzon, dean of Western Sydney University’s School of Engineering, Design and Built Environment observed that “For women studying architecture at Western, this scholarship has been transformative since its inception in 2020. It not only inspires our students at the School of Engineering, Design, and Built Environment, but also significantly alters the lives of its recipients.”
Eessa is the third recipient of the scholarship, with the 2022 winner Maryann Aziz having graduated in June. More

The 2024 Australian Good Design Awards have awarded three architectural design projects with their highly esteemed Best in Class accolade.
Architectural Design ­– category winner
Hurlstone Memorial Reserve Community Centre – Sam Crawford Architects
Requiring careful consideration of environmental features of the site, heritage, site safety, and the need to bring together varied aspirations from the community drawn out of community consultation processes, the Hurlstone Memorial Reserve Community Centre strikes a careful balance between privacy and openness, and promotes views of the park while creating pockets for activities.

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Architectural Place Design – category winner
Glenthorne National Park – Ityamaiitpinna Yarta Nature Playground – TCL, Karl Winda Tefler and Tikana Tefler, and PPA (Architecture)
Located in Adelaide’s south, the Nature Playground faced the challenge of transforming a site with a rich history of farming, scientific research and WW1 warhorse training into a space that met the community’s aspirations and the client’s vision. An outcome of collaborative and multidisciplinary effort, the site-responsive design creates equitable access for visitors to interact with the restored creek line and celebrates the use of local and natural materials, honouring the site’s past while also creating a cohesive, engaging and playful learning environment.

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Architectural Installation Design – category winner
Hidden: Seven Children Saved at Melbourne Holocaust Museum ­– Art Processors
Leveraging the Melbourne Holocast Museum’s collection of first-person testimonies, personal artefacts, and photographs, the installation curates a visitor experience much like a wandering theatrical production, focusing on the extraordinary lives of seven children through stories narrated by local youth. Thoughtful choreography manages visitor flow while crafting a captivating journey into the survivors’ stories through cinematic soundscapes, projection mapping, colourful illustrations, physical dioramas, and playful interactive spaces.

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New Zealand project Comvita’s Paengaroa Workplace by Blur the Lines received the Good Design Award Best in Class for Interior Design. More

The Chicago Athenaeum and European Centre for Architecture have announced the winners of its 2024 International Architecture Awards.
Seven Australian projects are among more than 130 awarded projects from around the world, spanning across 33 categories.
McGregor Coxall received two awards: one for the Drying Green Park with Chrofi and a second for the Grampians (Gariwerd) Peaks Trail Stage 2 with Noxon Giffen, both in the Urban Planning/Landscape Architecture category. A third Australian award in this category was given to the Harrington Collection by FJC Studio (formerly FJMT Studio).

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In the Civic Centres category, both the Phive Civic Centre in Sydney by Australian architecture firms’ DesignInc and Lacoste and Stevenson with French firm Manuelle Gautrand Architecture, and the Resource Recovery Centre by Australian practice Terroir won awards.
Finally, the Yutjuwala Djiwarr – Nhulunbuy Flexible Aged Care Facility by Kaunitz Yeung won an award in the Community Centre category and the Intercontinental Sydney Renovation by Woods Bagot was awarded in the Restoration/Renovation category.

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Honourable mentions were given to Meadowbank Schools and Heritage Lanes at 80 Ann Street, both by Woods Bagot, Parliament Square by FJC Studio (formerly FJMT Studio) and MPavilion 2022 in Melbourne by Thai practice All Zone.
The International Architecture Awards was established by The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design, together with The European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies and Metropolitan Arts Press in 2004 to honour the world’s most distinguished buildings, landscape architecture and urbanism. More

Following this year’s conference in Melbourne, next year’s Australian Architecture Conference organised by the Australian Institute of Architects will take place from 2–4 May in Sydney. The program will commence at the Sydney Opera House’s iconic Concert Hall.
The 2025 conference will draw attention to the complexities of design across local and global contexts of climate emergency, AI impacts and housing crises while seizing opportunities and forging solutions to shape resilient and adaptive futures.
Cameron Bruhn, CEO of the Australian Institute of Architects commented, “This is our flagship event and will gather architects, students, and industry leaders for three dynamic days of knowledge sharing, networking, and engaging discussions — featuring emerging and eminent architects from Australia and abroad.”
The institute has introduced a new steering committee responsible for shaping the 2025 program. This year’s committee includes Aaron Peters, Adam Haddow, Adrian Fernandez, Felicity Stewart, Nicole Mesquita-Mendes, Sally Hsu, Sharaan Muruvan and Tania Papasotiriou, and is joined by institute representatives Cameron Bruhn (CEO), Alexis Schnitger (Major Events and Prizes Officer) and Kate Concannon (National Education Program Lead).

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Stay tuned for futher updates on the program, including the announcement of speakers and registration details on the Australian Institute of Architects website. More

Frame chair by Fomu
I loved the original aluminium design for this collection but equally delighted to see it reimagined in American oak timber, offering a warm, natural aesthetic and maintaining the strong architectural framework of the original collection. The added bonus is this range will be made in Tasmania, with Fomu setting up its own manufacturing, meaning shorter lead times and better pricing.
La-De-Da pendant light by Nightworks

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This new pendant light from New Zealand design studio Nightworks is fun yet glamorous, aiming to “disrupt the straight lines in architecture.” Whether you see it as a stingray, a skirt or a water ripple, it’s confident in design (and in name) with its beautiful construction from pressed and precision-machined aluminium. It’s available in two sizes and three colours – the silk grey is timeless but the Ember deep red is my pick.
Venice collection by Max Copolov

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Presented at Melbourne’s C. Gallery until 26 September (get in there quick), this exhibition of twelve pieces by artist and designer Max Copolov is instilled with tactility and a sense of nostalgia for the Wiener Werkstätte art movement. The collection includes nine marquetry coffee and occasional tables and three flat-pack table lamps constructed of hand-finished aluminium and woven metal mesh. It’s the tables that have my attention, inlaid with quotidian scenes of contemporary Venetian life. Copolov is one to watch – his fascination for craftsmanship and traditional techniques and his interpretation of this for modern life is authentic and curious.
Kate Constantine collection from Willie Weston

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This new suite of textiles, wallpapers and acoustic panels from Willie Weston features delicate, ethereal designs developed with First Nations artist Kate Constantine. Constantine, a proud Gadigal woman of the Eora nation, is passionate about preserving her language and culture. Acknowledging the impacts of colonization, she uses her artwork to reconnect with Country through vivid storytelling. Her paintings blend ancestral traditions with fine dotting but it’s her delicate sketching and drawing that is represented through this collection. “They have a real warmth and softness, and a deep resonance with Kate’s Country and people,” says WillieWeston co-founder, Laetitia Prunetti.

Pair side tables from Mobel Copenhagen

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I try to avoid showcasing pieces that aren’t yet available in Australia, but I couldn’t go past the newly launched Pair side tables designed by David Thulstrup for Mobel Copenhagen. The interacting tables feature one solid ceramic piece handcrafted from clay, with a second overlapping metal piece. The strong contrast between soft and glossy ceramic with cold mat metal works unexpectedly well together. Each of the pairs differentiates in height and diameter and the ceramic tables come in four different colours, neutral and vivid. More

More than 150 built-environment professionals have signed an open letter to Sonya Kilkenny, Victorian minister for planning and the suburbs, advocating for the removal of upper-level setback requirements within the state’s planning scheme.
The letter, dated 2 September 2024, follows a recent announcement from the Department of Planning and Transport outlining draft controls for ten slated activity centres across Melbourne. Drafted by YIMBY Melbourne, the letter builds upon the company’s research into relevant global and local precedents of high-rise residential development. It argues that building upward and without setbacks is conducive to better outcomes – both more affordable and environmentally sustainable.
“Upper-level setbacks are the most poorly-evidenced rule in the Victorian planning system, and are almost entirely indefensible. The rules are underpinned by confected terms such as ‘visual bulk’ and ‘break up the form,’ which don’t mean anything and provide no material benefit to anyone,” commented YIMBY Melbourne lead organiser Jonathan O’Brien. “No one goes to Paris or Prague and complains of the visual bulk. We shouldn’t complain about it here in Melbourne, either.”

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An excerpt from the open letter reads:

We congratulate the minister on the ambition to deliver increased density and more homes where people want to live.
However, as advocates, architects and urban design professionals, we have serious concerns with the prescriptive design controls within the plans. Most notably: the requirement for upper-level setbacks across all buildings.
All of the research and practice demonstrates the negative impacts of these mandated planning controls. These include but are not limited to:
· decreased thermal efficiency across the whole building
· increased embodied carbon within the building
· higher levels of defects, including timber-rot and mould
· reduced streetscape interface and forgoing amenity and passive surveillance
· reduced project viability and fewer, more expensive homes
The evidence is overwhelming: requiring upper-level setbacks is no way to build a sustainable, affordable city. These are outdated planning controls that offer little benefit to Victorians and as such should not be included within the Plan for Victoria.
Upper-level setbacks require architects and urban designers to compromise on both external built form and internal apartment design across projects. Upper-level setbacks force highly-compromised and complex apartment layouts with lower amenity, as well as fewer family-size apartments across our city.

Signatories to the open letter include representatives from: Apparte, Austin Maynard Architects, Breathe, Cox Architecture, Cera Stribley, Chloe Antonio Architecture, Clarke Hopkins Clarke, Co-lab Architecture, Cumulus Studio, Edition Office, Forum, Ha Architecture, Hassell, Ian Moore Architects, Jackson Clements Burrows, Karen Abernethy Architects, Keep Studio, Kennedy Nolan, Kerry Kounnapis Architecture Practice, Kerstin Thompson Architects, Milieu Property, Murray Barker, Nightingale Housing, Schored Projects, Studio Edwards, Tecture, YIMBY, YSG and Ys Housing.
The complete letter can be viewed online. More

A recent report from the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute (AHURI) has put forward a multi-pronged strategy to lift the quality of Australian housing. The national approach aims to combat energy inefficiencies in Australia’s existing housing stock and the resulting financial burdens experienced by households, while also setting improved standards for new homes into the future.
Authored by researchers from the University of South Australia, Monash University, the University of Adelaide, the University of Sydney and the University College of London, the report’s analysis of the Australian Housing Conditions Dataset 2022 found that over 70 percent of existing Australian houses had an energy rating of three stars of lower and about the same statistic of households reported building quality problems.
Lead researcher and associate professor at the University of South Australia Lyrian Daniel noted, “As Australia looks to build 1.2 million new homes over the five years from 2023, the low quality of our housing is currently set to perpetuate.”
The report claims that despite energy efficiency standards coming into effect more than two decades ago, 82 percent of new Australian homes are still designed to meet only the minimum requirements – low by international standards. In response, the report’s authors call for national enforcement of housing standards via mandatory disclosure of a home’s performance at point of sale or lease, minimum standards in the rental sector and stronger performance requirements for new houses.
“While voluntary policies and standards are important for encouraging leadership and innovation, they only improve a small proportion of the housing stock,” said Daniel. “Mandatory approaches are needed to lift the environmental standard of most homes. One example is the compulsory disclosure of the home’s energy efficiency of a home at point of sale or lease. The ACT government’s mandatory disclosure requirement means the territory has the highest level of energy efficiency improvements to existing owner-occupied dwellings.”
“Policies that mandate the disclosure of dwelling energy performance could improve housing markets with better consumer information about the performance of houses offered for sale or lease and also enable monitoring of performance standards across the entire housing stock.”
The full report can be viewed online. More