Subterms
The Australian Institute of Architects has announced Shannon Battisson has been elected the next national president, as incoming national president Tony Giannone begins his term. Battison is a Canberra-based architect and director of The Mill: Architecture and Design. She was awarded the ACT chapter’s Emerging Architect Prize in 2018. She was elected president of the […] More
Queensland architect Elizabeth Watson-Brown will run for the federal seat of Ryan in Brisbane as a Greens candidate at the next election.
Watson-Brown, who directed her own practice for 20 years before joining Architectus and becoming its national design strategy leader, was announced as the candidate at an event in Brisbane Tuesday with Greens leader Adam Bandt.
The electorate of Ryan encompasses the western suburbs of Brisbaneand is classified as a safe seat for the Liberal National Party with 48.61 percent of the primary vote. The Greens have been steadily increasing their vote, finishing with only a few thousand less votes than Labor in 2019. Party strategists see an opportunity to edge out Labor in the first-preference count and win the seat on preferences.
“There is a general sense [in Ryan] that the two major parties are not addressing some fundamentals concerns that people have,” Watson-Brown told ArchitectureAU.
“There are lots of underpinning concerns that people have in society, and I think that the Greens are answering those. For one, we’ve got governments across Australia, both blue and red, who are promoting energy sources that are problematic in terms of dealing with climate change.”
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Ngungun House, Elizabeth Watson-Brown’s first project, 1990. Image:
Michael Nicholson
Through her career as an architect, Watson-Brown has been a keen advocate for sustainable and socially responsible design. She has been involved as a volunteer with the Greens for a number of campaigns, and sees her tilt at political office as a way of prosecuting some of the agendas she has focused on throughout her career.
“It was really good to enact these sorts of things project by project, and that has its power,” she said. “But I’ve started really being aware that it is in the policy settings and the overarching context in which we design and build that important steps need to be made.”
One key initiative she would like to see at the federal level is a ministerial portfolio with a focus on the sustainability and resilience of cities in the face of climate change.
“85 percent of us live in cities, so it’s absolutely central to how we navigate the effects of climate change, right now and in the immediate future, not in the distant future,” she said.
“[It’s something that] architects and urban designers and planners can address, and to bring that all together, under an umbrella, to figure out how we deal with it across Australia, would be really, really powerful.
“There are lots of really good architects, lots of good designers, lots of good urbanists, but so often, they’re putting their creative energies and their intelligence into fighting not very good systems. If we can get the policy settings right, so that we’re all working together towards dealing with this incredible challenge [of climate change], that would be huge.”
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443 Queen Street is a high-rise apartment development designed by Architectus and Woha.
Another policy area where Watson-Brown sees her architecture background as a real strength is housing affordability and homelessness.
As of late 2020, there were around 430,000 people on waiting lists for public housing around Australia, and at the 2016 census 116,000 people were counted as experiencing homelessness.
“We’re a wealthy country, we should not have anyone homeless,” Watson-Brown said. “And that’s a design issue, as well as an ethical and political issue – not just in terms of architecture, but in the design of the policy settings and how we spend our resources in this country.”
Watson-Brown, who in addition to practice has taught architecture at the University of Queensland since 2019, recently retired from Architectus.
She is a life fellow of the Australian Institute of Architects and serves on independent design advisory panels for Brisbane and Sunshine Coast councils.
The seat of Ryan is held by first term MP Julian Simmonds, who won the seat in 2019 with a two-party-preferred vote of 56.03 percent compared to Labor’s 43.97 percent. The Greens received 20.35 percent of the primary vote, which is an increase of 1.59 percent from the previous election. More
A pink pond evocative of Australia’s inland salt lakes will be installed in the Grollo Equiset Garden at NGV International for the 2021 Architecture Commission.
Melbourne-based architecture practice Taylor Knights and artist James Carey were announced as the winners of the commission on Tuesday 11 May, for their installation Pond[er].
The design references Roy Grounds’s open-air courtyards in the original design of NGV International and comprises two key design elements: a body of Indigenous plants and a body of water.
The pink body of water makes a direct reference to the many inland salt lakes in Victoria and highlights “the scarcity, importance and political implications of water as a natural resource.”
Beds of Victorian wildflowers, designed in association with Ben Scott Garden Design, will bloom at different times throughout the installation, highlighting “the beauty, precariousness and temporality of our natural ecology.”
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Pond[er] by Taylor Knights and James Carey.
Pond[er] has been conceived as a part of the NGV garden rather than a separate architectural object. Visitors will be invited to move through a series of interconnected walkways and accessible platforms.
Visitors will also be encouraged to wade through the pink water, cooling off in the summer months and reflecting on their relationship with the environment.
“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 Tony Ellwood, NGV director.
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Pond[er] by Taylor Knights and James Carey.
The materials selected will be locally sourced and manufactured, and are intended to be distributed and used again by various Landcare, Indigenous and community groups upon deinstallation, including the Willam Warrain Aboriginal Association.
Pond[er] was selected from a shortlist of five contenders. The unsuccessful shortlisted entries were: Listening to the Earth by Aileen Sage Architects with Michaela Gleave (an installation that explores “interconnectedness between people at a time of restricted human interaction”); At the Table by Common and Enlocus (a sensorial, productive, and edible garden); by MDF (a playful oversized ring of swings); and Gas Stack by Simulaa with Finding Infinity (an installation that “evokes both a biotech lab and the vertical city”). More
A $60.5 million art gallery designed by ARM Architecture, the centrepiece of the Gold Coast’s cultural precinct, opened to the public on 8 May.
The vibrantly coloured building on the banks of the Nerang River is the third element in the Home of the Arts (HOTA) precinct, masterplanned by ARM and German landscape architecture firm Topotek 1. It follows an outdoor stage and a pedestrian bridge.
The gallery has more than 2,000 square metres of exhibition space across six levels, giving it the capacity to host international touring exhibitions as well as smaller and temporary exhibitions. It also has a dedicated children’s gallery and a rooftop bar with views across Surfers Paradise.
HOTA gallery overtakes the Art Gallery of Ballarat as Australia’s largest regional gallery.
Gold Coast mayor Tom Tate told the Australian Financial Review the brief to the architects was for a new building that reflects the personality of the city.
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HOTA Gallery by ARM Architecture. Image:
Brett Boardman
“It had to be fun – first and foremost – and make people think, ‘what is that?’ And the last thing, be unapologetic. It’s the ‘have-a-go’ spirit of the Gold Coast,” he said.
ARM’s design for the building is based on a voronoi pattern, a design motif used throughout the precinct, which can be seen at the HOTA outdoor stage.
Voronoi is a geometric shape found throughout nature in various patterns including cracked mud, animal skins and bubbles.
The voronoi pattern on the facades of the HOTA Gallery is expressed through multiple block colours. The Gold Coast council describes the gallery as a “cultural beacon” and a “must-see destination for residents and visitors.”
Alongside its exhibition spaces, the building also accommodates 1,000 square metres of storage space for the $32 million City Collection that consists of more than 4,400 artworks. ARM included a Juliet balcony in the building’s design, which allows visitors to see into the storage space.
The inaugural exhibition at HOTA Gallery features 19 new commissions by emerging and established artists and collectives, each with a connection to the Gold Coast. More
Queensland architect and “Renaissance man” Don Watson has been awarded Australian Institute of Architects’ Gold Medal for 2021 at the announcement of the National Prizes.
With a career spanning more than 50 years, Watson is recognized as Queensland’s foremost architectural historian, as an activist and advocate for architecture, as well as a protagonist of postmodernist design, with work that traverses scale and type.
“Don’s lifelong contribution to Australia’s architectural landscape has been delivered with an unwavering focus on inclusivity and humility and the impact of this, together with his philanthropic endeavours and advocacy for the preservation of architectural works, will prevail for many generations to come,’ said Institute president Alice Hampson.
Awarded the National President’s Prize for his role in championing local architects and elevating awareness of Australian architecture was Andrew Mackenzie, director at Uro Publications and City Lab. “Andrew’s tireless efforts in advancing architectural excellence and interests through multifarious roles have captured our history, shone a light on important issues, and quietly elevated the profession’s standing and the prestige of local architects,” said Hampson.
The Leadership in Sustainability Prize was awarded jointly to Caroline Pidcock and Tone Wheeler, both recognized by the jury as founders of the sustainability movement in Australia. They were commended for leading the profession through their involvement in demonstration projects that “enable everyone to see that sustainability can be cost-effective, inclusive and beautiful.”
Suzie Hunt, the first female president for the WA chapter of the Institute and an “engaged advocate, mentor and policy commentator” was the recipient the Paula Whitman Leadership in Gender Equity Prize. The jury commended Hunt’s research-driven policy agitation, public speaking, and advocacy in working to improve gender balance and the welfare of women and families.
The Neville Quarry Architectural Education Prize was jointly awarded to John Macarthur, professor at the University of Queensland and Conrad Hamann, professor of architectural history at RMIT University.
The Bluescope Glenn Murcutt Student Prize went to University of Queensland architecture student Kelly Nortje for her project “Remove – Repair – Reciprocity,” and the Student Prize for the Advancement of Architecture was presented to Alvin Zhu of the University of Queensland, for his global sharing platform, Projects by People.
Finally, Carly Martin, Simon Rochowski, Nick Roberts, Madeline Sewall and Elizabeth Walsh have been selected to join the 2021 Australian Institute of Architects Dulux Study Tour.
2021 National Prizes winners are:
Gold Medal – Donald Watson
National President’s Prize – Andrew Mackenzie
Leadership in Sustainability Prize – Caroline Pidcock and Tone Wheeler (joint winners)
Paula Whitman Leadership in Gender Equity Prize – Suzie Hunt
Neville Quarry Architectural Education Prize – John Macarthur and Conrad Hamann (joint winners)
Bluescope Glenn Murcutt Student Prize – Kelly Nortje, University of Queensland
Student Prize for the Advancement of Architecture – Alvin Zhu, University of Queensland
Australian Institute of Architects’ Dulux Study Tour – Carly Martin, Simon Rochowski, Nick Roberts, Madeline Sewall and Elizabeth Walsh More
The Naomi Milgrom Foundation has announced it has commissioned Venice-based Map Studio to design the 2021 MPavilion. Map Studio was originally commissioned for the 2020 iteration of the annual architectural installation at Melbourne’s Queen Victoria Gardens. However it was postponed due to COVID-19 and MPavilion’s program of events were held at various locations and online. […] More
The Sydney Harbour Foreshore Trust has unveiled a draft concept of its plan to revitalize the World Heritage listed Cockatoo Island. The draft vision follows an independent review commissioned by the federal environment minister in 2020 and draws from the complex and layered history of the 18-hectare island in the middle of Sydney Harbour, as […] More
Architects and heritage advocates have expressed concern about a proposal to transform Don Gazzard’s seminal Wentworth Memorial Church into a private residence.
The owner of the state-heritage listed church, which the late Sydney School architect said was “without a doubt” his most important building from the 1960s, has submitted plans for the development to Woollahra Municipal Council.
Sydney firm Architectural Projects has prepared the designs, which call for a three-level addition at the rear of the church along with an underground carpark and a plunge pool. In a heritage impact statement, the architects say the addition would be localized and reversible, and that it would read “as a minimalist element that is distinguishable from the original but compatible.”
But some architects have labelled the $5 million proposal “totally inappropriate” and the organization Friends of Wentworth Memorial Church has called on the architecture community to show their support for the heritage building.
“The church holds immense cultural value as a rare ecclesiastical example of Sydney School architecture and is widely considered to be Don Gazzard’s most significant building,” the group said in a statement.
Architect Nicholas Bucci, who formed Friends of Wentworth Memorial Church with colleague Jordan Silver, said they and Gazzard’s former business partner Mark Sheldon were looking to raise awareness about the proposal.
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Wentworth Memorial Church by Clarke Gazzard and Partners. Image:
Sydneysider: An Optimistic Life in Architecture
“It’s a state heritage-listed item and a former community and religious building,” he said. “It still has the capacity to serve the public, or serve some sort of function that allows the public to interact with it, and not be totally privatized as a luxury residence.”
The Wentworth Memorial Church was built in 1965 as a memorial to residents of the district who died in WWII. It was built on land given to the Church of England in 1927 by the descendants of colonial statesman William Charles Wentworth, for the purpose of building a church.
In May 1964, Clarke Gazzard and Partners, with Don Gazzard as design architect, was commissioned for the building that now occupies the site in May 1964.
The church’s state heritage listing describes the building as “citadel-like” with its “soaring white walls and walled courtyard” atop a rocky hill. Architectural historian and critic Jennifer Taylor has described the journey to the church along a winding path as one of “revelation.”
She writes that the church combines the “clear forms and high natural lighting” characteristic of the Sydney School with “a Greek sense of the three-dimensional form and sequential progression.”
Architectural Projects states that the public walkway, spatial promenade and courtyard would be retained in their current appearance and that the 350 square metre church space would remain intact.
The proposed plans does includes other interventions, however. Bucci notes that the project would involve excavating large amount of sandstone out of the church’s base. “The building is perched on this sandstone outcrop and the whole design is intended to be in harmony with the natural landscape,” he said. “The proposed design burrows deep into the rock, creates an underground leisure room, spa, lap pool and underground parking, and a lift that shoots up through the rock and pops out at the back of the church.”
The Friends of the Wentworth Memorial Church said that beyond stopping the current proposal a broader conversation should be had about an appropriate future for the church.
“We as an architectural community have real agency to shape the future of our most loved buildings and protect our cultural heritage, as proven by the recent campaign to save Sirius,” they said. More
