John Wardle Architects and Boston-based Office dA have won an international competition to design Melbourne university’s new school of architecture building.
The new building for the Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning will include dedicated spaces for research into sustainable precinct design and performance, along with lecture theatres, a library, exhibition areas and specialist workshop spaces.
The winning design showed a strong understanding of educational, environmental, and social issues, dean of the Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning, Professor Tom Kvan, said.
Short listed entrants were asked to address four key issues: built pedagogy, academic environment, design studio and the living building. In evaluating the presentations, the jury focussed on firms’ capacity to work with the university and their focus on design quality.
The jury, which consisted of noted architects Odile Decq (Paris) and Peter Elliott (Melbourne), vice chancellor Professor Glyn Davis and Professor Tom Kvan, was highly impressed by the presentations given by all six short listed practices. The jury noted the broad range of design responses and variety of innovative approaches to research and education.
The John Wardle Architects and Office dA submission was selected out of 133 submissions from 15 countries. Six entrants were then selected to proceed to competition stage, with each paid to develop a conceptual response to the key issues of the brief.
The competition was endorsed by the Australian Institute of Architects. Presentation boards summarising the response from each of these entrants will be on display in the Wunderlich Gallery at the Parkville campus throughout September.
© Images from the John Wardle Architects and Office dA presentation
