Tooronga Village

25.07.2011
 Tooronga Village forms the heart of the Glen Iris community. It sets a new precedent in integrated design, bringing liveability and iconic architecture together in one vision. The design combines shops, secure parking, cafés and restaurants opening out onto vibrant plazas and gardens. Overlooking these are the striking apartment towers which provide uninterrupted city views and sunny northerly aspects. “Our vision was to create a highly liveable development that generates a sense of community, a place where people can connect with each other, their home life, their neighbours and their surrounds.The architectural expression of Tooronga Village is governed by two archetypal elements; podium and tower.  Each is informed by program, site and boundary conditions. The podium is a lifted, folding ground plane that recalls tectonic plates. It is set into the hillside and held up by dynamic sculptural web of tree like columns.  The main entrance corner is raised, rippling out while lifting and folding as a terrain throughout the rest of the structure. Users are able to access the development at multiple levels of ‘ground floor’ entry, continually challenging the notion of what lies above and below. The roof of the podium becomes a ground plane for the towers, restaurants, plazas and gardens. The two apartment towers above form a more backdrop to the public spaces below. The facades are a collection of snapshots of the city skyline they face. Rectilinear forms and frames break down the building faces into a collection of scaled elements rising out of this new urban-suburban village.  

Cafe Rosco, Melbourne

7.10.2010
The brief for existing pizza restaurant, Café Rosco, was to create a warm, inviting and modernised space.

At night time, the passer-by will see the glowing orbs of the lantern like light fittings.  The glow against the charcoal paint and wood creates a cosy atmosphere and attracts would-be-customers to this new café destination. Cost effective, yet design conscious solutions were also achieved.

The space was redesigned to highlight the strengths of its existing features. White painted cladding, which spanned an entire back wall, and other existing materials were re-used.  The white paint was stripped off the cladding and transformed into a warm rustic wood feature.  The floors were polished and coated with resin that reflected the ambient light.

   cafe-rosco-100916-09b-1.jpgdocument1.jpg 

The Follies, NewQuay Docklands

14.11.2003
The Follies are two small, highly detailed and exquisite buildings that are a result of a student design competition held in conjunction with RMIT University.

Perched over the water, the ice-cream and fish ’n’ chip follies provide retail outlets along the promenade. They are seen as an extension and continuation of the rich nature of art through Melbourne and within the Docklands precinct.

They are seen as both iconic jewels and playful sculptures, providing interest and refreshment to the promenade experience.

The cladding of the follies has been selected as points of difference to the predominately concrete finishes of the residential towers along the north side of the promenade.  A variety of materials was used in follies; the ice cream folly is finished in zinc sheet and the Fish ’n’ Chip Folly is blue marine grade stainless steel reflective of shimmering water.