Newcastle architecture students will have access to the best design minds in the country following the appointment of five leading Australian architects.
The internationally-renowned architects behind prestigious works including the Opera House, Olympic villages in Sydney, Athens, Beijing and London, and the Brisbane Gallery of Modern Art, have been enlisted as specialist mentors for students.
Attracting the high calibre industry professionals was a massive coup for the university, Head of the School of Architecture and Built Environment, Professor Tony Williams said.
“The professionals will work closely with students to provide invaluable industry perspective through critique sessions, offer advice on high impact design, and ensure connectivity to the industry was not lost,” Professor Williams said.
“Newcastle is arguably the best-equipped architecture school in the country, and now we are the first university in Australia to have five prominent practitioners working within a school. No one else can lay claim to that.”
The university is one of Australia’s largest architecture schools and is the only higher education provider that offers a studio environment for teaching, giving students 24-hour access to a state-of-the-art design studio, plus their own personal workspace.
Professional architects in residence are:
• Laurence Nield (BVN Architecture) designed four successive Olympic villages in Sydney, Athens, Beijing and London.
• Kerry and Lindsay Clare (Directors, Architectus) husband and wife duo and winners of the Australian Institute of Architects 2010 Gold Medal for the design of Brisbane’s Gallery of Modern Art.
• Peter Stutchbury designed several Newcastle campus buildings, including the Birabahn Indigenous centre and the Design building. Peter has also recently won both state and national awards for housing designs.
• Richard Leplastrier worked on the Sydney Opera House design and is known most recently for his environmentally sustainable designs, particularly his prolific use of wood.
The spotlight is on the University’s architecture school this week with fifth-year Master of Architecture students displaying their design projects at the annual exhibition titled Resuscitate.
The exhibit will show works addressing urban renewal.
Picture opportunity: School of Architecture and Built Environment exhibition of opening night, 5.30pm, 25 November at Newcastle Town Hall.
For interview with Professor Tony Williams phone 4921 5865.
Media contact: Tess Campbell, Media and Public Relations Officer, phone 4921 8714
