The urban, commercial and public National Architecture Awards winners of 2023
A maintenance shed, private school sports centre and Australia’s most iconic building have taken out prizes for urban and commercial design.
From the enduring to the new, the sacred to the practical, Australia’s most innovative urban and public projects have been honoured at this year’s National Architecture Awards, which was held in Canberra tonight.
This year’s jury, which included chair Shannon Battisson, Shaneen Fantin, William Smart, Stephanie Kitingan, and Scott Burchell, were tasked with awarding the architects and firms behind the country’s best architectural examples of sustainability, commercial and public design, educational spaces and respect of culture, heritage and place.
While the country’s more conspicuous structures were celebrated, such as The Art Gallery of NSW Sydney Modern and Sydney Opera House – which was awarded The Lachlan Macquarie Award for Heritage and Emil Sodersten Award for Interior Architecture for its concert hall renewal – smaller projects were also acknowledged, including a maintenance shed, farm stay and The Victorian Family Violence Memorial.
Lineburg Wang and Steve Hunt Architect, the team tasked with designing the University of Queensland Cricket Club’s maintenance shed (winner – National Award for Small Project Architecture), impressed the judging panel with their ability to overcome budget constraints and create “a pavilion that sits proudly in the landscape, situating itself as a beacon for the local university and cricket community”.
See below for this year’s winners of the National Architecture Awards 2023 in the commercial, urban and public categories:
SMALL PROJECT ARCHITECTURE
THE NICHOLAS MURCUTT AWARD FOR SMALL PROJECT ARCHITECTURE:Victorian Family Violence Memorial | VIC | MUIR+OPENWORK
“The Victorian Family Violence Memorial is a gentle gesture in solidarity. It straddles two fulcrums: it is a place for the individual or for a group to gather in support, grief or remembrance.”
NATIONAL AWARD FOR SMALL PROJECT ARCHITECTURE : University of Queensland Cricket Club Maintenance Shed | QLD | Lineburg Wang with Steve Hunt Architect
“One of the hallmarks of good design is the ability to take a rudimentary material and achieve texture, embellishment, detail and structure, all in one. This shed is a wonderful example of this dexterity, displayed in a delightful way.”
NATIONAL COMMENDATION FOR SMALL PROJECT ARCHITECTURE: Postal Hall, Trower Falvo Architects (WA)
“The Postal Hall bookshop achieves a complex juggling act: to be not only a place that supports the adjacent tenancies, but also a destination in itself. “
NATIONAL COMMENDATION FOR SMALL PROJECT ARCHITECTURE: Dimensions X / Farm Stay, Peter Stutchbury Architecture (NSW)
“Working hard yet sitting beautifully within its context and not scrimping on quality, this project is a sustainable and economical corrective to the current state of the building industry.”
SUSTAINABLE ARCHITECTURE
THE DAVID OPPENHEIM AWARD FOR SUSTAINABLE ARCHITECTURE : Nightingale Village | VIC | Architecture architecture, Austin Maynard Architects, Breathe, Clare Cousins Architects, Hayball and Kennedy Nolan
“Nightingale Village is a testament to the power of collaboration. The development demonstrates the merit of sharing information, and the social and environmental benefits of a design that considers more than the residents alone.”
NATIONAL AWARD FOR SUSTAINABLE ARCHITECTURE : Boola Katitjin by Lyons with Silver Thomas Hanley, The Fulcrum Agency and Officer Woods Architects | The Whadjuk People of the Noongar Nation
“Designed to embrace the often-harsh Perth climate and also protect from it, Boola Katitjin offers a generous covered space for open-air ceremonial events that were not possible before now.”
URBAN DESIGN
THE WALTER BURLEY GRIFFIN AWARD FOR URBAN DESIGN : University of Melbourne Student Precinct | VIC | Lyons with Koning Eizenberg Architecture, NMBW Architecture Studio, Greenaway Architects, Architects EAT, Aspect Studios and Glas Urban
“The student precinct demonstrates the power of collaborative processes across community, the university and the profession to create an exceptional, inclusive, playful and culturally respectful urban design experience for the University of Melbourne and Parkville.”
NATIONAL AWARD FOR URBAN DESIGN: Herston Quarter Redevelopment Stage 1 and 2 | QLD | Hassell
“Herston Quarter has reclaimed a part of Brisbane that has long felt inaccessible and given it back to its neighbourhood. Its new address, transport, amenity, connectivity and landscape are greatly improved through this project.”
COMMERCIAL ARCHITECTURE
THE HARRY SEIDLER AWARD FOR COMMERCIAL ARCHITECTURE : Delatite Cellar Door | VIC | Lucy Clemenger Architects
“Although it feels substantial, its footprint is relatively small. And although made from modest materials, it feels precious. It’s the perfect union of place, product, architecture and owners.”
NATIONAL AWARD FOR COMMERCIAL ARCHITECTURE: JCB Studio | VIC | Jackson Clements Burrows
“On an extraordinarily low budget, the existing warehouse has been adapted to create an architect’s dream studio that complements its urban context. This is a thoroughly rigorous project that never fails to consider its robustness, commodity or ability to delight.”
NATIONAL COMMENDATION FOR COMMERCIAL ARCHITECTURE: Yirranma Place, SJB (NSW)
“Vaulted forms, rich textures and bold colours successfully transform the interwar Beaux Arts interiors into joyous spaces befitting of the charitable organisation they now house. “
NATIONAL COMMENDATION FOR COMMERCIAL ARCHITECTURE: Poly Centre 210 George Street, Grimshaw (NSW)
“Poly Centre melts perfectly into its dense urban setting, as though it was always meant to be there. The internal areas are rigorously detailed and resolved, from the luxurious modernist foyer to the efficient side-core floor plates.”
EDUCATIONAL ARCHITECTURE
THE DARYL JACKSON AWARD FOR EDUCATIONAL ARCHITECTURE: Boola Katitjin by Lyons with Silver Thomas Hanley, The Fulcrum Agency and Officer Woods Architects | The Whadjuk People of the Noongar Nation
“Boola Katitjin successfully integrates its design brief in a solution that is striking, elegant, flexible, inclusive and certainly of its place.”
NATIONAL AWARD FOR EDUCATIONAL ARCHITECTURE: Cranbrook School - Hordern Oval Precinct Redevelopment | NSW | Architectus
“The internal spaces, such as the great hall and the music room, are designed with a level of care rarely seen in school environments, and can elevate the aspirations of the students and teachers.”
NATIONAL AWARD FOR EDUCATIONAL ARCHITECTURE: Inveresk Library, University of Tasmania | TAS | Wardle
“Inveresk Library is an engaging and playful addition to the University of Tasmania’s campus in Launceston by Wardle. The design of the spaces is intentionally flexible and independent of the building rhythm and structure, to allow for changes in use and program in the future.”
NATIONAL COMMENDATION FOR EDUCATIONAL ARCHITECTURE: Cannon Hill Anglican College D-Block, Reddog Architects in association with Blueline Architecture (QLD)
“ The project exhibits beautiful materiality in its light, sinuous brickwork and its colour palette, creating a series of exciting spatial experiences for students and staff.”
NATIONAL COMMENDATION FOR EDUCATIONAL ARCHITECTURE: Research School of Physics Stage 1 Building, Australian National University, Hassell (ACT)
“A love of physics is evident throughout the building, from the waves in the acoustic timber wall treatment and the external shading fins, to the randomised patterns of seats in the main lecture hall.”
ENDURING ARCHITECTURE
NATIONAL AWARD FOR ENDURING ARCHITECTURE: Brambuk: The National Park and Cultural Centre | VIC | Gregory Burgess Architects
“Brambuk sits within Gariwerd (Grampians) National Park, which is the home of the Jadawadjali and Djab Wurrung peoples. As with all timeless places, it gives you what you need at the time you visit it.”
HERITAGE
THE LACHLAN MACQUARIE AWARD FOR HERITAGE: Sydney Opera House Concert Hall Renewal | NSW | ARM Architecture
“The design team spared no time or effort in their exploration of the right method for every surface. Every detail – from the user journey to instrument movement and acoustic performance – has been investigated at length, and the final result is a piece of architecture that the country can be proud to call our own. “
NATIONAL AWARD FOR HERITAGE: University of Melbourne Student Precinct by Lyons with Koning Eizenberg Architecture, NMBW Architecture Studio, Greenaway Architects, Architects EAT, Aspect Studios and Glas Urban
“The revitalised ground plane is anchored not only by the physical connectivity of the new and refurbished buildings and their respective levels, but also by a poetically ingrained, Indigenous-led conception of place.”
NATIONAL COMMENDATION FOR HERITAGE: Thomas Dixon Centre, Conrad Gargett (QLD)
“At the Queensland Ballet’s Thomas Dixon Centre, Conrad Gargett has demonstrated commendable skill to fuse an existing heritage entity to its contemporary division.”
INTERIOR ARCHITECTURE
THE EMIL SODERSTEN AWARD FOR INTERIOR ARCHITECTURE: Sydney Opera House Concert Hall Renewal | NSW | ARM Architecture
“ … ARM Architecture has managed to perform the most flattering of facelifts for this grand dame. ‘The House’ feels ready for its next 50 years.”
NATIONAL AWARD FOR INTERIOR ARCHITECTURE: Bass Coast Farmhouse | VIC | Wardle
“Bass Coast Farmhouse unashamedly braces itself against its surroundings, with the interior providing a delightfully warming and welcoming counterpoint. “
NATIONAL COMMENDATION FOR INTERIOR ARCHITECTURE: Art Gallery of NSW, Sydney Modern building, Gallery Shop, Akin Atelier (NSW)
“Traditionally, the gift shop in an art gallery is a recessive space through which you exit. Akin Atelier’s insertion of an intriguing visual jewel that feels like an objet d’art in and of itself is a triumph at the Art Gallery of NSW.”
INTERNATIONAL ARCHITECTURE
THE JORN UTZON AWARD FOR INTERNATIONAL ARCHITECTURE: Paris Apartment | France | Wood Marsh Architecture
“Paris Apartment is exceptional not only because it is a beautiful balance between modern and historic design, but because of the design research and management process the architects managed to navigate with the French government from Australia during Covid.”
PUBLIC ARCHITECTURE
THE SIR ZELMAN COWEN AWARD FOR PUBLIC ARCHITECTURE: Rockhampton Museum of Art | QLD | Conrad Gargett, Clare Design (Lead Design Architects) and Brian Hooper Architect
The Rockhampton Museum of Art is founded on principles of sustainability, public engagement, respect for heritage and international-standard gallery spaces. It’s a true public building, giving back to Rockhampton much more than might be expected from a gallery.”
NATIONAL AWARD FOR PUBLIC ARCHITECTURE: Art Gallery of NSW, Sydney Modern building | NSW | Lead Consultant: SANAA; Executive Architect: Architectus
“Light, open and inviting, the Sydney Modern building masters the art of spatial complexity with calmness. It will no doubt get even better with time, as it nestles into its extraordinary landscape setting.”
NATIONAL AWARD FOR PUBLIC ARCHITECTURE: Melbourne Holocaust Museum by Kerstin Thompson Architects
“A holocaust museum’s content is sensitive and the building’s design must be approached in the right way. Here, the method is one of absolute consistency, from the strong cohesive urban form to the exhibition spaces and their connecting circulation areas.”
NATIONAL COMMENDATION FOR PUBLIC ARCHITECTURE: Bendigo Law Courts, Wardle (VIC)
“This building rethinks the cornerstone of society that is the law court. Externally, it is simultaneously welcoming and formidable. Internally, it delicately balances the seriousness of its purpose with a sense of familiarity and comfort.”
NATIONAL COMMENDATION FOR PUBLIC ARCHITECTURE: Dove Lake Viewing Shelter, Cumulus Studio (TAS)
“Seen from the lake, the building appears beautifully nestled into its landscape; low and subdued, it exhibits a true sense of belonging in this extraordinary location.”