Architecture

Ace Hotel’s long-awaited Sydney premises will open to guests in May 2022. Designed by Flack Studio, the 264-room hotel is inspired by the “renegade” history of the surrounding inner-city suburb of Surry Hills.
“Surry Hills has been home to so many culturally important movements and people, and has always been a home for creatives and migrating cultures,” said Flack Studio founder and director David Flack. The area was the centre of the razor gang wars and underground liquor trade of the 1920s and 1930s, as well as the modernist art boon of the 1960s and the Gay Solidarity Group protests of the 1970s.

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Ace Hotel Sydney by Flack Studio. Image:

Anson Smart

“We wanted to preserve the creative, slightly renegade energy of the space since its origins as one of Australia’s early brickworks,” Flack continued. “We were committed to creating a warm space that brought together Australia’s cultural history with Ace’s unique, community cultivating approach to hospitality.”
The hotel will be housed in the history Tyne House brick factory, which was the site of one of Australia’s first ceramic kilns. Flack Studio’s design for the hotel invokes the warm “cinematic” colour palette of the Australian landscape and uses organic materials, such as textured straw acoustic panels, to honour its rich history.
The design also features high craftsmanship – the furniture, joinery and lighting in the guest rooms are all custom designed by Flack Studio.

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Ace Hotel Sydney by Flack Studio. Image:

Anson Smart

Ace Hotel Sydney is the first in the Southern Hemisphere for the USA-based hotel chain.
“Though its culture and character are all its own, we’ve always felt a strong affinity with Australia — its intrepid optimism and renegade spirit resonates with Ace’s roots on the Pacific Coast of America,” said Ace Hotel Group president Brad Wilson. “We love the country’s distinctive brand of modernism, particularly in the use of local organic materials, and were lucky enough to find a perfectly modernist partner in Flack Studio. David’s eye for colour and space is completely singular — a dream design collaborator for our first hotel in Australia.”
The hotel will also accommodate a communal lobby with a restaurant, bar and café on the ground floor and a rooftop bar and restaurant. An additional design partner will be appointed for the rooftop food and beverage facilities. More

The NSW government will plant 2,000 trees in one of Sydney’s hottest suburbs as part of a trial project aimed at combatting the urban heat island effect.
Rosemeadow in south-west Sydney has an estimated tree canopy coverage of just 5.63 percent, one of the lowest in greater Sydney. Through the Rosemeadow Demonstration Project, the state’s planning department will explore ways to achieve its 40 percent canopy target by planting trees on public land, including streets, schools, open spaces, and around stormwater overland flow infrastructure.
Western Sydney is particularly vulnerable to the effects of urban heat island – research shows that on days of extreme heat temperatures can rise 10°C higher than in the eastern suburbs, resulting in unsustainable energy use spikes and higher mortality rates.
“Trees are our first line of defence against rising temperatures and the urban heat island effect, particularly in Western Sydney where temperatures in summer can soar to over 50 degrees,” said planning minister Rob Stokes.
“Rosemeadow has some of the lowest tree cover in Greater Sydney and it’s the perfect location to trial new ways to use canopy cover to combat rising temperatures.
“The research shows that we can also improve stormwater management by planting trees in stormwater basins, while also creating habitat for native animals and improving biodiversity.”
In collaboration with landscape architecture firm Realm Studios, E2 Design Lab and Spiire, the government will produce three reports detailing the methodology of the Rosemeadow project, which will be made available to councils looking to replicate the approach.
Member for Camden Peter Sidgreaves said there was substantial open space, and opportunities for planting near schools and on residual land in Rosemeadow.
“Our aim is to create a greener, more pleasant Rosemeadow for the community to use, access and enjoy, while establishing a framework of best practice methodology that can be replicated by councils across the state”, he said.
“More high-quality open spaces across Greater Sydney provide the community with more opportunities to rediscover the joy of outdoor recreation, connect with nature, and improve wellbeing and active lifestyles.”
The NSW government first announced the Rosemeadow project in 2019, but the tree planting has been delayed due to COVID-19. The project will support the government’s wider goal of planting one million trees in Greater Sydney between 2017 and 2022. More

A pair of former navy warehouses in Sydney’s Pyrmont will be transformed into a new workplace for multi-national tech giant Google. The Royal Edward Victualling Yard (REVY) is state heritage listed for its significance as the first navy yard in the Southern Hemisphere. The buildings on the site were all designed by NSW government architect […] More

Construction is underway for a $24.8 million STEM precinct and automotive training facility at Mabel Park State High School in Slacks Creek, south of Brisbane.
Central to the project is a new learning centre designed by Thomson Adsett, which will house science and robotics labs, graphics studios, a staff hub and seven classrooms. It will also include dance studios and a “United Cultural Centre” with prayer and wash facilities for the school’s Muslim students, as well as an all-faith prayer room.
The three-storey building is positioned centrally on the campus and will “establish itself as the heart of the school,” according to the architects. All levels will feature outdoor learning areas.
A $3.96 million automotive facility in the same building will allow students to explore the latest automotive technologies such as electronic scooters and solar powered vehicles.

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Mabel Park State High School learning centre by Thomson Adsett.

Local MP Shannon Fentiman, visiting the construction site, said the project was much needed, since the school had seen student numbers “almost triple” since 2016.
“Mabel Park has already been recognised for its achievements in training with its nationally recognized health hub,” she said.
“And it’s fantastic to see these state-of-the-art facilities will continue to provide valuable hands on, industry relevant skills and training for Mabel Park’s students to get a job and have a successful career.”
Mabel Park principal Michael Hornby said the project would support the school’s ongoing collaboration with the Queensland University of Technology.
“We currently have eight female students being mentored in Engineering at QUT, and this is about to expand to 40 students, so this workshop will be a huge asset to our STEM and automotive technology curriculum.
“We are developing a partnership with QUT Engineering so we can continue to collaborate with the experts in this field locally, nationally and internationally, to take our students on the right path for future study and employment.” More

A significant brutalist building at Perth’s oldest private boys’ school has been earmarked for expansion as part of a proposed $18.3 million redevelopment designed by Kerry Hill Architects.
Hale School is proposing to expand the 1961 Memorial Hall at its Wembley Downs campus, while at the same time demolishing and replacing the Stow Theatre, delivering new media studies classrooms and house homerooms, and creating a new courtyard.
Kerry Hill Architects was selected as the lead architect for the project through a design competition held by the school. The assessment panel noted that the practice challenged the brief, preparing a concept that not only met the need for an expanded Memorial Hall, but also addressed the presentation of the school to the prominent corner of Hale Road and Unwin Avenue.
The Memorial Hall, designed by Marshall Clifton and Anthony Brand, with Brand Ferguson and Solarski in association, was awarded the 1961 RIBA Bronze Medal and is listed on the Australian Institute of Architects register of nationally significant twentieth century architecture as the first building in WA “to be influenced by the brutalist style of Le Corbusier.” Increasing the seating capacity to 1,650, the redevelopment will see much of the internal structure demolished while the external envelope will be fundamentally kept as is. Significant elements of the brutalist design, including the significant east elevation, prominent external concrete columns and concrete fenestration and the bas-relief moulded balustrades, will be retained.

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Hale School Memorial Hall and Stow Theatre redevelopment by Kerry Hill Architects.

The new 220-seat Stow Theatre, the media studies hub and house homerooms will be contained in a new building to the south of the Memorial Hall, while a new courtyard with an outdoor stage will be introduced between the buildings.
Kerry Hill Architects states in planning documents that the design concept responds to Hale School’s location on the sand dunes of the Swan coastal plain and the materials palette reflects this, with the new masonry and concrete to be rendered in muted, sandy tones.
Similarly, the landscape design by Aspect Studios aims to “mimic the swathes and undulation of the dunes through colour, texture and form.”
In addition to the works designed by Kerry Hill Architects, the school is proposing to build a new maintenance shed and carpark, which Site Architecture has designed.
The planning proposal is being considered by WA’s Metro Inner-North Joint Development Assessment Panel today, 4 October. More

Victoria’s planning minister has approved the City of Melbourne’s Central Melbourne Design Guide, which will introduce a range of new requirements for the urban design of the inner city and Southbank. The new guide and associated planning scheme policy represent the biggest overhaul of the city’s planning priorities since the 1990s. The guide focuses on […] More

St Vincent’s Health Australia is planning to redevelop its Kangaroo Point hospital site in Brisbane, submitting a development application that outlines a series of health and residential developments over the next 20 years. Architecture firm Bickerton Masters has developed a design strategy for an “interconnected wellness campus” at the site of St Vincent’s Private Hospital, […] More

A pink pond installation in the rear garden of the National Gallery of Victoria will open to the public in November.
Designed by Taylor Knights in collaboration with artist James Carey, the 2021 NGV Architecture Commision, Pond[er], will present an opportunity for visitors to cool off during the summer months while reflecting on their relationship with the natural environment.
The installation design, which was revealed as the winner of the commission in May, references the original open air courtyards of the NGV International building, designed by Sir Roy Grounds in 1968.
It consists of two primary components – a pink pond which references the inland salt lakes of Victoria, intended to highlight the scarcity of water as a natural resources; and a garden bed designed by Ben Scott Garden Design, which will feature indigenous wildflowers that will bloom at different times throughout the installation, highlighting the beauty, precariousness and temporality of Victoria’s natural ecology.

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2021 NGV Architecture Commission designed by Taylor Knights in collaboration with James Carey and Ben Scott Garden Design. Image:

Courtesy NGV

The installation will not only occupy the garden but become part of the garden, with a series of interconnected waterways and accessible platforms encouraging visitors to explore the flower beds and wade in the water.
The project will be made from locally sourced and locally manufactured materials, which will be reused after its time at the NGV by Landcare and Indigenous and community groups, including the Willam Warrain Aboriginal Association.
“Through an elegant interplay of architectural and landscape elements, this work draws our attention to the challenges facing Australia’s many catchments and river systems, whilst also ensuring that the design itself has minimal environmental impact by considering the future lifecycle of the materials used,” said NGV director Tony Ellwood.
The design of the 2021 NGV Architecture Commission was selected through a two-stage national competition.
It will be on display from 20 November 2021 until 28 October 2022. More