Table of contents for No. 100 (Mar/Apr) in (inside) interior design review

Welcome to the first issue of inside for 2018 and what an issue we have for your reading pleasure. Not only are there some of the most beautiful, unusual and creative projects to peruse, but also interesting and diverse reviews, profiles and interviews. However, more than the usual inclusions, this issue is special as it marks the 100th issue of inside. Since inception, some 22 years ago, inside has been a critical element of the design and architecture community in Australia, highlighting and supporting new talent and showcasing the best that Australian practitioners have to offer. We have seen the Australian aesthetic, design that is intrinsic to our culture, become a force to be reckoned with on the world stage and, somewhat immodestly, we like to think that inside has…

How do we make our dreams come true? This was a question posed by acclaimed interior designer Emma Maxwell and her team for the project Find your Lucky Star, a restaurant installation hosted by the Marriott Hotel group and the Sheraton Imperial hotel in Kuala Lumpur. As guests walk over the threshold into the freestanding, custom-built structure, they enter a seductive and evocative ‘other’ world that showcases an interior diametrically opposed to the minimal, brutalist exterior of the installation. The patrons venture into a fantastical scene that changes their perception of what is real as they are placed ‘upside down’ in an evocative landscape, where the clouds and treetops are the basis for the floor and walls, and the ceiling remains a dark intangible void. To enhance the atmosphere Maxwell…

There is a charm to Sally Gordon’s ceramic work that embraces the duality of art and the domestic with ease. Fine artisan objects on one hand, a breakfast bowl on the other – this is, as Gordon would have it, describing her work as ‘functional domestic ware’. Clearly showing the artist’s hand, the crafted dinnerware, bowls, vases and such are of an exceptional material and aesthetic quality. She has work in the collection of Jackson Li’s Sanbao Studio in Jingdezhen (Li is considered a ceramics master) and commissioned suites for restaurants Bilson’s and Tonic. Gordon has been working with Les Blakebrough’s highly refined Southern Ice Porcelain – a material regarded as one of the world’s best, with a fine texture, excellent translucency and pure white finish resulting in superb colour…

inside: How long have you lived here and what drew you to the property? David Flack and Mark Robinson: We have lived here for one year. At the start of 2016 we separated our studio from our home. Previously we lived around the corner in a three-storey terrace. Once we had officially moved the new HQ for Flack Studio, we started looking for our own space. We had three criteria. First, remain in Fiꜩroy and as close to work as possible, so we could access a parking permit for our clients. Second, we wanted everything on one floor and third we didn’t want a Victorian or an apartment (which is the majority of the options in Fiꜩroy). Luckily we found a converted old horse stable that was located five doors…

Located in Melbourne in the busy precinct of Southbank and just a stone’s throw from the Yarra River is the Schiavello Melbourne Retail showroom. It’s perfectly situated for passing traffic, and now with an interior from Hecker Guthrie it presents as an Aladdin’s cave of product delights to tempt every designer and client. The space is singular, large at 360 square metres and an immense void with a ceiling height of 5.5 metres. This is a spectacular building that was also a challenging space for the designers to showcase the many furniture collections that are represented by the Schiavello brand. Schiavello commissioned Hecker Guthrie with a brief to design an interior that was more hospitality and residential focused to differentiate the Southbank offering from the commercial showroom in Clarendon Street.…

As technology continues to enhance our lives, some of the greatest innovations have been developed for the kitchen. As a leader in its field, the premium appliance brand Miele is at the vanguard of appliance creativity as its research and design teams anticipate the needs of users – making life just that little bit easier for busy home cooks. Miele is constantly updating its offering, inventing and re-inventing appliances that are dynamic and ahead of their time, and with the soon-to-be released TwoinOne, comes another outstanding addition to its comprehensive range. This advanced product combines induction cooking technology with an integrated downdraught extractor and is the perfect accompaniment for open-plan kitchens where conventional rangehoods would detract from the overall design. The design of the TwoinOne is contemporary and sleek with…

When thinking about my favourite objects I realised there was a connection between them – all five items were designed and manufactured more than 25 years ago and are still in production. For many years my mantra has been to ‘buy less and buy better’. I have a preference to repair, reuse or repurpose, working towards reducing my carbon footprint and a sustainable lifestyle.…

1– Dianna Snape With a passion for the built environment, Dianna Snape has been documenting Melbourne’s urban landscape for over 15 years through her exemplar photographic practice. She works closely with architects, interior designers, landscape architects and property developers to establish a visual dialogue that records and promotes their buildings, interiors and vision. 2– Suzie Attiwill Suzie Attiwill is associate dean, Interior Design in the School of Architecture and Urban Design, RMIT University. Since 1991, her practice has involved exhibition design, curatorial work, writing and teaching. Projects pose questions of interior and interiority in relation to contemporary conditions of living, inhabitation, subjectivity, pedagogy and praxis. 3– Shannon McGrath Shannon McGrath is a highly respected architectural and interiors photographer with images appearing in many books, journals and magazines nationally and internationally…

Susuru Ramen and Gyoza bar is situated in a prominent building constructed in 1906 and enlivens the street façade within which it is positioned. Prevalent worked closely with the City Council to achieve something new for the project as the design breaks away from the traditional mining aesthetic typical of the Newcastle area. The Susuru restaurant has been designed for a new generation of patrons and also for the many tourists that visit the area but, most importantly, it is for those long-term residents who want to see the city develop and diversify. With the introduction of Japanese cuisine to the city, the opportunity was afforded to design something completely fresh. Taking cues from Tokyo metro station and train design, Prevalent created a predominantly white interior that acts as a…

inside: Can you tell me how you see the future of interiors? What aspects will be most important in interior design in the future? Rob Backhouse: As with most industries, technology is having an increasingly stronger impact on interior design and will continue to do so in the future. There are a growing number of applications and technologies that are helping designers work in more diverse and different ways. There is a greater emphasis on visualisation and clients being able to see and experience the design. Google X’s Flux, for example, uses artificial intelligence (AI) to speed up the design process at a phenomenal rate. Basically, you input quantitative data and AI makes everything happen within seconds. Ultimately, though, the production becomes quite different and a separate process. This type…

They say all roads lead to Rome but these days many people are taking Mount Alexander Road to Ascot Vale in Melbourne’s inner north for an experience that, for some, is better than a Roman holiday. The sleepy suburb of Ascot Vale has been shaken awake and both the locals and those who live further afield have embraced the newest business on the strip. It’s a hybrid that combines the atmosphere of a nightclub with the facilities of a gym – and it’s a winner. This new way to work out is the first of its type in Australia and caters to the 20- to 40-something age group looking for something different. As a gym it’s cool and so is the branding by Mr Legacy, which designed the logo F*IT,…

Reimagining the prime-positioned apartment in a cool palette of black and white, Amber Road used an art collection as the starting point for its design. More than a curated selection of works, the art objects are a personal history of the client’s early life in Papua New Guinea and the beginnings of a new collection. Additionally, despite the beachfront location and ocean view, the client did not want a coastal ambience. Tricky. A refit of one of the Pacific Apartments on Bondi Beach’s foreshore, the building once affectionately known as the ‘Wedding Cake’ has been transformed in all but the ceiling heights, which remain low from its Swiss Grande Hotel days. Amber Road’s glossy and sumptuous marmorino-plastered walls and ceilings by artisan plasterer Fernando De Oliveira (New Era Building Solutions)…

There is a clear and simple elegance to the exceptional Fable table by Ross Didier. Each of these pieces recalls the humble objects familiar from children’s folklore and is inspired by the idea of a woodsman stepping from his cottage to hand carve a collection of functional timber furniture with little embellishment for everyday life. Didier takes this idea of simplicity and reinterprets the classic designs for modern day use and contemporary purpose. Exquisitely designed, the Fable Collection is crafted within a refined aesthetic and a return to the original principles of furniture as useable objects. Proportionally aware of the human figure, the tables are balanced both horizontally and vertically to suit their purpose, whether as a coffee table or for dining. Crafted and designed in Australia from solid American…

1- Common Good Sydney, Powerhouse Museum 2 March – 2 December MAAS (Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences) has brought together an incredible line-up of designers and designs for this outstanding exhibition. Exploring on-point themes of Life Cycles, Return to Craft, Connected Experiences, Community and Design Fictions, the remit has allowed for great scope. Yet, where the curatorial hand of Keinton Butler is most apparent is in the very fine designers involved. These include Nendo, Studio Swine, Bijoy Jain, Jo Nagasaka, Kwangho Lee, WOHA and, locally, Ken Wong, Dan Koerner, Paul Marcus Fuog, Lucy McRae and Henry Wilson. Pamm Hong’s Watermelon Sugar Wellness Lab (named after the surreal Richard Brautigan novel) will provide an experiential installation for those wanting to run a health check on their online behaviour, while Ken…

One of the most formidable partnerships in architectural design, the Chenchow Little pairing of Tony Chenchow and Stephanie Little commenced in 1994, with Chenchow Little officially founded in 2004. At the time, both were fresh from completing honours in architecture from the University of New South Wales (1993 Chenchow, 1994 Little). What makes this exceptional is the rarity of a graduate partnership evolving with such a lack of experience in other practices. Granted, each worked in the industry while studying but, as graduates, Little explains, the options were few: “It was after the boom and there was very little work available. The industry was in recession, architects were driving taxis.” With no positions being offered, the partnership began when a family friend offered Chenchow a small project. He in turn…

By 2042 one in four Australians will be 65 years or older. This unprecedented change in our society, coupled with longer life expectancy, means we will become increasingly dependant on aged care services and facilities. In addition, the Baby Boomer generation is rapidly redefining how it wants to spend its twilight years, representing a huge opportunity for design to play a bigger and better role when it comes to creating spaces that look and feel both comfortable and uplifting. In the past, aged care facilities have been more akin to hospitals than homes. With long corridors, closed off nurses’ stations and institutional-looking furniture, design for the care of the elderly has been more clinical than comfortable. But things are beginning to change. As the focus on wellbeing and health in…

These two penthouse apartments designed by Turner Architects were purchased off the plan long before the owners intended to live there. Anticipating the way the apartments would eventually be realised, Arent & Pyke worked with the architect to reshape the pair as a single grand penthouse. During this process, structure and floor plan were addressed, but also elements such as appliance specs to ensure the electricals would be right for the way the apartment would eventually be used. Effectively, the apartment was required to exist as a completed entity with the SJB designed developer finishes in place for a full year before Arent & Pyke transformed the interiors to their current level of quality and beauty. Not a bad bit of foresight! Designed for a client with an existing Arent…

Interstudio Parrish by Emeco The Parrish collection is designed by Konstantin Grcic for Emeco. The subtle design combined with a heartfelt technical core was originally designed for the Parrish Art Museum in New York. Designed as a modular collection, the collection features three aluminium frame options in natural, black or red, is beautifully complemented with a variety of available seat finishes, and explores the idea of comfort and minimalism. Parrish is available as both a lounge chair and side chair, with a complementing table and is suitable for both indoor and outdoor use. interstudio.com.au Ash Grey, Artisan Collection Royal Oak Floors Discover something new at Royal Oak Floors with its latest addition of Ash Grey flooring to its stunning collection. This soft grey, slightly worn looking European oak timber board…

London-based industrial designer Tim Rundle is the latest to create a range for the new but formidable talent of SP01. Known for his beautiful furniture, lighting and interiors, Rundle is both an exceptional and well-founded choice. Establishing Formworks Design in Auckland in 1995, he was quickly recognised for his work on the airline seating systems ‘Skycouch’ and ‘Spaceseat’. In 2008 he relocated to London where he worked with PriestmanGoode, Tom Dixon and as design director for Conran and Partners. In 2015 Tim Rundle Studio was established and quickly proved itself among the preeminent design houses of London. SP01 is a new design brand featuring a collection of beautifully detailed, hand-finished furniture, conceived in Australia and designed internationally for manufacture in Italy. Essentially, the brand seeks to create new furniture collections…