Geelong oval redevelopment underway

Geelong oval redevelopment underway

The fifth and final stage of the redevelopment of the Kardinia Park stadium – or GMHBA Stadium – in Geelong is set to get underway once the AFL season ends in September.

Replacing the aging Gary Ablett Terrace and the Ford Stand, the final stage will see the development of a 14,000-capacity, two-tier northern stand that will increase the stadium’s capacity to more than 40,000.

The $142 million project will also include a new northern plaza and “cricket hub” which will establish a new forecourt and entrance.

Populous and Urbis are leading the design, the same design team behind the previous stages.

Kardina Park, or GMHBA Stadium, stage 5 redevelopment by Populous and Urbis.

The new stand will include facilities for professional and community sport, including unisex change rooms, and administration facilities for the Geelong Cricket Club.

The Office of the Victorian Government Architect praised the architectural expression of the project during the planning approval process.

“The tripartite approach breaks down the mass of the singular object and the chosen materials are working cohesively,” it said. “Given the need to tie into the existing canopy architecture, the proposed continuation of the same geometry of folds creates an elegant diagram.

As the formal gateway entrance to the stadium this aspect provides a skyline contribution and backdrop to the plaza. The exterior expression is a critical investment in design quality. The over sailing darts will have a fabulous presence and with careful up lighting on the façade, soffit and upper seating tier can create a wonderful atmosphere at night.

“The materiality of the base brickwork gives the stadium a solid foundation.”

Previous stages in the stadium’s redevelopment included the $26 million Hickey Stand, opened in 2005; the $30 million Premiership Stand, opened in 2010; the $47 million Players Stand, opened in 2013; and the $90 million Brownlow Stand, which opened in 2017.

The Victorian government has announced that construction firm BESIX Watpac will deliver the fifth stage.

written by : ArchitectureAU Editorial
12 Aug 2021
published in : architectureau.com

Updated Melbourne Metro Tunnel station design unveiled

melbourne metro tunnel station design
melbourne metro tunnel station design

Updated Melbourne Metro Tunnel station design unveiled

The Victorian government has unveiled updated designs for Ardern Station in North Melbourne, part of the Metro Tunnel station project, collaboratively designed by Hassell, Weston Williamson and Rogers Stirk Harbour and Partners.
Updates to the design included in the new Development Plan contain the provision of a series of public grassed areas interspersed with tree planting, and improved station access with repositioned entry gates and the reorientation of entry ramps on Laurens Street.

The entrance will now feature 15 soaring brick arches, down from the planned 16. These are being built off-site and will be delivered to the station and installed over the coming months.

There will also be a separated, raised bike path on the west side of Laurens Street and the planned Station Lane will be widened to make more space for vehicles.

While the previous Development Plan had the ground level raising locally around the skylight, the design for ground level is now relatively flat, allowing for the skylights to appear raised.

The government said that work is well advanced on the station, with platform construction beginning in March, continuing alongside the installation of the over-track exhaust system and tunnel floor slab.

melbourne metro tunnel station design

“Arden Station was where we launched our first tunnel boring machine almost two years ago, and with tunnelling now complete we’ll see the station take shape in coming months and years,” said transport minister Jacinta Allan.

The Metro Tunnel will connect the Sunbury Line to the Cranbourne and Pakenham lines with five new underground stations and will provide a future direct link to Melbourne Airport Rail.

The updated designs are on exhibition until 27 August.

written by : ArchitectureAU Editorial
10 Aug 2021
published in : architectureau.com

Brisbane tower inspired by Queenslanders

brisbane tower queenslanders
brisbane tower queenslanders dko

Brisbane tower inspired by Queenslanders

An apartment tower proposed for Brisbane has been designed to reference surrounding Queenslanders that appear to be perched on top of each other in hilly Toowong.

Designed by DKO, the 14-storey apartment block at 24-28 Lissner Avenue captures views of the city and river to the north-east and towards Mount Coot-tha to the west.

“The tower form is inspired by driving around Toowong and seeing Queenslanders perched on top of each other as they nestle within the hilly landscape,” DKO states in planning documents.
“A tapestry of balconies, column grids and battens are interspersed with landscape and birdsong. The tower reflects this structural discipline, expressed as a series of posts, columns, slabs and beams.”

brisbane tower queenslanders

The podium would also make reference to the local heritage-listed Regatta Hotel, the veiled masonry podium recalling the fine, intricate fretwork of that famous hotel.

The development would deliver 101 apartments across its 14 levels and would include a rooftop recreation deck with pool.
At ground level, the design prioritizes pedestrian experience of by providing a light and airy lobby. Balconies are designed as outdoor rooms, positioned on corners where possible, to take advantage of the breeze.

Landscape architecture for the project will be by Cusp.

written by : ArchitectureAU Editorial
3 Aug 2021
published in : architectureau.com

Australian projects feted in 2021 Inside awards

australian interiors projects
australian interiors projects

Australian projects feted in 2021 Inside awards

Ten Australian projects are among the finalists of the 2020/21 Inside World Festival Interiors Awards. More than 100 finalists across 11 categories have made the cut, including bars, restaurants, hotels, workplaces and homes.
The shortlisted practices will present their projects to juries during the Inside festival, co-located with the World Architecture Festival, which will be held in Lisbon from 1 to 3 December.

Australian projects fared well in the Workplace (large) category, making up close to one-third of the shortlist.

“This year’s entries are the strongest we have ever had, and we look forward to seeing the finalists in Lisbon,” said Paul Finch, director of the World Architecture Festival program.

Category winners will then compete with each other for the title of World Interior of the Year.

australian interiors projects

The Australian finalists

  • Education
    UTS Central – FJMT
  • Health and Fitness
    The Gandel Wing – Bates Smart
  • Public Buildings
    Sydney Coliseum Theatre – Cox Architecture
  • Retail
    David Jones Elizabeth Street – Benoy
    Sarah and Sebastian – Russell and George
  • Workplace (large)
    Arup Sydney – Hassell
    CBA Axle South Eveleigh – Woods Bagot
    Flinders Gate NextHome – Decibel Architecture
    Transurban Melbourne – Hassell
  • Workplace (small)
    Smart Design Studio – Smart Design Studio

written by : ArchitectureAU Editorial
27 Jul 2021
published in : architectureau.com

Gallery of Australian projects in 2021 Inside World Festival Interiors Awards

australian projects inside festival interiors award
australian interiors projects
australian interiors projects inside award
australian interiors projects
australian interiors projects
australian interiors projects in inside festival awards

3 Months To Go Expo 2020 Dubai Connects Minds and Creates the Future

3 Months To Go Expo 2020 Dubai Connects Minds and Creates the Future

With 3 months to go until the opening of Expo 2020 Dubai, on October 1st, the organizing committee has released updated images highlighting ready and completed pavilions. With officially 191 participating nations, the expo is seeking to “explore the power of connections in shaping our world”. Showcasing architecture, culture, and inspiring innovations, the world expo has been, for the past 170 years, the leading platform to introduce great inventions and architectural revolutions, most of which shaped the world we live in today.

Under the theme of “connecting minds and creating the future”, Expo 2020 Dubai will run from 1 October 2021 until 31 March 2022, after being delayed for one year due to the worldwide coronavirus situation. Located south of Dubai, the world expo’s master plan designed by HOK is centered on Al Wasl Plaza, by Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill, the world’s largest unsupported dome at the intersection of the expo’s three thematic districts and their corresponding pavilions: the Sustainability Pavilion “Terra” by Grimshaw, the Mobility Pavilion “Alif” by Foster + Partners, and the Opportunity Pavilion “Mission Impossible” by AGi Architects. The Thematic Districts, which will house over 87 new permanent buildings and host the work of more than 136 participating countries have been created by Hopkins Architects.

Taking place for the first time in the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia, Expo 2020 Dubai will include, other than the main architectural attractions, country pavilions divided onto the Sustainability, Mobility and Opportunity districts; special pavilions such as the Women’s Pavilion by e.construct; partner pavilions and organization pavilions like the African Union Pavilion.

written by : Christele Harrouk
13 Jul 2021
published in : archdaily.com

Gallery og 3 Months To Go Expo 2020 Dubai Connects Minds and Creates the Future

An urban lighthouse: 2021 MPavilion design released

An urban lighthouse: 2021 MPavilion design released

A “kaleidoscopic” design dubbed “the Light Catcher” has been revealed as the 2021 MPavilion, which will be installed in Melbourne’s Queen Victoria Gardens in November.

“The structure we imagine is a shimmering device that qualifies itself as an urban lighthouse that hosts and enlightens the cultural activities planned for the 2021 summer season in Melbourne,” said Traudy Pelzel of Map Design Studio from Venice, who was tapped to design the pavilion by the Naomi Milgrom Foundation.

“A kaleidoscopic structure that reflects and amplifies activities, people and colours. For this reason, we call it ‘The Light Catcher.’”
The pavilion will be made from a three-dimensional steel lattice structure, which in turn supports a series of mirror-finished aluminium coated panels that reflect the light, colours and activities around it. The lattice will be supported on a series of precast concrete pillars. 

The distinctive U-shape of the pillars and their smooth surface mean they can also be used for seating.
The floating structure will be grounded by an organically shaped and coloured surface. A separate kiosk will be used to shelter a service cart and store loose furniture.

Map Studio was originally appointed to design the 2020 MPavilion, however, construction was delayed due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 2021 MPavilion will occupy the Queen Victoria Gardens from 11 November 2021 until 20 March 2022, after which it will be gifted to the City of Melbourne and moved to a permanent location.

written by : ArchitectureAU Editorial
23 Jul 2021
published in : architectureau.com

Valentino Gareri Atelier Designs 3D-Printed Sunflower Community Village

Valentino Gareri Atelier Designs 3D-Printed Sunflower Community Village

Valentino Gareri Atelier has revealed design for a new 3D-printed residential village which will comprise 19 homes designed as “a new model of sustainable community village”, envisioned for low density and rural areas.

Called Sunflower Village, the project is developed with technology futurist & wellness consultant Steve Lastro of 6Sides and global wellness real estate and technology leaders Delos to propose more humanistic, sociological approach to residential technology & community living.

According to the team, the project emerged in response to the amount of people who wanted to escape from high-dense urban centers into small or remote space during the pandemic. The pandemic also encouraged a new ways of working, which has largely increased working-from-home friendly policies.

“The exodus from big cites to small towns and rural areas highlights the necessity of re-thinking about the requalification of these areas and defining a new model of city for the post-pandemic future,” said Valentino Gareri Atelier.
For a general layout, the architects take cues from a sunflower, the arrangement of the houses ‘follows’ the sun circle, where the lots and houses are radially distributed around a central communal area. Photovoltaic roofs are shaped and angled in order to receive clean energy from the sun, as a sunflower does in nature every day.

The 19 homes are designed as singular-story houses that are built by using 3d-concrete-printing technology, while the adopted construction process naturally shapes the final urban form.

“History tells us that new materials and construction techniques had always influenced the forms of the buildings. Each of the most significant architectural forms has been aided by the discovery of new construction method,” added Valentino Gareri Atelier.

“From stone and timber structure to the adoption of bricks and the arch-vaulting system, or the introduction of reinforced concrete structure that made possible to create higher and more transparent buildings.” “Similarly, the 3D printing technology will give form to the city of the future,” the firm added.

The construction site is placed in the center to allow the concrete-printer machine to move through extendable and retractable binaries. For this reason, all houses will be printed in sequence by rotating in the central site area thanks to a temporary placed turning-table.

As Valentino Gareri Atelier highlights, “this represents a more sustainable construction process compared to a traditional one, as less soil is utilized during the working phase.”

Every single house is designed to be energy self-efficient. The building shape naturally promotes the sun energy collection thanks to photovoltaic frameless tiles that clad the angled roofs.

The roofs, like a sunflower, are angled to ‘follow’ and catch the most efficient amount of solar radiation, according to the site latitude. The clean energy is collected in batteries and utilized for the floor-heating system, for air-conditioning, and for electric cars alimentation.

Moreover, the roof inclination, promotes the rain water collection, aimed to be used for toilets and irrigation, into a water tank located in the service room. Here the height of the building is reduced to the minimum necessary, saving material to be utilized in the opposite site of the building, where the height is increased to maximize the view towards the countryside.

PV panels are allocated only on the roofs which have the best exposure to the sun, the energy accumulated is shared with the whole village, and the facades are treated in order to achieve the best performance according to the solar orientation.
The generated house geometry promotes and increases the “chimney effect” reducing the need for air-conditioning energy thanks to the natural ventilation.

The energy self-sufficient houses, immerse and completely open to nature, are designed as sustainable ‘machines’ where the final shape is the result of scientific criteria that have the aim to save or produce energy.

With wellness to be at the forefront of Sunflower Village, each home is fitted with DARWIN Home Wellness Intelligence by Delos, “the world’s first holistic in-home wellness platform that is designed to passively enhance human health and well-being through air purification, water filtration and lighting that mimics natural daylight.”

The reason of a circular urban configuration is also provide a more sustainable way of connecting the dwellings, by reducing the amounts of necessary roads and the dependency from cars.

The combination of more villages forms a new multi-centric urban configuration and a new model of city of the future, characterized by a strong sense of community.

The city of the future should be seen as a new Garden City 2.0, that promotes a return to nature, limits the need of cars and facilitates the sense of living together.

An aggregation of a few ‘Sunflowers’ can create a Small Town where at the centre of each circle can be placed a public function such as schools, kindergartens and civic centers.
“Architecture has the power to create places that don’t exist yet, but in our dreams. ‘Sunflower’ is the model of the city we dream for tomorrow,” said Valentino Gareri.

written by : WA Contents
28 Jun 2021
published in : worldarchitecture.org

Australia’s first combined children’s health and education centre

Australia’s first combined children’s health and education centre

Construction has begun on a seven-storey commercial building that will be home to Australia’s first combined children’s health and education centre.

The building, dubbed Proxima, is designed by PDT Architects and will be located within the Queensland government’s 9.5-hectare Gold Coast Health and Knowledge Precinct, a development area dedicated to life sciences, health and technology-related businesses.

The building will house five storeys of lettable office space as well as a childcare centre for up to 400 children, to be operated by Sanctuary Early Learning Adventure, which will also create a unique environment to support children with special needs.

Griffith University will also establish a centre for excellence in Inclusive Early Childhood Education in the building. “The centre brings together interdisciplinary teams across Griffith’s Allied Health disciplines and Early Childhood Education to embed a model of research-integrated inclusive childcare education,” said Griffith University Vice Chancellor Carolyn Evans.

Queensland deputy premier Steven Miles said, “This is an Australian-first, an early learning centre with in-house access to allied paediatric health and research professionals, that will be within Lumina at the Gold Coast Health and Knowledge Precinct.”

Meaghan Scanlon, minister for science and youth affairs, added, “Innovation within the health and knowledge sectors is exactly why this precinct was established, and it’s great to see it coming to fruition.

“Children will have access to the expert care that they need within a familiar, fun and caring environment at their early learning centre.”

The $80 million centre is the first private development within the commercial cluster and is a project of Evans Long.

written by : ArchitectureAU Editorial
15 Jul 2021
published in : architectureau.com

Pride Centre brings the unconventional to Melbourne

Pride Centre brings the unconventional to Melbourne

The Victorian Pride Centre has this week been unveiled by Hansen Yuncken. It is Australia’s first purpose-built LGBTIQ+ community hub, and celebrates the community’s achievements, as well as Australia’s cultural and social diversity.

Located in St Kilda, Melbourne, the project is of truly unconventional proportions. Occupants will struggle to locate edge, with the building to be home to 15 organisations, a communal ground floor of shared workspaces, a theatrette, a gallery, the Australian Queer Archives, and a rooftop garden. Overlooking Port Phillip Bay and the city skyline, the building is 6,000 metres square in total.

The building was designed by St Kilda-based Grant Amon Architects and Brearley Architects & Urbanists, and was supported by the Victorian Government, City of Port Phillip, philanthropy and LGBTIQ+ community members.
Justine Dalla Riva, CEO of the Victorian Pride Centre, says the building embodies much of the community’s values.

“The Victorian Pride Centre is a stunning and culturally significant hub for Melbourne’s queer community. It will create a safe and vibrant space for LGBTIQ+ groups and organisations to exchange ideas and resources to further their work in supporting equality, diversity and inclusion,” she says.

The project’s rainbow-inspired design, many intricate details and highly constrained site created numerous challenges, in addition to those presented by COVID-19 restrictions. The construction was able to move beyond these adversities to form a building suitable for the LGBTIQ+ community.

“We’re proud to have helped create such an important space for Melbourne’s LGBTIQ+ community,” says Richard Hansen, Victoria State Manager of Hansen Yuncken.

“It’s the second largest building of its kind in the world and there are many elements that required innovative approaches to realise the architect’s vision.

“For example, our team undertook extensive prototyping and digital modelling to test acoustics and waterproofing before the installation of the statement angled panels and windows. A large volume of Glass Reinforced Concrete and precast curved elements were among the challenges we solved to deliver the sweeping curves of the building you see today.”
The innovative approaches Hansen speaks of refers to ensuring public access during construction, including the complex installation of the ‘eggshell’ feature in the atrium, which takes its inspiration from an emu egg, celebrating the Boon Wurrung First Nations Indigenous people and history of the area.

Hansen Yuncken worked in partnership with the Victorian Pride Centre to meet all building regulations, minimise local disturbance during construction and deliver a range of bespoke design elements including extensive curved precast feature panels, 41 individually curved windows, 720 panels of glass, 17 glass-reinforced concrete vaults, 7 layers of construction for the Eastern facade detail, 1,000+ individually hand worked aluminium cladding panels, 1 silver-top ash log repurposed as feature timber panelling, and a feature exposed spotted gum stair and seating platforms at ground floor level open to the level 4 roof skylight

“It has been a journey to say the least, but creating something worthwhile, something unique takes time. We thank Hansen Yuncken and the team on the ground who have worked with us, it really does take a village to build Pride,” says Dalla Riva.


17 Jul 2021
published in : architectureanddesign.com.au

Pride Centre brings the unconventional to Melbourne

The Victorian Pride Centre has this week been unveiled by Hansen Yuncken. It is Australia’s first purpose-built LGBTIQ+ community hub, and celebrates the community’s achievements, as well as Australia’s cultural and social diversity.

Time to ‘reconnect’ Open House Melbourne 2021

Time to ‘reconnect’ Open House Melbourne 2021

Themed “Reconnect,” this year’s Open House Melbourne program invites us to get back in touch with the city through its more than 150 buildings, tours and events.

“The theme of ‘reconnect’ really speaks to our collective desire to re-engage with our city, our suburbs, and a future […] after experiences of pandemic, lockdown and isolation,” said Fleur Watson, executive director and chief curator of Open House Melbourne.

“This year, Open House Melbourne, through ‘reconnect,’ asks us to reimagine out city.

“How will we occupy it – our homes, our places of work, our civic and educational institutions, our community spaces, and our meeting places.

“And it’s through these kinds of adaptive changes that we can reclaim the agency for design in shaping the public good.”

“We can think about our values, our systems, our architecture and our spaces to achieve a more adaptable, equitable and more sustainable future for our built environment.”
The 2021 program will be a hybrid of physical and virtual, with 47 new sites across greater metropolitan Melbourne, as well as returning favourites.

The program will also include a series of walking tours, workshops, talks and film screenings.

Open House Melbourne weekend is on 24 and 25 July. Bookings for buildings and events open on 9 July.

written by : ArchitectureAU Editorial
9 Jul 2021
published in :architectureau.com