Final designs for $200m Adelaide Aboriginal Art and Cultures Centre to be built at Lot Fourteen

The final designs have been revealed for Adelaide’s landmark Indigenous art gallery, to be built at Lot Fourteen. See all the pictures here and vote in the poll.

Final designs for a $200m Indigenous art gallery have been revealed as the future centrepiece of Adelaide’s landmark Lot Fourteen site.

Plans for the North Tce Aboriginal Art and Cultures Centre (AACC) have been submitted for approval, ahead of a planned construction start later this year.

Aboriginal Arts and Cultures Centre at Lot Fourteen. North Tce arrival with water feature and cantilevered galleries evoking a sense of welcome. Picture: Diller Scofidio + Renfro and Woods Bagot

Premier Steven Marshall said he was confident the art and cultures centre, scheduled to open in 2025, would provide rich opportunities for all South Australians.

“Putting Aboriginal art and cultures at the forefront, the establishment of the AACC will provide a symbol of reconciliation, celebrating our unique cultural offerings while creating an international tourism destination,” Mr Marshall said.

“This new landmark for our state will create important opportunities for Aboriginal employment and development, while driving economic and social outcomes for the people of South Australia.”

Federal Cities and Arts Minister Paul Fletcher said the centre would be an important cultural landmark and tourist attraction, predicting it would entice hundreds of thousands of visitors annually.

Aerial view with AACC wholly connected to the landscape. Picture: Diller Scofidio + Renfro and Woods Bagot

Initial plans based on shelters known as wurlies or humpies have been refined with an Aboriginal Reference Group, which architects said meant the design “speaks to and embraces Aboriginal shared values”.

The final plans appear more curved, with softer angles and more open entrances, than first designs revealed by The Advertiser in February.

Creating Australia’s leading Indigenous art gallery was the linchpin of the Liberals’ pre-election vision for the old Royal Adelaide Hospital site, now known as Lot Fourteen.

Released just ahead of the 2018 poll, the Liberal blueprint also included a $60m world-class cooking school, which Treasurer Rob Lucas on July 29 revealed had stalled.

Labor treasury spokesman Stephen Mullighan accused Mr Marshall of being “all talk and no action” on the AACC, arguing the project was two years late and $50m over its original budget.

“We still haven’t even seen a business case for it, just another series of artist’s impressions. This was meant to start construction last year and South Australians would be right to wonder if it will ever be delivered,” he said.

“It’s time for Steven Marshall to stop cutting ribbons on Labor projects and to start building some of his own.

“With the highest unemployment in the nation we need less TV advertisements about infrastructure and more jobs on the ground.”

Lord Mayor Sandy Verschoor said: “The design is absolutely beautiful and is a concept that connects to the landscape. Just as exciting are the treasures that will be showcased and cultural activity that will take place within this iconic and welcoming space.”

A State Commission Assessment Panel decision to approve the AACC would resolve years of indecision about a cultural addition to the old RAH site, for which the former Labor government commissioned designs for a contemporary art gallery – ultimately shelved by the Liberals in mid-2018.

Architect Diller Scofidio + Renfro partner Charles Renfro, whose firm designed the centre in partnership with Woods Bagot, said the contemporary building presented “an exciting new image and experience”.

“Wholly connected to the landscape, the design embeds the lower ground level into the site and includes a first-of-its-kind outdoor gallery cantilevered over the terraced landscape,” he said.

Aerial view featuring an open air amphitheatre to host Welcome to Country and other events. Picture: Diller Scofidio + Renfro and Woods Bagot,

The AACC, which Mr Marshall previously had signalled would open in 2023, would include spaces for permanent and visiting exhibitions, cultural performances, meetings, ceremonies, a cafe, retail spaces and an open-air amphitheatre.

AACC ambassador and Aboriginal Reference Group leader David Rathman said Indigenous people had worked with the project team for more than a year.

“The Aboriginal Art and Cultures Centre is a means by which Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people can showcase to the world 60,000 years of history, understanding of country and contemporary expression of our culture, through performing, visual arts and static displays,” he said.

The federal government will provide up to $85m towards construction, under a City Deal inked in 2019, while the state has earmarked $115m, including an extra $50m unveiled in November 2020.

The AACC would include spaces for permanent and visiting exhibitions, cultural performances, meetings, ceremonies, a cafe, retail spaces and an open-air amphitheatre. Picture: Diller Scofidio + Renfro and Woods Bagot