Tabla de contenidos para November 2019 en Design Anthology, Australia Edition

Home. It’s a familiar yet abstract concept; on an elementary level the word conjures notions of comfort and security, and on a more philosophical level, ideas of nationality and culture. It can mean something different to each of us, and be just as complicated to articulate. I’ve spent more than a third of my life outside of Australia, my birthplace, and while I’ve gathered friends and accumulated other ‘homes’ around the world (figuratively, that is, and I’m penning this from Copenhagen, one such place), I will likely always — as Peter Allen said best — still call Australia home. This issue of Design Anthology is very dear to me. It’s comforting to know that in the short time since we launched the original edition in Hong Kong, we’ve earned a…

A finely executed hotel should feel like home. That’s one simple truth that Felicity Beck and Stewart Robertson, the globetrotting directors of Melbourne’s bar Studio, know well. Having both enjoyed careers abroad in New York — where Robertson worked with award-winning designer Tony Chi and Beck worked on the famed Staten Island Ferry Whitehall Terminal with Frederic Schwartz Architects — the pair returned to Australia in 2003 to establish a practice of their own. In the years since, bar Studio has built an impressive portfolio of hospitality venues in Asia-Pacific, with some of its most notable recent work including the Park Hyatt Sydney, newly renovated spaces at the Grand Hyatt Seoul, several Rosewood properties and The Westin Perth. In each project, no matter how grand the scale, the focus is…

Less than a decade ago, designer Tom Fereday was ready to quit Sydney for Amsterdam with the intention of kickstarting a career he felt had stalled. He’d been offered a role at Moooi under the direction of Dutch master Marcel Wanders and it was tempting, to say the least. ‘I was at a crossroads,’ Fereday recalls. ‘Sydney’s design scene was pretty downbeat. There was a handful of good designers, but it felt like we were all struggling to get anywhere. There wasn’t much interest in local design — people preferred to buy imported brands, and the manufacturing industry was virtually non-existent.’ But Fereday decided to stay, and since founding his Sydney studio in 2012 he’s developed a vibrant portfolio of clients among a new breed of local manufacturers and international…

The brainchild of Bjarne Hansen, founder of Danish furniture brand menu, and Jonas Bjerre-Poulsen, co-founder of Copenhagen’s Norm Architects, The Audo remained an idea until the current location enabled its realisation. Situated in the Nordhavn neighbourhood, the city’s former industrial harbour, the renovated neo-Baroque building dates back to 1918 and is one of the oldest buildings in the area. The hotel’s name is derived from an abbreviation of the Latin phrase ab uno disce omnes, meaning ‘from one, learn all’, and reflects the founders’ desire to nurture a sense of community and collaboration. It all sounds very romantic, admits menu’s brand and design director Joachim Kornbek, but it’s been the guiding philosophy from the outset. The decision to collaborate with Norm Architects on the design came easily; the two companies…

When Victoria D’Alisa, a director at Sydney’s Porebski Architects (founded by her father, architect Andre Heyko-Porebski) bought a faded terrace house in the historic suburb of Paddington in 2012, she knew she had her work cut out for her. Built in the late 19th century, the ornate Victorian home had all the charm — and all the shortcomings — of a typical Paddington terrace. It had the original cast-iron filigree, high ceilings and fireplaces, but it was also dark and filled with narrow, pokey spaces. Its location within a heritage conservation area also meant the renovation had to be undertaken within strict parameters. D’Alisa has since renovated the home twice. In 2012 she converted the first floor into three bedrooms, with a new bathroom and attic, but a more recent…

Interior architect Caroline Olah spent much of her early career working at design firms in Australia, New York and Hong Kong before founding furniture brand reddie in 2015 with her husband Andrew, an ex-Google sales executive. However, it wasn’t until 2018 that the brand went offline with the launch of its bricks-and-mortar showroom in Surry Hills, Sydney. The young furniture brand was born of a genuine need that Caroline identified — both as a designer and a consumer — for simple, well-made, timeless designs that are also affordable. Each piece in the collection is designed by her but is also entirely customisable, and while the brand may have expanded its offering, the duo’s focus on quality hasn’t wavered. Caroline and Andrew both have Indonesian roots, so the decision to look…

When this family leaves the chaos of cosmopolitan life for their quiet beach house on the Mornington Peninsula, the effect is palpable. ‘As soon as we step out of the car and smell the salty air, we’re overcome with a resounding sense of calm. I don’t think this feeling will ever get old,’ says the owner, who instantly fell in love with the coastal shire’s relaxed attitude and sense of community. Fortuitously, the builders of their renovated Melbourne home, Fleet Constructions, had also made a sea change, and from the outset there was a commitment to engaging regional makers, craftspeople and subcontractors in an effort to support the local economy. Sustainable design and building company The Sociable Weaver oriented the building to maximise light and warmth in the cooler months…

When it comes to contemporary architecture, curves are in. And at Sydney Harbour’s newly unveiled Darling Exchange, they’re in all the right places. But the six-storey building is much more than a contemporary urban statement. Designed by Kengo Kuma & Associates, the coiled tower — wrapped in 20 kilometres of timber strips — plays an important role in an urban planning strategy designed to reconcile the existing urban fabric with an innovative new multipurpose public hub. It offers Sydney residents and visitors a library, fresh food market, rooftop bar and restaurant, and childcare centre. It will also contain an Innovation Exchange to help support creative and technology start-ups. kkaa partner Yuki Ikeguchi, who led the project, says the design brief outlined the client’s forward-thinking vision of how the intended mix…

FASHION & LIFESTYLE Personal pieces and products for summer HOME & DECOR This season’s objects of desire SUMMER READING A round-up of printed matter to keep you company over the holidays Finn Juhl: Life, Work, World by Christian Bundegaard This is the first comprehensive monograph on one of Denmark’s most iconic and influential designers and architects. Archival photographs and illustrations of the modernist designer’s work are accompanied by enlightening text from Christian Bundegaard. phaidon.com Aesop. by Jennifer Down & Dennis Paphitis The first book from the cult Australian skincare brand is a hardcover linen-bound volume tracing Aesop’s origins and history of design. It features several unique retail spaces across continents, as well as insights into the brand’s philosophy and culture. rizzoliusa.com The Light Fades but the Gods Remain by Bill…

It wasn’t that long ago that people needed to be convinced Adelaide was capable of producing quality design. So, when design studio daniel emma began making significant waves on the international stage, the typical response included some degree of shock that founders Daniel To and Emma Aiston were based there. The recognition their work received was arguably a watershed moment for Adelaide’s burgeoning design scene, and suddenly the world was interested in what else the City of Churches had to offer. Indeed, Adelaide has long been in the shadow of Melbourne and Sydney, at least design-wise, but its strong manufacturing industry and tradition of designer-makers are finally having their time in the spotlight. Within the last ten years, the city’s design landscape has changed dramatically. Instead of leaving for opportunities…

Towering cedar trees, red-tinged maples, moss-covered boulders, steaming hot springs, secret gardens and wide stone staircases hidden in the forest. The scene wouldn’t look out of place in a Japanese fairytale, and it’s within this escapist setting that the Aman Kyoto opened its doors in November 2019. Located on a 32-hectare sprawl of forest on the city’s quiet northern fringes, the green landscape is peppered with a clutch of lattice-fronted pavilions housing 24 guestrooms and two villas, two restaurants and a spa. Kerry Hill, the late Australian architect and long-time Aman collaborator, first visited the site 20 years ago with Aman founder Adrian Zecha, and the pair were instantly charmed by the setting. The previous landowner had planned to build a museum to house his obi collection, and had already…

There are several reasons designer Hamish Guthrie chose to make his family home in East Melbourne’s Jolimont, named for the residence of Victoria’s first governor. ‘I love this neighbourhood because it’s a stone’s throw from the cbd and is surrounded by some of the city’s best gardens and parks,’ says Guthrie, co-founder of design practice Hecker Guthrie. ‘And being close to the studio is a big plus.’ When Guthrie and his two young daughters (and recently adopted dog Elka) found the 19th-century Victorian terrace house, it took them somewhat by surprise. ‘At the time, we were renting in an adjacent street,’ he recalls. ‘We serendipitously stumbled upon the house when we were out walking one day. To say there was some work to be done would be an understatement.’ Guthrie,…