BVN Brisbane Studio

2022 National Architecture Awards: The Emil Sodersten Award for Interior Architecture

BVN Brisbane Studio | BVN

Traditional Land Owners: The Turrbal and Jagera people

IDEA
Our scheme firstly acknowledges the studio as being one part of an extended range of work settings – including work from home. It, therefore, prioritises collective spaces, enabling physical and hybrid interactions that maximise opportunities for knowledge transfer. In addition to classic spaces for face-to-face interactions, the refinement of technology-enabled spaces that allow engagement and collaboration between team members both physically and digitally ‘present’ became an imperative.

TECHNIQUE
Connection to Country is the paradigm at the centre of the spatial arrangements. Settings, tracks, material selections and detail are conceived to remind and amplify this connection, which begins with acknowledgement and celebration of the site’s geology, endemic flora and fauna, along with First Nations occupation.

Surfaces are moulded as though terrain, plantings and material colours are conceived as a palimpsest of original occupation. The presence of the fig grove, along with river glimpses are constant reminders of Country.

JURY CITATION

From the moment visitors arrive at the BVN Brisbane Studio, they become participants in a different way of working and being. Leaving the lift, one is embraced by the library, filled with knowledge and images that inspire the people within. Through the open shelves, the heart of the office is visible – a gathering space for the staff adjacent to the semi-enclosed verandah beneath the giant fig trees in the street. Visually and viscerally connected to place, the design caresses our senses and encourages a more nature-centred approach to life.

The office is fitted out to enable transparent, flexible and collaborative ways of working. Appropriate technology, along with both open-plan and more intimate spaces, provide multiple ways of working. Materials and furniture are selected to both nurture and inspire people, so that they can create equally beautiful spaces for their clients.

This experimental approach to the inside of a standard office building, stemming from the practice’s vision for the future of architecture, clearly demonstrates the benefits of different ways of being in the world, especially in an inner-city urban work environment.

Client perspective:
How does the design benefit the way you live/work/play/operate/educate/other?

In 2019, we decided to move our studio into the BVN designed Annex building given several key opportunities:
To leverage the distinctive urban character afforded through the base building public realm and fig grove composition,
To deliver a memorable studio identity derived through both experiential delight & professional success, &
To maximise comfort through genuine connection to the natural environment and Country.
These objectives were amplified in our response to pandemic related workplace challenges – resulting in the very successful delivery of a range of work settings (& implied work modes), prioritising both physical & hybrid engagement spaces imbued with experiences not found at home.

Practice team:

Danika Nixon, Graduate of Architecture
Michelle Rehn, Graduate of Architecture
Glen Millar, Project Architect
Kevin O’Brien, Principal Architect

Brian Donovan, Principal Architect

Builder:

FDC Construction & Fitout, QLD

Construction team:

Steven Clegg, Design Landscape Consultant
Knisco, Certifier
Stantec, Acoustic Consultant Acoustic Engineer
LCI Consultants, Mechanical, Electrical, Hydraulic Engineer
Tim Brosnan, Acuity Project Management Project Manager