Table of contents for 89 November 2015 - Feburary 2016 in (inside) interior design review

It’s difficult to believe that we are now at the end of 2015. What a whirlwind year it has been and where did the time go? In this the last issue of (inside) for 2015 we are proud to showcase the winners from this year’s Interior Design Excellence Awards (IDEA). The awards again showcased the enormous talent that comprises our architecture and design community in Australia and we are sure you will agree that the projects and special award-winners are worthy recipients. Congratulations to the winners and highly commended practices and indeed to everyone who entered. The calibre of design was exemplary and our wonderful IDEA jury certainly had their work cut out choosing those to be awarded accolades. A note about our jury – many thanks to Adam Goodrum,…

Cycle Revolution Design Museum, London 18 Nov 2015 – 30 Jun 2016 If the names Pinarello, Colnago, Bianchi, Omafiets, Budnitz or Malvern Star set your heart racing, you are not alone. The past decade has seen cycling embraced like never before, with carbon, titanium and steel being pushed to the limits of lightness and strength. Moreover, how architects and interior designers have responded to the influx of commuters is extraordinary and, in many cases, considerably better than the town planners. Cycle Revolution will bring together bicycles, clothing, accessories, equipment, film and photography to tell the powerful, personal and sometimes remarkable stories of cyclists and the machines that move them. Design Miami Convention Centre, Miami Beach 1–3 Dec 2015 Curated and positing design as a collectable commodity, there is a particular…

Visualisation and animation studio Squint/ Opera renders reality every day. SIBLING’s fitout for the studio’s new Australian headquarters reinforces this trait – physical space and its digital doppelganger converge in the workplace. The new office uses the wireframe space of modelling software as real-time infrastructure through the installation of custom steel grid-mesh. Workspaces are carved out of this matrix to provide a sense of spatial division and privacy, while retaining views across the entire studio. Each inhabitant can customise their workstation with a catalogue of specifically designed screens, hooks and containers for plants, stationery or personal belongings. Near the windows, the grid forms an indoor verandah where staff can meet and sit on bitmapped bright, sky blue seating. Throughout the space there are other stools that have had an artificial…

Whiting Architects is one of those practices that has quietly gone about the business of design, accumulating a loyal client following and producing outstanding work. It hasn’t exactly flown under the radar, but it doesn’t make a song and dance about its work either. However, as individuals and for the past three years as a couple in practice together, its directors have gathered awards and accolades as they go. Whiting Architects is located in the inner Melbourne suburb of Albert Park and, quirky in the extreme, the office is situated above a well-known local café. You have to know where you’re going, as the entrance is accessed through the café and up the stairs to a large airy and well-lit room at the top of the building. The practice is…

Healy King Apartment. Sydney, Australia. Spatiality and flow coalesce to afford pockets and volumes for expanse and detail to coexist and support, rather than juxtapose. The antithesis of the sparse and polished nature of hotel chic living, Tribe Studio’s approach to creating a home is never shy of the personal. The elements of life, rather than aspiration, are carefully layered, respected and, indeed, loved. This is not an approach for the faint of heart: art will be seen, books will be out, bowls of stuff will be lovingly displayed. Much as a vase of flowers has a contained and framing regard for the haphazard fall of stems, florets, leaves and buds, Tribe Studio, with principal Hannah Tribe at the helm, frames the accoutrements of clients’ lives within a contextualised and…

2015 has been a standout year for Australian designers, architects and object makers. The breadth and quality of entries received for this year’s Interior Design Excellence Awards (IDEA) is outstanding in every respect. From the small and intimate project through to the multimillion-dollar extravaganza, innovation and creativity are at the forefront of every design. It has been a busy year and we have received multiple entries from many practices showcasing a variety of work from many genres. The number of projects entered into the awards was again high, with a record number of entries received, and the judges certainly faced a challenging situation to select the winners for each of the 11 categories and six special awards. Many thanks to all who entered and congratulations to the winners and highly…

Melbourne School of Design, University of Melbourne John Wardle Architects with NADAAA The considered and layered approach to this project, which perfectly marries a beautiful and dynamic aesthetic with sustainable merits of extraordinary scope, pushes the boundaries of built environment to exist as an active and inspiring learning tool. Part wonder, part utility, the Melbourne School of Design for the University of Melbourne’s Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning engages with students as a functional place of learning, while posing extraordinary architectural conundrums for the students to consider. Moreover, nothing has been compromised to achieve these outcomes. Rather, solutions are knit of the project’s needs and a sustainable ethos that includes education as inherent to the future. Designed as rigorously for the teachers as the students, the layout and flow…

East Village Payce with Koichi Takada Architects and Turner With the hero the tree structure, the Payce project successfully challenges the retail marketplace experience with a strong commitment to social and environmental sustainability. We see where the interior design conceptual drivers have informed a diverse, authentic place – a welcome change from the lifeless box of the modern day mall. While the project is embedded underground, the clever use of filtered natural light and small vistas forms a connectivity to the whole site and a mixed-use philosophy. The collaborative team has delivered a project that delineates the borders between garden and interior, architecture and village. —Sue Fenton, 2015 IDEA jury. To build upon retail sitting underneath an expansive 6500-square metre Sky Park, a ‘forests’ theme was incorporated to open up…

BresicWhitney Hunters Hill Chenchow Little Instantly noticed because the detailing, lighting and materiality was executed so beautifully and skilfully, it quickly became apparent that a very clever conceptual idea was at work. That is, an urban design planning approach to a small space that resonates with the very nature of the residential market. The scale and materiality of a house is evoked without being thematically domestic, while the notion of exploring a baroque village defines a refreshing spatial outcome. —Robert Backhouse, IDEA 2015 Jury Envisioned as a Baroque townscape set within its tenancy envelope, the interior presents a crafted and delicate composition of elemental figures seemingly dropped into a container – figures that twist in scale and orientation to create contracting and expanding spaces and guide open circulation paths. Within…

Scott Burrows Architectural and interiors photographer Scott Burrows has been chasing light for the past 15 years. His clientele rely on him to create stunning imagery that excites and educates. His work is seen in many national and international design publications with the odd book representation thrown in there as well. He has even managed to pick up an award or two along the way for his measured and clean approach to design imagery. Michelle Bailey Michelle Bailey is a Brisbane-based writer and graduate of architecture from the University of Queensland. She writes regularly for local and national publications about architecture and design. Peter Clarke Peter Clarke is a photographer with over 20 years’ experience in his field. His collaborative approach and strong vision have seen his unique graphic style…

Robson Rak Architects has completely redesigned a tired Victorian residence and included a new addition to complete its vision. A warm textural palette has been used throughout the interior and the house includes fully automated technology. A timber ribbon of floor and wall travels through the house creating a harmonious, seamless transition from old to new. The clients’ initial brief requested new rear living spaces that opened to the outside, so that this area merged seamlessly with the remodelled existing section of the house. The original 1980s addition that had been elevated one metre above the backyard was demolished and this change of level to the end of the hallway incorporated the original ceiling height through to the new addition, creating a generous ceiling height of 3.8 metres. The addition…

01. Cohncave Bowl (1990) by Susan Cohn photography by John Collings— I worked for Susan Cohn at Workshop 3000 in Melbourne not long after she had developed this bowl for Alessi. I recall her telling me how the steel referenced the mesh on the old Coolgardie food safes used in Australia prior to powered refrigeration. Not long after I remember asking my grandmother Venus about such food safes – and to my surprise she took me into the garage and pointed to a cabinet with perforated metal on its face. In it I saw the same moiré effect in Susan’s Cohncave bowl. Now, 20 years later when I look at Susan’s bowl on my dining table I think of my grandmother telling me how hard she and my grandfather had…

(inside)_ How did you come to design? Was your family artistic? LB_My dad loved to draw. He wasn’t a professional artist, but was very talented and taught me the basics. As a child I was in theatre school and was a professional actor from the age of seven until I was 17, so I had always thought this would be my chosen career. Design for me was a hobby; I was obsessive about design and particularly interested in architecture and fashion. At the age of 17, I entered a national fashion design competition called Young Designer of The Year Award that was judged by Vivienne Westwood. I won the award and met Vivienne who offered me a job in her studio as an intern for 10 months. At this…

MultyFlex Sub-Zero and Wolf showroom. Melbourne, Australia. Underlying the transformation of Melbourne’s Bank Building into a quintessentially chic showroom for Multyflex’s premier brands, is the deft hand of Mim Design. A Heritage building of significant cultural cachet, its refurbishment demanded rigorous attention to aesthetic and structural detail. The floor, for example, was so deteriorated that the slab had to be replaced to support the Sub-Zero and Wolf products. Conversely, the removal of the slab exposed portions of an existing terrazzo floor that has been brought back to life as site determined swathes. The ceiling too needed reinforcement, as it was too soft to support light fittings. These complications aside, the aesthetic bones of the 500-square metre space were exceptional. Engaging the street through large and Heritage detailed arched windows, the…

The 2015 Interior Design Excellence Awards (IDEA) judging took place in Sydney at the Austral Bricks Design Centre. This year, the process changed to reflect the sentiments of the design community and was contained to one day with no ‘face-to-face’ presentations for categories. The exception to this was the shortlisted practices for the Designer of the Year award. The evening before judging day each of the practices presented to the jury and an audience of their peers, summarising the multiple projects that had been shortlisted for this year’s awards. On judging day the jury met to discuss their pre-selected finalists from the shortlisted entries and agree upon winners and highly commended projects. And we offer a special thanks to all our jury members for their time, astute debate, intense deliberation…

Medibank Workplace HASSELL The most successful sustainable buildings go beyond achieving energy and efficiency ratings, which this does expertly. What also needs to be considered is the social impact, the enjoyment to the occupier/user, increased productivity and the reduction of absenteeism. The Health Based Working (HBW) design approach employed here creates a holistic approach for a sustainable future. —Jan O’Connor, 2015 IDEA jury. Boasting a six-star Green Star Design and As Built rating under the Green Star Office V3, targeting a five-star NABERS Energy rating based on carbon emissions in operation. Innovations include a rooftop solar PV array, trigeneration system, water efficient fixtures and fittings, drought tolerant landscape, rainwater harvesting, grey water collection and treatment for reuse. In summary: Indoor environment quality – good natural light levels and access to…

Local House MAKE Architecture The design of Local House successfully interprets the brief of its clients, accommodating a desire for the family to congregate and connect with the community as we once did and still often yearn for, ‘in the village’. —Sarah-Jane Pyke, IDEA 2015 Jury Inspiration for this extension came from thinking about how this family lives and enjoys life. Spaces are playful – conceived more like a favourite local café than a private house, the design reflects this family’s desire to create a home that allows them to connect with friends, family and their local community. The existing Californian bungalow has been kept intact with the addition of a new contemporary gable-like, two-storey element to the rear. Effectively shifted off the side boundary, the new element opens the…

Figtree House Arent&Pyke Figtree House represents a carefully composed balance of past and present, with an approach and tone that respects and acknowledges the original character of formal spaces without rendering them unusable. The transition to new living areas is subtle and uplifting, with a mutual borrowing of old and new. —Rachel Luchetti, IDEA 2015 Jury Demonstrating the transformative abilities of carefully curated decorative considerations, the design transforms a beachside Victorian terrace into a home befitting a hip couple with young children and a highly contemporary art collection. Moreover, the spaces evoke different moods while remaining flexible to the needs of a young family. The spaces of the home reflect their purpose – from the composed inky solemnity of the intimate formal zones to the sun bleached lightness of the…

Indoor Green: Living with Plants The exceptional thing about this book is the plants, which may sound like a given, but it’s generally the thing that lets plant books down. To wit, most design or architecture photography is done when the plants are newly planted. These, however, are grown and nurtured, pruned, allowed to ramble and grow towards to light. As such, the interiors and courtyards are truly the outcome of plants suited to the environment (not the idealised on paper version). Additionally, in being grown over years there is no fashion to the pots or indeed the plants. That said, there are certainly ‘now’ incursions, such as the orchid plantings and the modernist loved ficus lyrata (fiddle leaf fig) and of course myriad green wall options. There is also…

This rural Victorian house was designed by Neil Clerehan in the 70s and updated by Sally Draper Architects collaborating with Nexus Design. The brief was to tailor the design to suit the operational requirements of a working farmhouse with better connectivity to the outdoors and improved functionality. As the house was originally built to a very high standard of design and quality, Nexus Design built upon the simple detailing and finishes that had endured over the decades, and extended and adapted the design intent for contemporary living. Full-height timber doors, extensive timber joinery, simple light fittings and mirror details were built on and reused where possible. The existing concrete floor was polished, with raw and natural finishes repeated on new fireplaces. The new kitchen respects the one it replaced, but…

Few designers transition between the world of design and art with the grace of Tokujin Yoshioka. Perhaps best known for designing Issey Miyake stores from 1995 through to the most recent iterations for London 2014 and Marunouchi, Tokyo 2015, he has a style just as married to Swarovski, Lexus, Cartier, Hermès and Moroso. And these are just the brands with a consistent and ongoing aesthetic relationship, as opposed to the occasional engagement with Bang & Olufsen, BMW, Peugeot and Apple. Add to this a product range of extraordinary scope and agility that includes design icons such as Water Block 2002 (permanent collection Musée d’Orsay, Paris, Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo and Leeum, Samsung Museum of Art, Seoul) and Honey-Pop armchair, 2000-2001 (permanent collection Museum of Modern Art, New York; Vitra…

Russell & George has been five years in the making and not a second has been lost in its meteoric rise to the top of the architecture and design profession. The practice is Ryan Russell and Byron George, two men who commenced their designing lives as competitors, then joined forces in 2010 to realise their similar visions. Each was successful as an individual practitioner. Together, however, they are forging a presence, not only in Australia but on the world stage, and doing it their way. That is to say, they are breaking the mould of both practice and process and replacing it with a made-to-measure Russell & George alternative. The work of the duo is well-known and their projects both as individuals and together have been widely published. Both Russell…

Lido Cinemas. Melbourne, Australia. Colour is the key to this design — bold, primary blocks of colour that transport you to another world. Four years in the making, the renovated interior of the Lido offers not just movies, but a total entertainment and hospitality experience like no other. Film going is a part of the Australian psyche and has always been a certain rite of passage for anyone who adores the escape from reality with choc-top in hand. For many of us, today’s cinema experience is about bland interiors and uncomfortable seats, but that has all changed with the opening of the Lido Cinemas in the inner Melbourne suburb of Hawthorn. Four years in the making, the renovated interior of the Lido offers not just movies, but a total entertainment…

Woods Bagot Studio. Brisbane, Australia. The Brisbane studio of global architecture firm, Woods Bagot, has found a new home in the civic heart of the city. The practice traded its riverside post on the 13th floor of Waterfront Place for a new position on the ground floor of the former Reserve Bank Building, King George Square. The relocation was the first of many moves that have reinvigorated the design culture of the studio. It has also helped to oust a corporate image in favour of one of a design led practice, more intimately engaged with the city. Securing a ground floor tenancy with a generous, square floor plate has contributed to the success of the new interior. Street and square frontages have equated to an engaging, urban outlook and favourable…

01. ROB BACKHOUSE As managing director of HASSELL, Rob Backhouse has spent the past two decades building a reputation for design innovation and leadership on major projects throughout Australia and Asia. His work includes some of the world’s largest and most complex workplaces, as well as unique apartments and houses. 02. SUE FENTON Senior associate at Woods Bagot, Sue Fenton has over 15 years’ experience covering a vast range of projects and all aspects of project delivery. Her focus is on quality design outcomes that are developed through a collaborative design process. Sue has a passionate commitment to design excellence and engages with RMIT’s education program. 03. ADAM GOODRUM Designer at Adam Goodrum Studio, Adam Goodrum has received national and international acclaim for his product designs, which have been collected,…

Upper House Jackson Clements Burrows Upper House is the work of a practice at the top of its game – an outstanding result for its inhabitants and the city around them. A superb example of its type, this building is an object lesson in how a development model, dominated by the mediocre, can be so much more. —Patrick Kennedy, IDEA 2015 Jury Upper House demonstrates clarity in urban composition and a social program that engages with its context in a new and positive way. Central to the project, a communal space acknowledges sustainability as both social and environmental. The project comprises a 17-storey building with 110 apartments and two commercial tenancies. An important consideration and compositional outcome results from the giving over of Level 11 to provide an important communal…