2020 National Architecture Awards: National Commendation for Commercial Architecture

Jury citation

The design of Daramu House proceeds from its predecessor and neighbour by the same architect and client, International House, which was acknowledged with the National Award for Commercial Architecture in 2018.

The same important themes of timber technology are notable in Daramu House, but with a larger and more flexible structural grid. A grand colonnade to Hickson Road frames the streetscape and there is a real relish evident in the use of natural materials that have been finely detailed and crafted. This evolution of the streetscape completes Scotch Row, culminating in a sculpted northern corner that liberates the architecture from its rectilinear office floor.

Daramu House and International House have become exemplars for an office alternative in which substantial benefits include timber interiors, high-speed construction, and – of paramount importance – the sequestering of carbon within the structure.

Project credits

Architect Tzannes; Project team Jonathan Evans, Alec Tzannes, Dijana Tasevska, Tony Lam, Kimberley Merlino, Chris Taylor, Devonne Coll, Karina Dorman, Nicholas Cheung, Nicole Larkin, Peter Langford, Rena Wang, Sarah Reid; Builder Lendlease; Structural engineer (timber) Lendlease Design Make; Structural engineer (concrete) Arcadis; Acoustic engineer Wilkinson Murry; Facade engineer Inhabit; Mechanical and electrical engineer, ESD consultant, lighting and comms Lendlease Applied Insight; Hydraulic and fire services consultant Warren Smith and Partners.

Daramu House is located in Barangaroo, New South Wales, on the land of the Gadigal people of the Eora nation.