A new six-level building at the Wenona School in North Sydney, NSW has won Tonkin Zulaikha Greer a major honour at the International Architecture Awards 2021. The Sydney studio was one of five Australian winners in the world’s foremost international awards program, with the Wenona project selected by a jury of international architects from amongst 130 cutting-edge new works of architecture, urban planning and landscape architecture.
The International Architecture Awards is organised by The European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies and The Chicago Athenaeum Museum of Architecture and Design.
The new building at the school, The Athenaeum reflects contemporary approaches to education by creating dynamic spaces that foster interaction, collaboration and innovation amongst the students. The Athenaeum creates a welcoming and memorable entrance to the school on Miller Street, with an indoor circulation ‘street’ leading to a central day-lit atrium. Suspended above a dramatic swimming pool hall are a new sports hub, a STEM centre, staff rooms and a university-like senior campus.
The Athenaeum optimises indoor environmental quality, delivering wellbeing, positive interaction and valued experiences. Sustainable design has resulted in a 50 per cent saving in energy, communicated live to students, thereby making The Athenaeum an ‘educational artefact’.
Images: Brett Boardman Photography
