The University of Sydney announces six new staff appointments to their
Faculty of Architecture, Design and Planning to develop the department’s
research and industry networks, and equip students with the knowledge required to
compete in the global market.
Dr Mathew Aitchison, Dr Matthew Mindrup, Catherine Lassen, Dr Rizal
Muslimin, Dr Jennifer Kent and Dr Adrienne Keane have joined the University in
the past two months across the architecture and planning disciplines, and bring
strong Australian and international expertise in architecture practice,
research and teaching to the University of Sydney.
Professor John Redmond, Dean of the Faculty of Architecture, Design and
Planning, said that the global challenges of urbanisation and sustainability
require the Faculty to significantly increase its capacity and depth of
expertise in education and research. He added that the experience and
capability of the new Faculty members will help give their graduates the skills
to compete and make a difference in their work locally and abroad. The new
appointments will also increase the Faculty’s capacity to develop innovative
research.
Dr Mathew Aitchison
Associate Professor Mathew Aitchison brings his broad global experience
to his new role, having worked as a researcher, architect and teacher in
Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, UK, US and Australia. Building on his design and
academic interests, he maintains a broad practice that includes competition
schemes, building projects and design research in public and private sectors.
His recent research on industry R&D projects focusses on prefabricated and
modular housing in Australia.
Dr Matthew Mindrup
A PhD in Architecture and Design at Virginia Tech University, Dr Matthew
Mindrup has several years of architectural practice in the US, Italy and
Switzerland, and also taught architecture for 15 years in universities in
Pennsylvania, Virginia and Switzerland, where he developed an appreciation for
the propensity of materials in the imagination of architecture. Dr Mindrup
has presented some of this research at conferences and has also been published.
Catherine Lassen
A highly-regarded Sydney architect and Principal of Catherine Lassen
Architecture, Catherine Lassen is a Masters graduate from Harvard University.
Her work featured in the Venice Biennale (2008) and has been widely published
in Australia’s leading architecture and design magazines. Her professional
experience includes stints with leading international architects Leers
Weinzapfel Associates, Boston, and Rem Koolhaas, Rotterdam. She has been
lecturing at the University of NSW for the last eight years, and has an
impressive list of academic research, publications and exhibitions to her name.
She takes up the position of Senior Lecturer in the Faculty.
Dr Rizal Muslimin
Dr Rizal Muslimin has a rich body of research and teaching experience
from the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in US as well
as leading universities in Singapore and Indonesia. He has also practiced
architecture as an Associate Principal in PT Urbane, one of the top 10
architecture firms in Indonesia. His research is focussed on the intersection
between craft, architecture and digital design. Particularly interested in
exploring traditional craft methods to reinvent ways of fabricating buildings, Dr
Muslimin has won several awards for his design concepts including MIT’s Harold
and Arlene Schnitzer Prize in Visual Arts in 2013. Dr Muslimin has been
appointed as a new lecturer in architecture.
Dr Jennifer Kent
Awarded one of the University’s competitive Postdoctoral Research
Fellowships (2015-2017), Dr Jennifer Kent joins the Urban and Regional Planning
and Policy team. Her research lies in the intersections between planning
and health, including planning for active transport and attachments to the
private car for mobility. Dr Kent previously held research positions at
Macquarie University, where she also lectured in Environmental Planning, and in
the University of NSW’s Healthy Built Environments program.
Dr Adrienne Keane
A Master of Urban and Regional Planning (Honours) and PhD, Dr Adrienne
Keane now joins the Faculty as a lecturer in the new Bachelor of Architecture
and Environments. Dr Keane is a director of the International Urban Planning
and Environment Association and a member of the Urban Specialist Group, part of
IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas. Her primary research lies
in statutory planning, exploring the role and consequences of planning policies
in nature conservation in cities and natural world heritage areas.
