Bower Studio - Wadeye Culture Centre

David O'Brien and George Stavrias

ABPL90356 Bower Studio will run a separate application and selection process. See the link at the top of the bowerstudio.com.au website for details.

Studio Outline:

The multi-award winning Bower Studios have students designing and building community infrastructure alongside Indigenous groups in remote locations in Australia and Papua New Guinea. Since 2008, the Bower Studios have helped design and construct a range of community building types alongside fourteen partner communities.

The Bower Studio returns to the remote Northern Territory to work with the Thamarrurr Aboriginal Corporation and Wadeye community to help develop Stage 1 of the Wadeye Culture Center.

There are at least seven languages spoken by the indigenous people living in the remote Daly River region plus various traditional clan based arts and cultural practices. The Wadeye community (formerly the Port Keats mission) is a hub for these clan groups but does not have any formal arts or culture space. The community has invited Bower Studio to work with them and develop a new center.

Stage 1 includes the design and construction of a broadcasting space with seating, stage and projection screen. Construction will be completed (by the Bower team and locals) in June 2017 over a ten-day period on-site.

In addition to our input during the construction phase we have been asked to contribute designs for a comprehensive cultural precinct in Wadeye including an arts and historical center. Consultation and preliminary designs will be prepared whilst at Wadeye with a final submission due back in Melbourne June 26*.

Students will be taught a range of construction techniques during a weekend program at the University’s Dookie campus before the construction program at Wadeye. Additional classes addressing indigenous engagement, community development and cultural center designs will be held on Monday mornings throughout semester.

Be warned that the studio is both intellectually and physically demanding. Allow approximately $1800 for airfares, car hire, etc.

Bower Studio students are motivated by community engagement and have a keen interest in learning with and about indigenous Australians. At the same time they have an interest in learning to work at 1:1 scale and engaging in the 'real' world with actual clients, budgets and construction processes. A solid background in theory and technology helps frame this subject and ensure constructive outcomes that last well beyond the semester's learning.

Studio Leaders

DAVID O'BRIEN BPD, BArch (hons), PhD Senior Lecturer in Architectural Design and Technology Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning University of Melbourne David has twenty-five years experience in the construction field designing and building for both commercial and community based clients. He has project managed the construction of community development projects in Western Australia, the Northern Territory, Queensland, Thailand and Papua New Guinea. David initiated the Bower Studio in 2007 and has more recently co-developed the HomesPLUS initiative.

GEORGE STAVRIAS B.A (hons), B.Sc, BPD, MArch George Stavrias is a registered architect and a director of the HomesPLUS program. George has worked as a designer and project manager on eight Bower Studio projects in Western Australia and the Northern Territory. His role includes community liaison, project design and documentation, site management and post-occupancy evaluation.

Learning Outcomes:

The Thamarrurr Aboriginal Corporation and the Wadeye elders have asked us to help create both a short and long-term vision for an arts/culture precinct and the 2017 Bower project forms stage 1 of this process. After some preliminary design exercises, supported by learning about construction techniques, students will travel to Wadeye for 10 days to work alongside, consult and design with the community members. During this site visit we will construct a broadcast facility. Returning to Melbourne the students will have a further two weeks to complete and present their designs before these designs are sent to Wadeye for further consultation and development.

Reading and Reference:

A comprehensive reading list will be provided at the beginning of semester. In the meantime you might enjoy reading Stan Grant's Quarterly Essay (64) 'The Australian Dream'.

Field Trip

DATE: Week 13
COST: $1800

ABPL90356 ST1/01 9:00am - 12:00pm, MSD Room 240

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