Architecture

The NSW Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure has released the draft Bradfield City Centre masterplan for public exhibition.
The proposal – prepared by Hatch Roberts Day, Turner and Turf Design Studio for the Western Parkland City Authority – would see 114 hectares of land nearby the forthcoming Western Sydney International (Nancy-Bird Walton) Airport being transformed into a new city with houses, retail and commercial precinct, open space, and new and improved streets and roads.
The proposed Bradfield City Centre would be located at the heart of the Western Sydney Aerotropolis, and would be five times the size of Barangaroo. The state government anticipates the development would see the creation of up to 10,000 new homes.
According to planning documents, the project will be informed by Country, and will involve the preservation of native plants, trees, vegetation and waterways; retention of views; and restorative planting to care for Country. There will be educational places to improve knowledge of Country, such as dedicated cultural spaces and a cultural Green Loop that weaves through the city. First Nations cultural values and stories will also guide planting, materials, art, lighting, signage and language. Facilities that service First Nations people, such as a cultural centre, specialized health clinics, educational and childcare amenities, as well as housing will be constructed as part of the development.
Plans state the city will be “designed with a landscape and place focus,” and will be “a green city with innovative green corridors for people, plants, water and infrastructure that connect the entire city.” A two-hectare park, dubbed Central Park, has been proposed, as well as a naturally integrated swimming area in Moore Gully and a major events space on Thompsons Creek.
The design of the city, its buildings and public domain will be supported by a design excellence process, with architectural design competitions to be launched. As to the city’s architectural aesthetic, the proposal states that wherever a development comprises multiple buildings, there should be “a diversity of forms, typologies and architectural language, within a cohesive design framework.”
Materials used on building facades should also be “natural, tactile and visually interesting at the lower levels near the public interface to reinforce a human scale. Materials should be durable, robust and low maintenance in the higher parts of a building.”

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The proposal states that wherever a development comprises multiple buildings, there should be “a diversity of forms, typologies and architectural language, within a cohesive design framework.” Image:

Courtesy of Western Parkland Authority

Minister for Planning and Public Spaces Paul Scully said the masterplan aligns with the Western Sydney Airport development, as well as “attracts investment, houses thousands of people, and creates thousands of jobs.”
“This is the first masterplan to be publicly exhibited after progressing through the new Aerotropolis master-planning pathway and it’s critical we hear directly from the community and stakeholders as we lay the groundwork for significant infrastructure plans.
“Bradfield City Centre could deliver 10,000 new homes in coming years, making a significant contribution to more, and more diverse, housing supply in Western Parkland City,” he said. “This is about making sure people have a say in how Bradfield best caters for the future needs and desires of residents, workers, and visitors.”
If approved, the project would proceed in stages. Development is already underway in the Bradfield area, with the construction of a new Advanced Manufacturing and Research Facility (AMRF) and a new metro station in progess, as well as an advanced industry hub.
The NSW government has allocated more than $1 billion toward the masterplan.
The Bradfield City Centre masterplan will be on exhibition until 4 March 2024. If the current draft masterplan is approved, the government expects plans could be finalized by mid-2024. The nearby Western Sydney International Airport is expected to open in 2026. More

Although the Christmas and new year festive season has officially come to an end, there are still plenty of cultural affairs to keep you amused. Here are some of the insightful events that are inspiring us this February.
Gold
This exhibition is a profound homage to the often overlooked struggles that many face in their daily lives. In Gold, each vase, designed by Australian artist, Elena Strohfeldt, stands as a testament to the quiet victories that often go unnoticed. It’s a reminder that, for some, the simplest of tasks can feel as challenging as climbing mountains. Each vessel symbolizes a gold medal and is adorned with a name that reflects everyday tasks such as “Getting Out of Bed” or “Preparing Breakfast” – each piece represents a reward for overcoming everyday, ordinary obstacles. Gold will take place in Melbourne between 31 January and 11 February.
Future Shock: Designing City Resilience

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Future Shock is a discussion-based event featuring speakers who will explore the design aspects of city resilience, highlighting international examples. Image:

Romain Terpreau/Unsplash

Hosted at the State Library of Queensland in Brisbane, Future Shock: Designing City Resilience features a lineup of speakers who will delve into the design aspects of city resilience, and highlight international examples where designers, communities, city administrators, and leaders collaborated to strengthen social, physical, and natural systems’ recovery capacities from extreme events worldwide. This discussion-based event, to be held on 14 February, comprises a series of talks, question and answer sessions, and panel discussions to delve into new science, approaches, and collaborative efforts that are crucial to futureproofing cities.
Lost in Palm Springs

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The Lost in Palm Springs exhibition will be held at the Manly Art Gallery and Museum in Sydney, until 25 February. Image:

Shot by Joe/Unsplash

Lost in Palm Springs is an interdisciplinary exhibition bringing together 14 creative minds, including artist Paul Davies, artist and designer Liane Rossler; and architect Penelope Seidler, who each respond to or reimagine the Palm Springs landscape and the mid-century modern architecture that is ubiquitous throughout the desert city. Orignially presented by the Home of the Arts (HOTA) on the Gold Coast, the touring exhibition is currently held at the Manly Art Gallery and Museum in Sydney, until 25 February.
When Robin Boyd Went to Japan

The Robin Boyd Foundation, in collaboration with NMBW Architecture Studio and Cibi, will host an exhibition that explores mid-century Japanese architecture and design culture in deference to Boyd’s fascination with Japan. The When Robin Boyd Went to Japan exhibition is inspired by a period in which Boyd was frequently visiting, observing, thinking and writing about Japanese architects and architecture. Physical models of selected Japanese architect-designed houses from the 1950s to 1970s are presented in this exhibition, as well as 1:1 adaptations of Walsh Street, Japanese designer items, and a dedicated library space for displaying documents from Boyd’s travels. This Melbourne-based exhibition will be held between 18 February and 10 March 2024.
Architecture with Pride

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Architecture with Pride (AWP) – established by SJB in 2023 to commemorate Sydney World Pride – brings together the LGBTQI+ design community to share experiences about the built environment. Image: Supplied

Architecture with Pride (AWP) – established by SJB in 2023 to commemorate Sydney World Pride – brings together the LGBTQI+ design community to share experiences about the built environment and industry. In 2024, AWP is delivering events in Sydney and Melbourne with a line up featuring international and domestic queer thinkers who will challenge the status quo and celebrate the industry’s diversity. Programmed events will be held between 2 February and 4 February at various locations. More

Swan Hill Rural City Council has announced the redevelopment of the Swan Hill Regional Art Gallery will soon begin, which will see the existing building expand from 500-square-metres to 800-square-metres. Brandrick Architects completed preliminary concept designs, while Common, and Enlocus Landscape Architects were engaged by council to prepare design feasibility and key stakeholder engagement assessments. […] More

The WA government will reintroduce its Medium Density Housing Code, after it deferred gazetting the codes in August 2023.
Originally introduced in February 2023, the new code would deliver more housing diversity through “deemed to comply” planning assessment pathways for terrace-style houses.
It would also improve housing design, with requirements for minimum living and garden sizes, and requirements for optimal orientation for energy efficiency and access to natural light, as well as incentives to retain existing trees.
The code was the result of three years of research and testing which was undertaken by many WA architects.
The code was scheduled to be gazetted on 1 September 2023, however, the government deferred the gazettal under mounting pressure from the cost of construction.
The new code will also be accompanied by a number of planning reforms including an online lodgement and tracking system, a new significant development pathway for projects valued at $20 million or more in the Perth and Peel metropolitan areas or $5 million or more in regional areas, and reforms to the Development Assessment Panels.
“I did not take the decision to defer the Medium Density Code lightly and as Housing Minister I must do everything I can to boost housing in Western Australia,” said WA planning minister John Carey.
“We have engaged with and listened to industry and understand that retaining many of the existing R Code provisions for single dwellings in most residential developments will reduce further pressure on the housing construction sector.”
The Australian Institute of Architects and Association of Consulting Architects (ACA) have advocated for the implementation of the Medium Density Housing Code since its gazettal was deferred.
“Much of the discussion to date on the new Code has been about improving the quality of design, and that’s important. But it’s only half the story. The other side of the conversation, and something not widely understood, is the diversity of housing – and choice – the new Code enables,” said Institute’s WA chapter president Sandy Anghie.
The ACA’s WA vice-president Kate Fitzgerald added, “There are many architecture businesses, planners and developers with innovative homes designed and ready to go under the new Code. Without the Code, these projects would not have been able to proceed – meaning homes can’t be delivered in a market where we desperately need more homes and greater diversity.”
The amended State Planning Policy 7.3 will be released in early-March 2024. More

The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has announced that professor Lesley Lokko, the acclaimed Ghanaian-Scottish architect, educator, author, racial advocate, and curator, will receive the Royal Gold Medal 2024 for architecture – she is the first woman of African descent to receive the prestigious award.
Lokko has devoted her career to amplifying under-represented voices and exploring the complex correlation between architecture, identity and race. Her contributions have had a profound, global influence on architectural education, dialogue and discourse.
The RIBA Honours Committee 2024 praised Lokko’s perseverance and determination to “democratize architecture” as a “clarion call for equitable representation in policies, planning, and design that shape our spaces.”
RIBA president Muyiwa Oki said Lokko is a fierce champion of equity and inclusion. “Lesley Lokko’s progressive approach to architecture education offers hope for the future – a profession that welcomes those from all walks of life, considers the needs of our environment, and acknowledges a broad range of cultures and perspectives,” he said.
“A visionary agent of change, Lesley has dedicated her life to championing these values, not only through academic endeavors, but through her work as an author and curator. She remains a humble revolutionary force, with her ambition and optimism etching an indelible mark on the global architectural stage.”

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Lokko has devoted her career to amplifying under-represented voices and exploring the complex correlation between architecture, identity and race. Her contributions have had a profound, global influence on architectural education, dialogue and discourse. Image:

Debra Hurford-Brown

In 2021, Lokko founded the African Futures Institute (AFI) in Accra, in Ghana. The institute was established to create a new model of education, research and public dialogue. Operating as a pan-African think tank, the institute provides advanced education and research to address contemporary obstacles associated with race, environmental justice, and emerging urban structures.
Before launching AFI, Lokko took on various teaching positions across the world, with the objective of reframing architecture courses to democratize, decolonize and progress architectural education. Some of her notable academic roles include founder and director of the Graduate School of Architecture at the University of Johannesburg and dean of The Bernard and Anne Spitzer School of Architecture at The City College of New York.
In 2023, Lokko was awarded an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for her contributions to both architecture and education. That same year, she was curated of the 18th International Architecture Exhibition at the Venice Architecture Biennale. Titled The Laboratory of the Future, the exhibition placed Africa at its centre and included its first ever educational component.
On being named the recipient of the 2024 RIBA Gold Medal, Lokko said she was shocked. “It came as such a surprise to me. This was never on the cards. I’m delighted to be considered alongside some of the great past winners of the Royal Gold Medal. Although this is a personal award, this isn’t merely a personal triumph, this is a testament to the people and organisations I have worked with that share my goals,” she said.
“I came into architecture seeking certainties, looking for answers. Instead, I found questions and possibilities, far richer, more curious, and more empathetic ways to interpret and shape the world. Architecture gave me language, in all its forms — visual, written, built, performed — and that language, in turn, has given me such hope.”
The Royal Gold Medal 2024 will be presented to Lesley Lokko in London on 2 May 2024. More

The Robin Boyd Foundation, in collaboration with NMBW Architecture Studio and Cibi, will host an exhibition that explores mid-century Japanese architecture and design culture in deference to Boyd’s fascination with Japan. The When Robin Boyd Went to Japan exhibition is inspired by a period in which Boyd was frequently visiting, observing, thinking and writing about […] More

The University of Newcastle has unveiled a concept design for a proposed student accommodation complex at its city campus in the heart of Muluubinba/Newcastle. The concept by Architectus proposes a nine-storey building on the corner of Worth Place and Civic Lane in the Honeysuckle precinct near the Coquun/Hunter River waterfront. The complex will accommodate up […] More

A proposal that involves the establishment of three towers and a public green square at the southern end of Naarm/Melbourne’s Queen Victoria Market (QVM) is one step closer to becoming a reality, following Heritage Victoria’s decision to grant permit approval for the heritage aspect of the plan.
The QVM holds great cultural and historical significance for Melburnians. A much-loved food and retail market has operated from the site since the 1870s. Prior to that the land was used as Naarm/Melbourne’s first official cemetery, established in 1837. Despite the cemetery having closed in 1917, it is estimated that there is still 6,500 to 9,000 burials present on the site.
In June 2023, plans for a mixed-use redevelopment on the southern side of site were revealed, with the project estimated to cost $1.7 billion. Designed by NH Architecture, Kerstin Thompson Architects, 3XN Australia, Searle × Waldron Architecture, Openwork, McGregor Coxall, Lovell Chen and Urbis, the vision for the project is to create an activated southern precinct, to be known as Gurrowa Place. Under the plans, three towers would be constructed providing a mix of student accommodation, residential apartments, and work spaces.
The same month plans were released, Heritage Victoria received a heritage permit application regarding the project, specifically concerning the conservation and adaptive re-use of several stores on Franklin Street, the transformation of the existing open-air carpark to create 1.8 hectares of public open space, and the creation of two towers into the airspace above the Franklin Street stores.
Heritage Victoria granted the heritage permit on the grounds that a significant portion of the application lies outside their jurisdiction. While the permit states that the towers are the “most impactful” part of the proposed development, only Towers One and Two partially pertain to the Heritage Act 2017. This is because they have been created with a partial cantilever that extends into the airspace above the Franklin Street stores canopy. Furthermore, a section of the basement in both buildings falls within the extent of registration.
In their assessment of the application, Heritage Victoria concluded that the “cantilever of Towers One and Two over the Franklin Street Stores canopy will have a limited impact on the cultural heritage significance of QVM when considered in the context of the place in its entirety.
“The proposed conservation works to the Franklin Street Stores are a positive heritage outcome and will remove unsympathetic accretions, reconstruct removed elements and return the stores to an earlier and more appropriate appearance.
“Replacement of the existing carpark with public open space (Market Square) represents the former use of the place as a cemetery, is more respectful of the estimated 6,500 to 9,000 burials still remaining at the place and will be carried out in a way which will not substantially disturb the subsurface area.”
Tower Three and the Queens Corner Building were excluded from the heritage permit application as they have no relevant heritage requirements.

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Under the plans, three towers would be constructed providing a mix of student accommodation, residential apartments, and work spaces. Image:

NH Architecture, Kerstin Thompson Architects, 3XN Australia, and Searle × Waldron Architecture.

The City of Melbourne stated the precinct would be complementary to a number of nearby projects recently completed or soon to be delivered, including “heritage shed restoration, the new Munro library and community hub, hospitality and retail offerings in the Munro development and Mirvac’s build-to-rent project on Therry Street.”
​The heritage permit, will now be assessed separately by the state planning department. The permit will expire if construction on the project has not commenced within two years of the permit issue date. Additionally, the permit will no longer apply to the site if the project is not completed within six years of the permit issue date.
For project updates, visit the City of Melbourne website. More