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 design–literate 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

Victorian Heart Hospital | Conrad Gargett – now merged with Architectus + Wardle

The Victorian Heart Hospital (VHH) is the southern hemisphere’s first dedicated cardiac hospital, a place for clinical care, cutting edge research, treatment and education of the next generation of health professionals. The architecture, interiors, facility and clinical planning consider the impact of the built environment on the health and wellness of all users and has been guided by strong clinical and patient voices. The hospital is a valuable place within the university campus and wider community with its capacity to save and change lives.
The VHH is a building for people, a place of work and treatment – the design contributes to the wellbeing of patients, clinicians and staff and aids patient recovery through its spatial qualities, amenity and materiality. Natural light permeates through the building, with the open central courtyard providing a landscaped space for viewing and occupying, it imparts the visual relief of nature which is evident throughout.

Thornbury Canopy | Gab Olah

Located in the north facing backyard of a ‘60s yellow brick house, Thornbury Canopy is an operable shading device, and flexible outdoor living space. It is designed to be an adaptable alternative to the typical verandahs (Stratco etc.), often bolted on to suburban buildings, at a comparable cost.

550 Spencer Street – Catching the Sun | Kennon

550 Spencer Street is the first building in Australia to produce energy from its own façade.

Remediating a contaminated former petrol station the new formal composition references the post war modernist commercial architecture in Melbourne wrapped in an Australian first highly technical façade system, 550 Spencer Street is a striking contemporary architecture founded on performative principals controlled with a restrained elegance.
Product innovation is a significant contributor to 550 Spencer and contribution to our building industry. An idea that was developed and processed through an arduous assessment criterion to be deemed fit for purpose to the Australian Code of Construction is now available to the industry wide.

Sensitively addressing the residential interfaces and the existing high street context of Spencer Street, 550 Spencer Street contributes to an exciting emerging mixed use precinct on the city fringe through a dynamic façade considered pedestrian experience.

The Nursery on Brunswick | Clare Cousins Architects

Previously home to the Fitzroy Nursery for over 40 years, locals have come to know and love this place as a verdant and open–air respite within the tough urban fabric of the high street. The Nursery on Brunswick is a mixed–used building with retail, commercial and residential tenancies that all benefit from the red brick, north facing atrium–like garden at the centre of site.

Countering more typical yield–focused developments in the area, the atrium prioritises quality of amenity over maximum density, providing light, greenery, garden views and amenity to both tenants and the public realm.

The Roundtable | Common & Enlocus

The Roundtable is a temporary 7m diameter communal table filled with edible plants, located in the Errol St Reserve, North Melbourne. Commissioned for the post–COVID City Activation Grant program, the Roundtable has positively contributed to it’s community, hosting events and serving as a gathering space – a place for harvesting herbs, working, eating, and interacting.
The design minimizes environmental impact, using digital tools for optimal material use. The table’s folded geometry reduces material consumption, while its parts slot together easily, assembled by two people in half a day. The structure uses FSC plywood, and a mild steel top for weather resilience and longevity. All materials are recyclable or up–cyclable, extending its benefit beyond its installation period
The Roundtable offers a place to gather, share, and connect, promoting social interaction and environmental consciousness through urban food plants. It’s a testament to how small, community–focused design can positively impact the world.

The Boronggook Drysdale Library | Antarctica Architects and Architecture Associates

Boronggook Drysdale’s two levels of library sit under an undulating native planted roof and are wrapped in a gnarly brick skin. At its centre is a garden courtyard with its Bellarine Eucalypt illuminating the reading room. At the lower level a watery green palette and a reflective soffit open onto a new amphitheatre and park. The big volume of the upper level reading room is earthy in palette and reconnects views to the town streetscape and sky. These two levels are set to reconcile and reconnect the hill of Drysdale via a bridge and a reworked shopping mall street below. Drawing equally on the 19th century fragments of the town, and a landscape/ waterhole sensibility, the project plugs an urban hole left by a supermarket’s rear, and turns its face back to the old high street junction.

The Boulevard | Archier

Equal parts landscape and house, The Boulevard is predominantly underground, overcoming the challenge of a steep topography by building into the hillside, concealing the structure as much as possible, and using the garden to extend the environment of the Yarra Flats into the site and mind. Entering the property via roof–top parking, winding landscape stairs and stone water feature descend through foliage to the entry hall, offering a view out over the back garden.

This project embraces a small yet efficient floorplan, decreasing the building’s impact and cost. The relationship with the surrounding garden is crucial to the house’s spacious feel, embracing, enhancing, and extending the ecosystem of the surrounding environment.
Surrounding earth offers thermal stability to the building, adding an insulative effect and improving sustainability. Connection to landscape is accentuated by extensive use of operable glass offering views between spaces and across internal courtyards.

Stewart | SSdH

‘Stewart’ celebrates the 1970s brown, brick–veneer, Brunswick house – a quintessential element of Melbourne’s built character that defines a period within Australia’s recent history but is yet to be recognised as having heritage value.

The employed strategy focuses on a combination of new elements and light touch design interventions to provide significant impact. Internally, an intentional blending of new and existing conditions leaves viewers questioning where interventions begin and end.

This approach not only preserves the architectural significance and character but also considers the economic and environmental impact, proving that minimal intervention is a valid response in today’s climate. The success of the project opens doors for others by demonstrating the accessibility of thoughtful architecture. This impact extends beyond the immediate project – it begins to shape the potential future of surrounding suburbs as they evolve, recognising that their inherent value and ongoing contribution to our city is worth protecting.

Sweetwater House | Christopher Botterill and Jackson Clements Burrows Architects

Located in Frankston South on Bunurong Country and backing onto Narringalling (Sweetwater Creek), Sweetwater House provides flexibility and sanctuary for our family of four. Designed and built during Melbourne’s Covid lockdowns, the home reflects an inventive response to low–cost, multi–generational living while telling a story of personal and ecological renewal.
Drawing on knowledge and experience gleaned from previous mass–timber projects, the home was constructed using a prefabricated construction methodology.
Our ambition was to create a materially honest and highly sustainable home. We developed a plan arrangement that could adapt to the changing needs of two teenage children and allow for multi–generational living. The gravitational heart is an open plan living room and kitchen overlooking the creek. Encircled by tree ferns and eucalypts, the home’s warm timber palette nurtures a sense of welcome and calm.