Flotilla x Vecina | Derive Architecture & Design
The design for Flotilla and Vecina are as neigbouring restaurant and bar based in Wickham Newcastle. In Flotilla, the kitchen is placed front and centre to bring a sense of theatre to the experience. Vecina extends this activity in areas that offers a place for the patrons to grab an aperitif before heading into Flotilla to dine.
The project transforms a very small remnant tenancy into a flowing space, connecting the bar with the street and adjacent restaurant. The interior design responds delicately and skilfully to the tight site constraints and project brief to resolve the second chapter to Flotillas offering. The compact interior footprint required the bar configuration and the seating arrangement to be well considered.
The natural and low maintenance material palette continues into the bar space. The natural leather furniture softens the sharp angles of the acute geometry, taking cues from the banquette seating in Flotilla.
Yukari House | Tanev Muir Architects
A balanced renovation kindles additional amenity with site connectivity – enabling a stronger weave between the sense of place and the comforts of belonging. In Yukari House, local natural materiality and craftmanship connect with rhythmic and site intentional detailing. The result is a home which focuses on enhancing social relationships and compliments the experience of the surrounding country, inspiring a good yarn
UQ Brisbane City | BVN
In 2019, The University of Queensland (UQ) purchased the state heritage listed building, 308 Queen Street and its 2008 tower extension. The scheme establishes a distinctive, state-of-the art learning environment through the through the conversion of the historic bank and modern commercial tower, providing new settings for postgraduate students within the Architecture and Business Schools, alongside a hub for UQ alumni.
Three key space types were identified: Teaching Suites, Creative Suites, and a series of unique Engagement Spaces. Collectively they provide both informal and formal teaching and learning environments at varying scales, from individual to group and large format.
STEAM Precinct Brisbane Grammar School | Wilson Architects
The STEAM Precinct is an integrated multidisciplinary education facility which is not simply a new science building but rather reflects a whole of school approach pedagogically, physically and culturally.
Highly flexible classrooms wrap around a four-story high incubator space with suspended group study Petri dishes pods that give the space its character and reinforce the intended behavior around creative thinking.
The building explores themes from interconnected extended learning, highly pedagogically flexible teaching spaces and creating environments that invest in student directed/owned independent and collaborative space. The resulting innovation pushes the boundaries of team teaching, multidisciplinary learning and peer support.
Wilam Ngarrang Retrofit | Kennedy Nolan with Finding Infinity
Wilam Ngarrang is a minimalintervention retrofit of a 1970s apartment block in Fitzroy, it is Australia’s first plus energy retrofit of an apartment block. The purpose of transforming this building was to create an example for the city. A financially replicable model of low environmental impact retrofit concentrating on improving thermal performance, extending the lifespan of the building and increasing amenity for tenants. Importantly, there is also an emphasis on creating a sense of domestic comfort, on making places for people which are warm, welcoming and beautiful, in their own modest way. The design of the project was a partnership between Kennedy Nolan and Finding Infinity, regular collaborators on a diverse range of projects.
Up There | Kennedy Nolan
As part of a major refresh of the Up There brand, Kennedy Nolan was asked to design a new flagship store on Flinders Lane. The brief called for the theatrical, cinematic, abstract, curated, expansive and memorable. . Each element of the store has been considered through a rich and enjoyable collaboration with a designliterate Client: from the shimmering surfaces of flat and galvanised steel and the elevated experience of the fitting rooms with their secret salon, to the roughcast texture of the concession shells
Transurban | Bates Smart
Transurbans new workplace, located in Sydneys Poly Centre, achieves elegance by focusing on the essentials only. The base building architecture with its long, skinny floorplates, double height spaces and large concrete buttresses helped us to derive three interior principles.
1.Focus on simple but strong ideas, to sit cohesively within the base building.
2.Play with volume and shape, to buffer the space and create key moments of welcome and effect.
3.Prioritise the workzones to have just as much intent and impact as frontofhouse spaces.
The client floor avoids embellishment, instead demonstrating a few bold moves from the moody arrival in the lift lobby to the impressive glass conference rooms. A simple stair connects to the workfloors below, where workstations are reduced in density and illuminated by diffuse light. The interior cleverly integrates a material palette that speaks to Transurbans portfolio Sydney stone, concrete, steel and digital artworks.
Tiwu Kumangka (Blackwood Library and Community Centre) | DesignInc
Tiwu Kumangka’ celebrates the coming together of community services and a library within the hills-based suburb of Blackwood. The project is a catalyst for the revitalisation of the town centre, catering to the needs of locals and responding to the council’s vision for a vibrant and active public realm. Tiwu Kumangka responds to its local context with a natural material palette and architectural details referencing the wide variety of landscapes within the City of Mitcham. The building’s scale, visibility, and accessibility invite the community to wander through its central ‘street’, providing pedestrian access to the adjoining street, shops, cafes, and Waite Street Reserve. The transparency and permeability of the building’s design promote the shared experiences and activities within. Shifts in volume and scale invite enquiry, connection, creativity and exploration through flexible community spaces.
Michael Kirby Building | Hassell
The Michael Kirby Building at Macquarie University tells a story of sustainable adaptation and growth, crafting new gathering spaces that encourage interaction and promote the exchange of ideas.
The design utilises the concrete framework of a pre-existing administration building as a foundation for a new timber structural system. The transformation extends beyond the structural, replacing the concrete shell with a transparent, glazed façade directly connecting the building to the tree canopy along Wally’s Walk.
A previously exposed courtyard is now transformed into an enclosed, naturally ventilated atrium space. A series of skylights provide controlled lighting, providing equal parts sun and shade.
The decision to re-use rather than fully demolish has extended the life of the building. Creating a high quality crafted timber interior speaks to Macquarie University’s ongoing commitment to a sustainable campus.
Canberra Grammar School Centre of Music and Snow Concert Hall | Cox Architecture
COXs proposal the CGS Centre of Music and Snow Concert Hall was selected by the competition jury for its originality, innovation, and integration with its heritage context. The design proposed the 1400 seat auditorium be built underground with music rooms of various sizes placed adjacent, forming a plinth for the heritage buildings behind/above. Additional uses that went beyond the requirements of the brief were suggested as result of the additional space generated by the siting strategy. Critical to this approach is a three-dimensional circulation system that integrates both new and old movement patterns into a series of new circuits and points of entry/egress. A new library now sits atop the ceremonial front door of the campus, overlooking the historic Dining Hall, Quadrangle to the South, and Main Oval to the North. The intent was to enhance the context and not design from a tabula rasa.
