The architect of the former Dimmeys store redevelopment in Melbourne’s Richmond area has come under scrutiny from the widow of artist John Brack after taking inspiration from one of his paintings.
John Armsby, principal of Armsby Architects, received an email from Helen Brack querying whether he was creating an “architectural copy” of Brack’s 1954 painting The Bar, after Armsby cited the work as an influence in an interview published in The Age yesterday (11.01.10).
The building is representative of the painting in its composition and people may be reminded of the famous artwork as they view the building from the north, Armsby said.
Having reviewed the designs, Helen Brack is now said to be favourable towards the concept.
The building rejoices in the convergence of art and architecture, with two pieces of public art on site. The proposal retains a recent mural by Melbourne artist Hayden Dewar depicting the history of Victoria, as well as intending to commission a further large, public mural from Abbotsford artist Ralf Kempken, who creates photo-realistic stencils that look as though they have been applied to corrugated iron.
The redevelopment will incorporate two buildings, eight and 11-storeys high, of residential and commercial space. The first floor of the building will be divided into large lots, in the hope of encouraging artists into the space.
The buildings’ exteriors have been created to resemble textiles, with lacework concrete for the smaller building and pinstripe for the taller structure. The fabric facades are both a nod to Dimmeys roots as a haberdashery and significant because one of the developers has a background in the textile manufacturing industry.
“The other developer is a doctor and he pointed out the floor plates resemble and X and Y chromosome,” Armsby said.
Running with the idea, Armsby created one smaller, feminine building clad in lace, and a taller, more masculine, structure with a pinstripe exterior.
“There are quite a few metaphors going on, so we have had to try and keep it simple. If you had too busy a building it would compete with the tower. The challenge is to create something that has a level of interest but doesn’t fight for attention.”
The team is currently awaiting a heritage assessment before lodging a development proposal with council.
