Architecture

The world’s most influential annual design showcase, Milan Design Week, returned from 17 to 23 April 2023. The enormous array of products on view represented industry-wide reflection and change: Some brands looked back at their long histories; others focused on bettering the future; many offered material innovations and artistic approaches to form.
The following highlights are but a taste of the global talent celebrated at 2023’s Milan Design Week, with more to come.
Thonet
Eponymous design house Gebrüder Thonet Vienna presented new creations in collaboration with Hong Kong-based design and architecture practice AB Concept, Venice- and Stockholm-based Nichetto Studio, and Iranian-French architect India Mahdavi. Stand-out pieces include the dining version of the Loop Chair, designed by India Mahdavi for Gebrüder Thonet Vienna in 2022, as well as the new Mickey, a comfortable armchair of generous proportions that bears Mahdavi’s signature playful touch. Thonet is distributed in Australia by Space Furniture and James Richardson Furniture.
Prowl Studio

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Peel Chair by Prowl Studio Image: supplied

At their Expect Death exhibition at Alcova – this year held at a disused abattoir outside of Milan – collaborators Prowl Studio and M4 Factory debuted their innovative Peel Chair. The biodegradable and compostable stackable chair is constructed from injection-moulded, corn-derived PLA and hemp fibres. The material is designed to be deconstructed and composted at the end of the product’s life, exemplifying Expect Death’s exploration of waste-management and circularity. The material-driven exhibition design immersed visitors in the chair’s journey from birth to death.
Volker Haug Studio

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Und Messing by Volker Haug. Image: supplied

Melbourne-based decorative lighting practice Volker Haug Studio showcased und Messing, a new series of lighting exploring various expressions of brass. Each piece in the range is hand-finished across a spectrum of brass tones from polished to dark bronze – an approach that focuses attention on the craft behind and individuality of each und Messing piece. In addition to creating brass metalwork, the studio is also experimenting with fibreglass.
Objects of Common Interest furniture

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Poikilos collection by Objects of Common Interest. Image: supplied

New York-based design studio Objects of Common Interest presents its Poikilos collection of iridescent resin furniture at the Nilufar Depot gallery in Milan. Curated by Studio Vedèt, the pieces showcased in Poikilos appear poised between solid and liquid states – displaying a milky translucence. The word “poikilos” originates from ancient Greek and refers to the abstract play of light on people’s skin or animals’ coats.
“Iridescence seems to exist only at the moment we are seeing it and is different for each of us depending on our location, the light around us, the gaze, the time of day, and perhaps even our mood. It has the charm of dazzling and unexpected things, that vibrate and cannot stand still,” said Valentina Ciuffi of Studio Vedèt.
Flos

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Update to the 1962 Taccia table lamp by Achille and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni from Flos Image: supplied

Eponymous Italian lighting house Flos showcased several new products at Salone, including new innovations and evolutions of design classics. Exemplifying the latter is a refreshing update to the 1962 Taccia table lamp by Achille and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni. With its distinctive cup-shaped reflector and base reminiscent of an ancient grooved column, Taccia is internationally recognized as one of the most iconic symbols of Italian design. Updated over time with the most advanced LED technology, the Flos lamp is now offered in matt white. Flos is distributed in Australia by Euroluce.
Ross Gardam

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Transcendence collection by Ross Gardam. Image: supplied

Transcendence, a new collection by Melbourne-based furniture and lighting designer Ross Gardam, is a journey of discovery beyond the limits of the ordinary. Referencing geometric motifs, the moon, the ocean and the illusion of motion, Transcendence features a range of unique luminaire designs that are the result of experimentation with different glass techniques. Each piece, such as the Ceto Circlet chandelier, is a sculpture in its own right, revealing different personalities when light is added, reduced, or removed.
Kvadrat collection by Ronan Bouroullec

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Paravent by Ronan Bouroullec for Kvadrat. Image: supplied

Kvadrat presents Paravent, its installation in collaboration with artist Ronan Bouroullec, to celebrate the launch of its latest textile collection. Inspired by Bouroullec’s textural drawings, the Tero Outdoor, Sone, and Alle textile ranges feature patterns that recall the movement of Bouroullec’s artworks: formed by the repetition of lines and created with coloured markers.
“Tero Outdoor embodies a new approach to discreet graphic expression and the world of textiles suitable for outdoor use,” said Bouroullec.
Sone is a unicoloured upholstery textile featuring a subtle graphic design with intersecting fields of texture. Alle is a soft woollen upholstery with an organic line pattern, capturing the rich brushstrokes that characterize Ronan Bouroullec’s drawings.
Made in Ratio

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Made in Ratio collection by Brodie Neill Image: supplied

At the Era exhibition in the Brera Design District, award-winning Tasmanian designer Brodie Neill marks 10 years with 10 design pieces exploring its Made in Ratio collection. Presented as a single monolithic sculpture for viewers to explore, the exhibition features signature Made in Ratio chairs like Cowrie (2013) and Alpha (2015) alongside experimental prototype benches and stools. Some pieces have never been presented publicly, including Core (2020), which is inspired by the archetype of a pillar with two functional reliefs hewn into its stone cross-section, and Arc (2023), a bench that plays with the idea of surface tension with sweeping curves and contrasting smooth and rigid faces.
Laufen

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Space collection by NM3 Studio and Laufen. Image: supplied

At its multidisciplinary Space Collection exhibition at Alcova, Swiss bathroom brand Laufen showcased sleek wet room furniture conceived together with Milan-based design studio NM3. Like Laufen, NM3 works with a deep appreciation for the past and future and is committed to material purity and geometric rationalist design. The collaborative collection comprises objects that are bent, folded and screwed from a single variety of stainless steel. The pieces evoke a conversation around livable spaces, particularly bathrooms: what they mean today and will mean tomorrow. An installation of two single, freestanding steel monoliths was brought to life by LED projections that created a dialogue between moving images and mirrored surfaces. Laufen is exclusively distributed through Reece in Australia.
Rakumba with Tom Skeehan

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Plume by Rakumba with Tom Skeehan Image: supplied

Rakumba and Skeehan Studio unveiled their latest lighting collaboration, Plume. Inspired by the valleys and ridge lines of the Australian landscape, Plume is a sculptural table lamp that comprises two pressed aluminium leaves concealing an internal light source.
“We took a planar 2D material – sheet aluminium – and experimented with an array of processes to transform it. Through this deliberate open investigation, we unveiled unique moments and detailing that can be translated into design and functional inclusions,” said Tom Skeehan of Skeehan Studio.
Muuto

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Midst table designed by Swedish duo TAF Studio for Muuto Image: supplied

For this year’s Milan Design Week, Muuto joined forces with Josephine Akvama Hoffmeyer and Elisa Ossino of H and O to create an immersive exhibition across their apartment gallery at Via Solferino 11 in Brera. Muuto launched two new designs: the generous Midst table designed by Swedish duo TAF Studio; and Mingle Cushions, designed by Thomas Bentzen and finished by Kvadrat in contrasting coloured textiles.
“[The] Midst table is a meeting between the poetic and functional. The name refers to the centre of the table being a gravitational point, while its round shape cancels out hierarchy – there is no head of the table. Its shape naturally draws us in towards its middle, encouraging a meeting of minds and eyes,” said TAF Studio.
Muuto is distributed through Living Edge and other retailers in Australia.
District Eight with Adam Goodrum

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Collette chair by Adam Goodrum for District Eight. Image: supplied

District Eight is a furniture brand established in 2010 in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. This year, the brand will showcase its three latest furniture and design object collections – created in collaboration with designers Michele De Lucchi, Toan Nguyen, and Adam Goodrum. Collette by Sydney-based designer Adam Goodrum is a collection of seating and tables that celebrates the natural beauty of wood and demonstrates the production skill of the master craftspeople at District Eight.
Miniforms

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Sodcoffee tables by Greek designer Yiannis Ghikas for Miniforms. Image: supplied

Italian furniture brand Miniforms has added two new colours to its Soda range of coffee tables in collaboration with Greek designer Yiannis Ghikas. Originally released in 2020, Soda is made from hand-blown Murano glass and, despite its transparent appearance, weighs a sturdy 20 kilograms. Made by master glassmakers in Italy, Soda features one single volume with three large petals forming the base. The tables now come in four colourways: new ‘Amethyst’ and ‘Blue,’ and existing ‘Amber’ and ‘Petrol Green.’
Casamilano

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Arne collection by Roberto Lazzeroni for Casamilano. Image: supplied

As part of Casamilano’s new series of pieces designed by leading Italian architects, Roberto Lazzeroni was commissioned to design the Arne series. The link between past and future is evident in Lazzeroni’s projects. Receptive to the history of design and its “signs,” Lazzeroni defines his aesthetic as “sentimental design.” The Arne collection embodies this via a family of modular tables with oval legs covered in leather, wood or platinum-painted steel ferrules. Available in various sizes and shapes, the customizable tabletops are forged from precious marble slabs. More

SJB and Land and Form Studios have won a design excellence competition for a new student housing complex in Glebe. To be located on the corner of Broadway and Glebe Point Road, the six-storey complex is set to become a gateway to Glebe and the University of Sydney precinct. The team said the project is […] More

The Victorian government has formally opened a new ferry terminal at Queenscliff on the western side of Port Phillip Bay. Designed by F2 Architecture with landscape design by Tract, the new facility improves safety and amenity for the pedestrians and motorists who use the ferry service. The ferry operates between Queenscliff to the west and […] More

No House Style, part of the National Gallery of Victoria’s Melbourne Now exhibition, presents an assortment of work by leading and emerging Melbourne-based furniture designers and architects. Located on the ground floor of The Ian Potter Centre, the exhibition celebrates the city’s creative talent and unique design approach – one that is cross-disciplinary and does not conform to any “house style.” Challenging mainstream design trends, this group of local designers and architects are helping to frame Melbourne architecture and design in a way that is expressive of contemporary issues and values and “creative pluralism.”
“This growth in creative pluralism has been matched by the exponential growth in Melbourne residential property prices over the past decade. House prices in Victoria have increased by an annual percentage change of nearly six per cent since 2011,” said NGV curators Timothy Moore and Simone LeAmon. “This has seen the accumulation of wealth for many existing homeowners and in tandem a growing appreciation for contemporary design. This has also seen many designers and architects in Melbourne rise to the challenge of providing quality affordable housing and furniture design.”

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TL61 (2021–12) by Thomas Lentini (left) and Ton tall (2021-22) by Fiona Lynch Office and Volker Haug with Hawthorn House (2019) by Edition Office. Image:

Tom Ross

The collection, arranged as a tableaux of small rooms, showcases experimental furniture pieces with artistic intensity alongside images of residential architecture in Victoria.
On display at No House Style is Fiona Lynch Office’s collaboration with lighting design practice, Volker Haug Studio. Titled “Ton Tall,” the lamp reflects Fiona Lynch Office’s commitment to designing with sustainable materials and local fabricators. With sustainability in mind, Lynch has used an existing Volker Haug Studio cast to produce a brutalist-inspired floor lamp made with raw aluminium.
Dale Hardiman, co-founder of furniture and object brand Dowel Jones, and ceramic artist James Lemon have worked together to create the piece “Deep Fake Chair.” Originally presented for Melbourne Design Week in 2021, the chair is part of an eleven-piece furniture collection imagined for a chaotic near-future where “deep fakes” could have an impact the design industry.

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Deep fake chair (2021) by Dale Hardiman and James Lemon (left), and Only if you have enough (2022) by Steven John Clark for Den Holm (right) with Milkbar House (2020) by Kennedy Nolan Architects. Image:

Tom Ross

Combining traditional craftmanship with an exploratory process, “Only if you have enough” is a tactile and expressive table made from Australian limestone by Steven John Clark for Den Holm. A trained stonemason, Clark is guided by instinct and an experimental style to create his sculptural furniture pieces that blur the line between art and design.
Kennedy Nolan’s Milkbar House, Studio Bright’s Older Women’s Housing Project and Edition Office’s Hawthorn House are amongst some of the Victorian-based dwellings featured in the exhibition – referencing a contemporary domestic interior and demonstrating exploration of material, form and spatial practice.
“If you think of Melbourne as a brand, there is no one standard that dominates the output of its creative practitioners,” Moore and LeAmon said. “This is exemplary in contemporary furniture design and residential architecture, where no house style dominates. Designers can produce a work that stems from a personal expression to evoke emotion, continues a cultural tradition or experiments with materials to explore possible futures.”
Melbourne Now is on display until 20 August 2023 at The Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia at Federation Square. More

The Victorian government has appointed Grimshaw and Aspect Studios to design the Visitor Experience Centre as part of the $108 million Twelve Apostles Precinct Redevelopment.
The team will partner with the Eastern Marr Aboriginal Corporation and the Great Ocean Road Coast and Parks Authority on the design process for the centre.
The project will also include a park-and-ride facility, a temporary event space, a visitor shuttle shelter, landscaping, gardens, walking trails, new access roads, and better parking at Secret Apostles Lookout.
The Grimshaw and Aspect Studios team is also designing the Coastal Works part of the precinct redevelopment, which includes upgrades to visitor lookouts at Twelve Apostles and Gibson Steps, new bike and walking trails, a new transit pod at Loch Ard Gorge, and an amphitheatre.

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Concept design for Twelve Apostles Visitor Experience Centre by Grimshaw and Aspect Studios. Image:

Grimshaw and Aspect Studios

“With the ambition to protect and enhance one of Victoria’s significant cultural and environmental regions, we’re delighted to continue working in partnership with the Eastern Maar Aboriginal Corporation, and in collaboration with our expert team, to design the new Visitor Experience Centre and help realize the vision for the Twelve Apostles Precinct,” said Andrew Perez, managing partner of Grimshaw.
Matthew Mackay, studio director at Aspect Studios, added, “Our ongoing co-design approach with the Eastern Maar Aboriginal Corporation has been critical in planning the precinct, and [the co-design approach] will be key in realizing a remarkable, enriched experience of the Twelve Apostles and Loch Ard Gorge in the future.”
The Twelve Apostles Precinct Redevelopment also includes a number of private sector projects, including an eco-lodge at Princetown and a hot springs and resort facility designed by Neil Architecture. More

ACT heritage minister Rebecca Vassarotti has appointed nine new members to the territory’s Heritage Council, which was entirely dissolved in December 2022. Heritage architect Duncan Marshall has been appointed chair of a new interim council while the government completes a “large-scale” review of Heritage Council. The nine-member council also includes two others with expertise in […] More

National Trust (NSW) has announced the shortlist for its twenty-ninth Heritage Awards, recognizing more than 40 built, natural and cultural projects. The annual awards celebrate excellence and outstanding practice across more than a dozen categories, including Adaptive Re-Use and Conservation – Built Heritage. Shortlisted projects include Cobar Sound Chapel, which was designed by Glenn Murcutt […] More

The Architecture Symposium: Brisbane returns on 9 June 2023 with a fresh line-up of speakers to explore how architecture celebrates and amplifies the Asia Pacific region’s rich collage of cultures. In this one-day conference, 10 speakers with ties across the region will share processes, research and ideas related to regional traditions, Indigenous peoples, contextually sensitive […] More