INTERNATIONAL
Images from Henry Williams’s winning entry for the Sixth International Student Design Competition.
Images from Henry Williams’s winning entry for the Sixth International Student Design Competition.
Images from Henry Williams’s winning entry for the Sixth International Student Design Competition.
Images from Henry Williams’s winning entry for the Sixth International Student Design Competition.
Henry Williams, an architecture student at UAdelaide has won first prize in the Sixth International Student Design Competition, A Writers Retreat, run by the Commonwealth Association of Architects. Two Australian students were also included in the Honorary mentions: Rebecca Murphy, from QUT and Foo Suk Yin, from UTasmania.
NATIONAL
William Aiden Durack and Keith Neighbour have been awarded Centenary of Federation Medals ›› The RAIA and Archicentre have released a new report looking at the impact of planning systems in Australia. David Parken describes the outcome as showing that “the planning process in Australia has become a game of chance with a lack of consistency resulting in a can of worms of expensive and confusing regulations posing a threat to the Australian economy, the building industry and the future planning of our cities.” The report finds that planning approval delays in Victoria are the worst in the country ›› After much debate and amendment, the Commonwealth Heritage Bills passed through the Senate on 21 August. The amended bills now need to be passed by the House of Representatives. The new national heritage regime will establish a National Heritage List, appoint a group of heritage experts to the Australian Heritage Council, which will assess nominations and make recommendations to the Minister about the heritage values of nominated places. It will dispense with the Australian Heritage Commission. However, concerns have been raised that many currently listed properties may no longer be afforded protection, and that the independence of the current system will go. The Australian Conservation Foundation comments that “The legislation white-ants the independence of the Australian Heritage Commission, politicises the selection process for places on the National and Commonwealth Heritage Lists, and removes key government decisions from scrutiny” ›› Carolyn Varney, principal of DesignInc, was awarded the Building Commission Award for Outstanding Achievement as a Businesswoman at the NAWIC Women In Construction Awards ›› The National Museum of Australia is the overall winner in the Cement and Concrete Association of Australia’s Public Domain Awards ›› Andy Chen of UQueensland has won the Peter MacCallum Practice Prize ›› Sue Averay, RAIA general manager regional affairs and RAIA SA Chapter manager has left the Institute after nine years ›› Michael Ostwald of UNewcastle, and Brent Allpress of RMIT are editing Architectural Design Research, a new annual journal focussing on project-based design research and associated discourse and published in affliation with the Association of Architecture Schools of Australasia.
VICTORIA
Zahava Elenberg, of Elenberg Fraser, has won the Victorian Telstra Young Business Woman of the Year Award ›› The Australian Council of National Trusts’ 2003 list of endangered places includes: Melbourne inner suburbs Carlton and Fitzroy ›› BKK Architects are curating Lite II, the Melbourne section of a one-night installation event for the international Faites de la Lumiere light festival. Occurring on 8 November at Bus Gallery. The project invites young architects construct conceptual installations which explore light’s ability to transform spaces – with a budget of $25 or less. The night is part of the worldwide series of events ›› Gray Puksand has appointed Alexandra Little as manager, workspace design ›› The St Kilda Pier kiosk burnt down in mid- September, generating much public debate about how it might be replaced ›› A Failed Experiment: The Performance of Victoria’s New Format Planning Schemes, a report conducted by RMIT’s Michael Buxton, Robin Goodman and Trevor Budge, has found that only one of the planning systems’ six major aims – strategic planning – is being achieved. The report claims that this is an effect of the reduction in regulation and the reliance on unclear or uncertain policies ›› Staughton Architects and 4Site spoke at Process @ Loop, an RAIA Younger Members Committee initiative to discuss the “goings on” behind the architectural process ›› Dr Eija Nieminen, Director of Designium, University of Art and Design, Finland, and Professor Mike Berry, senior research associate at lab.3000, spoke at the forum Tale of Two Cities: Helsinki and Melbourne, Dynamic Drivers of Design Policy and Cluster Development.
NEW SOUTH WALES
The Historic Houses Trust has bought a copy of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Wasmuth portfolio, given by Wright to Australian Captain George Taylor. The purchase was assisted by a number of donors including Harry and Penelope Seidler, Allen Jack + Cottier, and Robert Albert ›› The outcome of the design competition for the German International School in Sydney has been announced. The winner is Staab Architekten BDA, Berlin. Second and third places went to Kauffman Thellig and Partner Freie Arkiteketen, Ostfidern, and MISGISISISI, Buenos Aires, respectively. A collaboration between Sydney practice Edward Szewczyk + Associates Architects and Bylica Architekten, Frankfurt, achieved fourth place ›› Country Road’s new flagship store, with facades by Tanner Architects and interiors by Geyer, has opened on Sydney’s Pitt Street Mall. The new facades incorporate modern shopfronts and awnings with grand sandstone temple elements created for the Australasian Mutual Fire Insurance Company in 1877 ›› John Walsh, well-known member of the Country Division of the RAIA, died in a tragic accident on a building site on the 27 August. Born and educated in Sydney, John lived and practiced in Port Macquarie. He is survived by his wife Lyn, daughters Lee and Annie and son Jake ›› The RAIA NSW Chapter’s annual yacht race is on once again on 20 November ›› Richard Leplastrier, Neville Gruzman, Brian Suters, Clinton Murray, Col Madigan and Dr Ayman Wanas, Cairo, were among the speakers at Mastering Architecture, the RAIA Country Division Conference on the NSW north coast ›› Scott Moylan and Craig Saltmarsh have been appointed as partners in Gray Puksand’s Sydney office ›› The State Government has announced the Building Sustainability Index, a new pointsbased water and energy efficiency regulation system to replace existing council regulations ›› Mid September saw the Architects Bill 2003 return to the Legislative Assembly for its second reading ›› Douglas Gordon, Michael Dysart and engineer Peter Miller are the latest speakers in the Historic Houses Trust’s Meet the Architects series ›› Art and architectural historian Dr Phillip Kent died on June 2 ›› Late August and early September saw Sculpture in the City, a series of installations at Martin Place, Sydney, by Ken Unsworth, Richard Goodwin, Michael Le Grand, Claire Healy and Angus Adameitis ›› Home, an exhibition of photographs by photographer Lisa Anne shows at Tusculum in November ›› The nine practices selected to work on Walker Corporation’s Rhodes Waterside development on Sydney’s upper harbour have made a presentation to the Sydney Harbour Foreshore Design Review Panel. The architects are Cox Richardson, Huxley and Associates, Crone Nation, Turner & Associates, Tanner & Associates, Frank Stanisic, Marchese Partners, Allen Jack + Cottier and Bates Smart ›› Peddle Thorp and Walker and HPA are the architects for a commercial development by Tuscan Corporation at 8 Windmill, Street Millers Point,Walsh Bay ›› Hassell has appointed Caroline Diesner as principal. She will jointly lead the Sydney interior design team with Steve Fitts ›› Alison Jones won the UNSW RAIA MGT Sydney/Francis-Jones Morehen Thorp Graduation Prize in Architecture ›› David Sutherland won the UNewcastle RAIA GSA Architects Graduation Prize in Architecture ›› Peta Hewett won the UTS RAIA Crone Nation Graduation Prize in Architecture ›› Berlin-based Axel Schultes Architekten, winner of the 1993 international Spreebogen competition for the design of the new government quarter in Germany, spoke to the RAIA NSW Chapter in September ›› Col James, CRASH* co-ordinator, led a guided tour through the Waverley Incinerator, Green Square, the first CRASH* site to show how it will be used to house homeless people while awaiting redevelopment ›› The second symposium for Take 2 – Housing Design in Indigenous Australia was held in Sydney in October ›› RIHS Architects has completed the upgrade of Qantas House at 1 Chifley Square ›› The RAIA hosted the Harry Seidler Celebratory Dinner in honour of his 80th birthday and to mark his “outstanding contribution to architecture” ›› Dr Rob Lang is the new chief executive officer of Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority ›› The National Trust (NSW) is campaigning to save the 1935 Granville Olympic Pool, by Rudder and Grout, which Parramatta City Council intends to demolish as part of its redevelopment of the John Devitt Pool complex ›› John Worthington, architect and deputy chairman of DEGW, gave this year’s Neil Hanson Memorial Lecture. The annual lecture commemorates the life and work of Neil Hanson (1959-2001), “an awardwinning architect with a profound interest in the interdependency of management, productivity and the built environment” ›› UTS has awarded Glenn Murcutt a Doctor of Letters (honoris causa) “in recognition of an outstanding contribution to the field of architecture” Murcutt delivered the occasional address at the Faculty of Design, Architecture and Building and the Faculty of Engineering graduation ceremony.
QUEENSLAND
Speakers in the QUT Talks Series for semester 2 included: Gabriel Poole, Leon van Schaik, Andrew Saniga, Nicholas Murcutt, Neil Durbach, Richard Kirk and Ian Moore ›› A team comprising architects Gall & Medek, tourism consultants ATS Group, planner Geoffrey Walker, economists SRA Consulting, the Bungil Shire Council and the local community are working to develop a new Tourism and Economic Strategy for the small town of Injune. Stage 1, new community and tourist facilities is currently in design development ›› The Gold Coast Urban Design Awards, judged by Ken McBryde, Quentin Stevens, Trish Menzies, Ursula Kerr, Brian Whaley and Brian Mossop, were announced in early September. The Gold Award went to Aria, Broadbeach, by Place Planning and Design and Sunland Design. The Education Award went to Walk: An Urban Design Framework for Nerang, by Vaughan Bowden of the University of Technology. Built Project Awards went to Varsity College (Preparatory and Junior School), by Daryl Jackson Architects; Aria, Broadbeach, by Place Planning and Design and Sunland Design; Burleigh Heads Centre Improvement Program (streetscape), by Gold Coast City Council CIP; Southport Library, by James Cubitt Architects; and Varsity Lakes Master Planned Community, by Delfin Lend Lease. People’s Choice Award went to Southport Library by James Cubitt Architects ›› The Centre for Sub-Tropical Design was launched in early October. A partnership between Brisbane City Council and QUT, the centre is an outcome of the council’s Living in Brisbane 2010. It aims to “promote high-quality planning, design and development that responds to the city and the south-east Queensland region’s cultural, landscape and climatic characteristics in ways that are sustainable, appropriate and enhance the enjoyment of the city-region’s subtropical lifestyle.” Recently appointed QUT adjunct professors, Peter Richards, Jim Gall and Mark Thompson, will play a key role in leading the centre ›› Gall & Medek have written design codes for a new eco-village at Coomera, developed by Landmatters. The codes define the design process rather than prescribing the parameters of the buildings and landscape. The development now has Preliminary Development Approval ›› Conrad Gargett Architects head the design teams for RAAF Base Townsville Redevelopment Stage 2, Oakey Army Aviation Base Redevelopment, Lavarack Barracks – Industrial Stage 3, all currently being constructed, and the 1st Aviation Darwin Relocation, in concept design phase.
AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY
Tanner Architects has been appointed to rebuild the Australian National University’s Mount Stromlo Observatory, burnt out in the bush fires of January, 2003 ›› The suburbs of O’Connor, Ainslie, Braddon, Reid, Turner, Red Hill, Yarralumna, Forrest and Griffith have been removed from the Heritage Trust’s endangered list following approval of Draft Variation 200 which aims to preserve the character and streetscape of these garden suburbs ›› Anne Skewes is the chief executive officer of the ACT Land Development Agency, which replaces the Land Group in the Department of Urban Services, and incorporates the Kingston Foreshore Development Authority and the Gungahlin Development Authority ›› Controversy surrounds the National Capital Authority’s termination of the contract for The Fan, an 18-metre sculpture by Jennifer Turpin and Michalie Crawford which won the competition for a monument to commemorate 100 years of women’s suffrage. Problems appears to have arisen after the competition proceeded without the site having been approved ›› The Civic West draft masterplan has been released, including options for the redevelopment of West Basin, which provide a rare opportunity for development by Lake Burley Griffin.
NORTHERN TERRITORY
The State Government has announced plans to redevelop the 25 hectare wharf precint on Darwin’s waterfront. A new convention and exhibition centre will be the precinct’s foundation project ›› Bovis Lend Lease has upgraded the Emu Walk Apartments at Uluru into contemporary four-star accommodation.
WESTERN AUSTRALIA
Geoffrey London has been appointed to the newly created position of Government Architect ›› The Perth Convention Exhibition Centre, by Cox Howlett & Bailey Woodland, opened at the end of August.
SOUTH AUSTRALIA
Detail from According to Plan by Jena Woodburn and Ben Howard.
According to Plan, a collaborative installation by artist/curator Jena Woodburn and architect Ben Howard which used the language of architectural plans and drawings to explore contemporary conceptions of space, showed at the Contemporary Art Centre of SA in September ›› Williams Burton Architects are refurbishing the Illaparra Cellar, Tanunda, for Grant Burge Wines ›› Speakers at UAdelaide’s Constructing Environments talk series included: Nick Tridente, Tridente Architects; Jacky Bowring, Lincoln University, NZ; and Richard Marshall, EDAW, San Francisco ›› Rob Cowan, director of the UK-based Urban Design Group and head of the secretariat of the UK Urban Design Alliance spoke on 2 October ›› Rachel Hurst is curating a one-day architecture symposium as part of the Artist’s Week for next year’s Adelaide Festival .
FIXES
The photograph of the Brisbane Powerhouse included in the round up of the RAIA Queensland Awards (September/ October 2003) was incorrectly credited. The photographer is Graham Meltzer.
›› The RAIA Queensland Regional Awards listing in Radar Headlines (July/August 2003) omitted to mention that the Award the Conservation of Blackall Woolscour was for stages 6-10 of that project.
›› The name of Winton Shire Council’s representative, Peter Klem, was misspelt the credits for the Lark Quarry Trackways Building (September/October 2003). The credits should also have included David Meakin, Lew Marshall and Leanne Bowman from Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service.
