Architecture

Situated in Australia’s premier surf park, Urbnsurf, the iconic hospitality chain Three Blue Ducks has opened its largest and most operationally complex venue to date. With an expansive outdoor poolside dining area and unobstructed views across the sparkling two-hectare surf lagoon, the 1,600-square-metre restaurant – which is housed in a new building with an industrial, corrugated steel shell – has 400 seats on the ground floor, the mezzanine and alfresco dining areas. The eatery incorporates Big River Group’s Armourpanel decorative plywood to help frame the building’s industrial aesthetic with natural colour and warmth.
“The client wanted the space to be a reflection of their brand and in fitting with their existing venues, they were looking for a certain authenticity through warm and tonal materials which we knew Armourpanel could deliver,” says Tom Walker from MIC Projects.
Keeping in mind the designer’s brief to create an authentic space, MIC Projects used Big River Armourpanel spotted gum for the wall linings and joinery. Having previously worked with the leading timber supplier, they knew it could deliver the right warmth and tone to complement the desired aesthetic, as well as having confidence that the product was durable enough for such a high traffic, commercial space.
The space is layered with natural materials, colours and textures. On the restaurant’s ground floor, Shou Sugi Ban charred timber was used to panel the bar and walls. Galvanized steel sheets serve as a backsplash, and the countertops and floors are made from hard-wearing polished concrete. On the mezzanine level the richness of spotted gum covers every surface, giving consistency to the warm tones that accompany the industrial fabric of the fitout.
“The depth of colour and unique timber characteristics of each panel not only gave the desired authenticity to the project, complementing the industrial palette, but provided the security of knowing it was a hard-wearing product to stand the test of time,” says Tom.
Armourpanel is a strong decorative plywood – designed and tested to tolerate extreme heat and humidity, and to resist shrinkage. Every panel is made from layers of Australian eucalypt hardwood veneers bonded together to form a strong, solid, stable panel. Its tolerance of changes in ambient temperatures and its toughness make it ideal for hard wearing areas.
Tom continues, “The range of product thicknesses allow it to be used for floors and walls, as well as furniture and cabinetry, enabling a well curated and crafted palette of natural materials to be employed in the design. We have specified Big River’s timbers on many projects. It is such a beautiful product to work with, we have always been satisfied with their services and timber products, and quality and care of customer support in their sales and technical teams.” More

Regenerating the rural township of Nagambie and attracting new visitors was the brief behind the reconstruction of lakeside hospitality offering Nagambie Brewery and Distillery. Located on the foreshore of Lake Nagambie, a little over 90 minutes from Melbourne, the project brief was to transform an old retail strip, including a former heritage police building, into a new hospitality precinct. Designed by award-winning architectural firm Six Degrees, the result of the transformation is a stunning destination venue that enables locals and visitors to experience the region’s leading attraction, Lake Nagambie, which can be seen from the venue’s expansive deck.
The significant development is owned by businessman Gerry Ryan, who wanted to bring a contemporary hospitality design to Nagambie that fitted with the style and history surrounding it. Six Degrees created a space that embraces charm and warmth while taking full advantage of the spectacular surrounding views.
The complete project, which was awarded a commendation in the Victorian Architecture Awards 2020, includes a brewery, the Distiller’s Den, a dining room, café and a whiskey bar featuring viewing portholes into the brewery. The walls of the main restaurant and whiskey bar are lined with Big River Group’s superior plywood product Armourpanel in spotted gum, which assisted in creating warm and authentic interior elements to work alongside the more contemporary finishes of the project.
Having worked on multiple projects with the leading timber supplier, Six Degrees knew it was the right product to deliver the desired aesthetic, as well as providing the durability required for the commercial space. “The client wanted the interior space to be textured with different finishes and they were looking for a certain result through warm and tonal materials, which we knew Armourpanel could deliver,” says Dan Demant from Six Degrees Architects.
“The versatility, stability and toughness of the plywood product was a great match for the brief as it’s able to withstand hard wearing areas while also delivering on visual aesthetics,” says Dan. Armourpanel plywood has a unique construction method that sees each of its five layers of Australian hardwood sheets bonded together in a cross-ply manufacturing process to form a strong, solid, stable decorative panel.
Layered with texture, the inside space of the venue incorporates concrete, steel and brass, as well as timber, with floor to ceiling windows that supply incredible views of the brewery and the surrounding lake. The architecture of the exterior pays a respectful nod to its heritage, with huge wooden barn doors and a classic white render, the new buildings blend subtly into their rural surrounds. Multiple outdoor deck areas allow for optimal enjoyment of the lakeside setting and further complement the rustic charm of the interior.
The brewery describes its offerings as unpretentious and approachable. Just like its surroundings, everything is open and there is nothing to hide. The interior is set up for onlookers to view the master brewers at work through portholes in the stunning timber-clad whiskey bar. This intimate space is unequivocally warm and inviting, with the beguiling allure of natural timber connecting to all the senses. The walls of the room are clad entirely in Big River’s spotted gum Armourpanel. The stunning and tonal material delivers depth and character while providing a charming experience for patrons to sit and enjoy the venue’s offerings. “The depth of colour and unique timber characteristics of each panel gave an excellent finish,” says Dan.
The decorative plywood from Big River offers simplicity, warmth and texture to create intimate and inviting environments, it is highly sought by leading award-winning architects when designing residential or commercial interiors. Armourpanel’s face veneer panels are available in a range of native species including blackbutt, flooded gum, spotted gum and Sydney blue gum, all maintaining the natural characteristics of the selected wood species, including their unique grain structures. Dan continues, “We have specified Big River’s Armourpanel on many projects. It is such a beautiful product to work with and we have always been satisfied with their services and timber products, and quality and care of customer support in their sales and technical teams.”
Since its completion the Brewery has exceeded all expectations with regard to visitations, successfully encouraging locals and visitors to explore everything Nagambie has to offer with its stunning lakes, rivers and winery experiences while strengthening the region’s tourism industry and growing local jobs. More

Understanding that not all rooms are created equal and that sometimes a space calls for a tailor-made approach, Armadillo introduced their custom colour program to give designers the freedom to create a bespoke version of their most loved Agra rug. Through the custom colour program, designers can tailor the Agra rug to meet the needs […] More

A $600 million, 100,000 square metre healthcare precinct is in the works for Geelong and another healthcare facility in Richmond could be expanded after a deal between two health care companies. Victoria’s Epworth Healthcare, which runs existing facilities in Geelong and Richmond, announced it had reached a property sale and leaseback agreement with Canadian company […] More

Adelaide’s Wilderness School has lodged plans for a number of new structures as well as alterations and additions to existing buildings with designs by local firm Grieve Gillett Andersen. The private girls’ school sits between Hawkers Road and Northcote Terrace in the suburb of Medindie, in Adelaide’s inner north. Plans before South Australia’s State Commission […] More

Woods Bagot has completed a new learning and teaching building for Deakin University’s Burwood campus in Melbourne’s east, which will house the university’s law school.
Designed to be “intentionally non-institutional,” the building will house five levels of flexible, active learning spaces.
“The building’s arresting geometry arose from the innovative blend of learning spaces held within,” said Woods Bagot principal Sarah Ball. “Each space addresses a different emerging methodology of teaching, doing away with the traditional lecture theatre in the process.”
Instead of traditional lecture theatres, the building has three large, tiered presentation spaces known as Premier Learning Spaces, which can also be used for collaborative private study. Large group working spaces can also operate as informal study spaces.
The Premier Learning Spaces are housed in zinc-clad curved, extruded forms, which are juxtaposed against the rectilinear teaching wing of the building.

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Deakin Law School building by Woods Bagot. Image:

Peter Bennetts

“It’s an orchestrated contrast of masses,” said principal and project design lead Bruno Mendes.
A circulation tower in the west building has a sculpted form with fluted curved concrete panels, which capture light and shadows throughout the day.
The building also has two levels of student health and wellbeing services, as well as a Wellness Garden located between the building and Gardeners Creek Reserve. The garden features native plants stones, a deconstructed creek and tiered seating.
The building is sited at the north-west edge of the campus, which is separated from the rest of the campus by a waterway. As a result, a new bridge connects the building to the rest campus.
“With an understanding of the proposed bridge design, we saw this constraint as an opportunity for the building to form a mediation role within the campus, an organizational framework for the public realm, and the existing campus infrastructure,” Mendes said.
“The building’s striking form and glinting materiality serves as a form of wayfinding, ushering students across the link bridge and creating campus traversability that has never existed before.”
The law school is the first large learning and teaching facility to be built at the campus in a decade. More

Cottee Parker has designed an 11-storey timber office tower with three residential dwellings perched on top of it for Newstead in Brisbane. The cross-laminated timber tower at 12 Kyabra Street would provide office space for small businesses, with the strata-titled office tenancies ranging from 50 to 250 square metres. Clearly defined by their warehouse-inspired gabled […] More

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