Architecture

Powerhouse Museum has opened entries for a new annual award that recognizes innovation and excellence in the built environment. Australian architects, engineers, urban designers and planners are invited to submit projects for the $10,000 prize, which will be announced during the 2023 Sydney Design Week. Eligible projects must have been completed in the 2022 calendar […] More

David Mitchell Architects has designed an extension to an iconic Federation-era building in Sydney’s Taylor Square. Inspired by “the layering of volumes like the pebble stack,” the design creates a “sympathetic” addition to the existing building. The extended floors follow the curved design of the existing building’s facade. “Each floor is clearly separated in the […] More

Updated designs for a 34-storey build-to-rent tower by Rothelowman have been submitted to the NSW planning department for assessment. Dubbed “Novus on Harris,” the project is proposed for the intersection of Harris and Hassall streets in Parramatta. The tower will accommodate 204 apartments, with a three-storey podium containing retail and wellness spaces. Rothelowman was chosen […] More

The ACT government’s Suburban Land Agency and Arts ACT have appointed NH Architecture as the principal design team for the redevelopment of Kingston Arts Precinct, following the completion of the Place Brief for the project.
The redevelopment aims to transform the precinct into a “world-class” culture and visual arts destination for Canberra.
The project will create retail spaces, accommodations for artists in residence, a series of new buildings for arts organizations and an open events space. It will also leverage the site’s existing heritage assets.
Kingston Arts Precinct occupies the site of the former Powerhouse, which was among the first permanent buildings in Canberra and was completed in 1915. The Fitters’ Workshop was completed the following year. The Powerhouse was decommissioned in 1957; in 1997, the ACT government ran an ideas competition for the redevelopment of the Kingston foreshore. The competition was won by architect Colin Stewart, and in 2007, the Powerhouse was transformed into the Canberra Glassworks, creating the first stage of what is now the arts precinct.
Previously, the ACT government had contracted Geocon to redevelop the precinct. In 2019, a $750 million plan designed by Fender Katsalidis and Oculus was unveiled but subsequently stagnated, and the government announced in November 2021 that the Suburban Land Agency would take over the project.
The redeveloped precinct will prioritize the local Ngunnawal culture as the central focus of site’s artistic, cultural and creative opportunities. It will bring together new Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander arts, Canberra Contemporary Arts Space, Canberra Glassworks, Craft ACT: Craft and Design Centre, M16 Arts Space, Megan Print Studio and PhotoAccess.
The precinct will also integrate art with the building and landscape designs and host temporary installations to activate the site during construction.
“The Place Brief guides the SLA and Arts ACT, architects, landscape architects and urban designers in preparing the detailed design proposals for the precinct,” said ACT chief minister Andrew Barr.
“Over the next 12 months, the project team will develop a concept design for the new subdivision and arts buildings. Further engagement with the community and arts organizations will take place through different stages of the design to prepare submissions for formal approvals that will permit construction to commence.” More

Perth Unbuilt is an exhibition of unrealized designs by some of the city’s most prominent architecture studios.
On display at WA Museum Boola Bardip, the exhibition surveys a selection of designs that succumbed to the vagaries of political and economic forces.
Hassell’s speculative proposal for the redevelopment of East Perth Power Station is one such scheme. The proposal called for the former power station to be transformed into a gallery for exhibits of Australian Indigenous and contemporary art. The design is characterized by overhangs and cantilevers with “rotating and shifting planks” inspired by the cliffs of the WA coastline.

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Hassell’s scheme for East Perth Power Station. Image: Hassell

While an art gallery is not on the cards, the WA government is still looking to redevelop the site. In 2020, the government selected a proposal from broadcaster Kerry Stokes and mining magnate Andrew Forrest to transform the site into a residential, commercial, recreational and tourism precinct with a concept designed by Kerry Hill Architects and, later, Woods Bagot. But in March 2023, it too fell on the scrap heap.
Perth’s Swan River foreshore has also been subjected to many failed schemes. One of them, ARM Architecture’s early masterplan for Elizabeth Quay, was selected for the exhibition. Its design concept featured a swan-shaped island and was once dubbed “Dubai on the Swan” for the futuristic-looking towers with which it would have surrounded the waterfront.

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The circular scheme for Elizabeth Quay by ARM Architecture. Image:

ARM Architecture

In 2008, a change of government saw ARM Architecture commissioned (along with Richard Weller and TCL) by the incoming Liberal government to come up with a new scheme for the waterfront. The eventual built result is “a vibrant hard and soft landscape in a wonderful homage to Roberto Burle Marx and Rio’s Copacabana,” Nigel Westbrook writes in his review of Elizabeth Quay.

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An unrealized scheme for Perth’s Old Treasury Buildings precinct. Image:

With Architecture Studio

Perth’s Old Treasury Buildings heritage precinct was the subject of another unsuccessful scheme. The WA government originally appointed Peter Elliott Architecture and Urban Design, Donaldson and Warn, Sandover Pinder, and Palassis Architects to redesign and redevelop the precinct. The resulting plan would have refurbished the Old Treasury Buildings and created a new multi-storey office block, which would have faced Barrack Street. However, this too fell foul of political forces – though the project was later revived with a design led by Kerry Hill Architects as part of the Mirvac Fini consortium.
Perth Unbuilt is on exhibition at WA Museum Boola Bardip until 30 March 2023. More

Architectus and Henning Larsen have designed a 40-storey tower that will be covered in greenery as a “catalyst project” for the heart of Brisbane’s CBD.
It is the first development application within the Albert Street Cross River Rail Priority Development Area. If approved, the tower will sit on the corner of Albert and Mary Streets opposite a proposed station.
The mixed-use tower will accommodate workplaces, retail and hospitality venues, and a range of civic spaces. It will also create a highly permeable public realm and pedestrian experience on Albert and Mary Streets that will be comfortable year-round.
The project is an “opportunity to create a distinctive urban marker,” proponents said in the development application.
Dubbed the “Rainforest Tower,” the project will be part of a proposed Albert Street green spine. Cascading vertical greenery and varying floor plates at the lower storeys will create multi-level visual interest.

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Proposed “Rainforest Tower” by Architectus and Henning Larsen. Image:

Architectus and Henning Larsen

“The terraced landscaping on the ground plane and podium facade will contribute to making these future spaces more vibrant,” proponents said.
The concept for the tower was inspired by a study trip to Mount Glorious, which is north-west of Brisbane, and reflects the story of the rainforest Binbilla – the area on the Brisbane CBD peninsula’s southern tip.
“The design of the project has been done in close dialogue with Blaklash and the Fulcrum Agency who are facilitating a dialogue and feedback process with the Traditional Custodians of the land,” proponents said.
“The Albert Street Tower will connect to country by creating comfortable habitats for native flora and fauna up through the building.”
The base of the tower references the creek bed through the materiality of the ground floor. Lower levels evoke the rainforest understory, while the highest levels represent the canopy.
Proponents said they envision an “inclusive and magnetic destination of global standing, embracing the youthful Brisbane culture and unique sub-tropical climate.” More

The board of DevelopmentWA has approved Woods Bagot’s design for a 21-storey mixed-use tower in the Perth City Link precinct. Perth City Link is a 13.5-hectare precinct that will reconnect the CBD and Northbridge for the first time in 100 years by sinking the railway line and bus station underground. The precinct spans from Yagan […] More

A state significant development application for a historic site in Sydney’s The Rocks precinct. Nestled between Cambridge, Argyle and Harrington Streets, the site at 35-75 Harrington Street has multiple street frontages, with strategic views overlooking Sydney Opera House, Sydney Harbour and the Harbour Bridge. The application is for the demolition of the Clocktower Square building […] More