Sparkke at the Whitmore shines in SA architect awards
Sparkke at the Whitmore has taken out two major awards in this year’s SA architecture awards, while school, office, restaurant and retirement living projects were also big winners.
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The revival of a CBD pub, a new vertical village and upgrades to an eastern suburbs college were among the major winners in this year’s Australian Institute of Architects’ South Australian Awards.
Sparkke at the Whitmore, which opened last year after a $1.8 million transformation of the former Whitmore Hotel, took out two awards including a heritage award and the major prize in the commercial architecture category.
Jurors were impressed by Troppo Architects’ delivery of a “transparent, airy, light filled beer hall frontage to the square”, and “new shop-front openings drawing visitors into the once secretive parlour rooms of the original hotel”.
The former Whitmore Hotel’s history dates back more than 180 years, and was reopened by local craft brewer Sparkke Change Beverage Co.
Woods Bagot’s work on the U City retirement living and mixed-use tower on Franklin St in the CBD also took out two awards.
It won the City of Adelaide Prize and also an award for public architecture, recognising the “small reminders of the site’s rich history layered throughout the building through material, form and motif”.
Part of a national awards program run by the Australian Institute of Architects, the SA awards were announced on Thursday via a live YouTube stream.
A total of 39 awards and commendations were handed out, with award winners in each category progressing to the National Architecture Awards in November.
Australian Institute of Architects SA chapter president Tony Giannone said this year’s award winners represented the strong portfolio of work carried out by the local industry.
“With site visits replaced by online interviews, jurors rose to the challenge and were able to debate and remotely explore the merits of the entries,” he said.
“We have all had to adapt and be flexible to a different delivery mode for the awards program this year, however we’re confident in the process and proud to deliver the program despite this year’s extraordinary circumstances.”
Other award winners this year included Grieve Gillett Andersen’s design of the redevelopment of Pembroke Middle School, which took out the Dr John Mayfield Award for Education Architecture and also the Colorbond Award for Steel Architecture.
The interior architecture award went to studio-gram for its design of the new Fino Vino restaurant on Flinders St in the CBD.
Spinifex House by Khab Architects received the John S Chappel Award for Residential Architecture.
The design of the western suburbs beachside home was recognised for its “restrained and tasteful revisit of the modern Australian shack aesthetic”.