Over the course of his 38-year career, Richard Johnson, designer of many major cultural buildings in Sydney, has worked on scales ranging from exhibit design to urban design. His projects have included world expo pavilions, museums, embassies, schools, office buildings, hotels, master plans, and landscape design, many with his current firm, Johnson Pilton Walker of Sydney.
The Australian architect has been awarded the 2008 Gold Medal for Architecture by the Royal Australian Institute of Architects (RAIA). — Published 2008.0423
Projects recognized in the Royal Australian Institute of Architects national architecture awards for 2007 range from a small house to a grand state library and a mixed-use tower over 80 stories. Most of the two-dozen buildings stand in the populous eastern states, with a few farther-flung exceptions. — Published 2008.0109
The abstract expressionist painter Robert Motherwell once said, "Art is much less important than life, but what a poor life without it." Those words convey the inspiration behind much of the work of Christopher Harty and Chris Botterill. — Published 2007.0411
Australian architect Andrew Maynard is bursting with theories. He develops concepts such as "malleable space" into architectural "products" such as a mobile bedroom unit, with the ultimate goal being to transform it into architecture. The process sounds simple enough, but Maynard is the first to acknowledge that such conversions are rarely smooth. "Reality is always getting our floaty idealized concepts dirty, and that is half of the fun." — Published 2007.0221
A group of office workers in Sydney, Australia comes face to face with history every day. When entering their new building, they pass by an extraordinary four-story-high raw sandstone wall. It is the remains of a trench that convict laborers dug by hand for the installation of a 19th-century gasworks. Now that the site has been redeveloped, the wall is preserved as a major feature in an eight-story atrium. — Published 2004.0714
When a restaurant opens adjacent to a theater lobby, one might expect a dramatic play of lights and space. Indeed, designers with the Australian architecture firm PTW have served up a class act with their Hickson Road Bistro at Walsh Bay, Sydney. The space works equally well during the day and at night, but it's the after-dark performance of color and light that arts patrons won't want to miss. — Published 2004.0505
A pair of pristine pavilions in the wilds of Queensland, Australia, near the historic town of Mudgeeraba, embodies a number precedents from the Modern Movement that coalesce to form a comfortable retreat. Designed for a ballet teacher and artist who lives with her husband and mother, the so-called Gold Coast House accommodates many different activities in a relatively compact 4,500 square feet (500 square meters). — Published 2003.0326
When completed, the 90-story Eureka Tower in Melbourne, Australia will be the tallest residential building in the world, rising 985 feet (300 meters) above street level. The builder, Grocon Pty. Ltd., takes pride that this large-scale venture is right on schedule. The construction firm attributes their efficient communications to the decision by Fender Katsalidis Architects (FKAU) to use object-oriented architectural design software. — Published 2003.0226
