Studio DE/30

Bower Studio

David O'Brien

This studio is co-taught as ABPL90142 Architecture Studio C Studio 10 and ABPL90143/115 Architecture Studio D/E Studio 30.

Studio Description

The award-winning Bower Studio was formed in 2008 and continues to work with indigenous communities in remote Australia and Papua New Guinea. Working ‘on country’ and alongside locals provides you with a compelling opportunity to experience indigenous culture by participating in the development of a ‘real life’ community development project.

Teams of Bower Studio students have co-designed and co-built culture facilities with the Kalkaringi community since 2014. The relationship has strengthened year by year and several projects have now been completed.

Bower Studio has been invited to compliment the work we completed at the local Karungkarni Arts Centre in 2018 when a team worked with the community to double the space available to artists in a culturally appropriate and sustainable way.

https://bowerstudio.msd.unimelb.edu.au/projects/2018-kalkaringi-nt

Studio Outcomes

The artists have asked us to extend the space and capture views and morning sunlight. Gina Dahl, a Bower student in 2021, has been engaged to prepare a design following her extensive consultation with the community as part of her recent MSD studies.

Her design works to naturally cool the interior, reduce dust and create space to support a new generation of artists. Sketch designs have been approved and a kit-of-parts is now being prepared to be sent from MSD in a shipping container via train and road to arrive in time for us to complete stage 1 of the new works during semester 1.

This program begins at the Parkville campus before working with our steel prefabricator (located in Malmsbury) to prepare our kit-of-parts to be sent to the Kalkaringi community in remote Northern Territory. After Easter we take two weeks to travel to Kalkaringi and help assemble the structure. When we return to campus you will prepare your own design for stage 2 works at Karungkarni.

Check out the applications tab https://bowerstudio.msd.unimelb.edu.au/#upcoming-projects to more details about the project dates and the FAQ section. Questions can be directed to djobrien@unimelb.edu.au

Studio Leader

David O’Brien is the inaugural director of Bower Studio and has worked with dozens of indigenous communities in remote Australia and Papua New Guinea in a co-design and co-building format. In this project we are building upon the designs of Gina Dahl, a graduate architect who consulted widely with the community as part of her Design Thesis project. The broader Bower Studio team working with us this semester includes a registered builder and educator, James Neil, a number of highly experienced Bower graduates, including George Stavrias and Zoe Diacolabrianos, plus a variety of guest critics with special skills designing with indigenous communities.

Readings & References

A comprehensive reading list will be discussed at the beginning of semester.

Schedule
Mondays 09:00-12:00 in MSD Room 241 and Thursdays 12:00-15:00 in MSD Room 142

Off-campus Activities
[To be confirmed]

Contact Handbook