E/02

Outpost 09:
Forms of Imagination

Kristina Levenko and Michelle Gan

Studio Description

Outpost is a series of design studios led by Wardle that bridges academia and practice. ‘Outpost 09: Forms of Imagination’ emerged from the practice’s ongoing research into material invention, climate action, and collective memory. Having designed and delivered a wide range of learning typologies, the practice understands the drivers shaping educational spaces. The outcomes of the studio will build on these current learnings, contributing to the practice’s ongoing research.

‘Forms of Imagination’ addresses the overcrowding in inner-city primary schools, strained by the city’s growing density. Catchment zones, housing crises, gentrification, and urban sprawl threaten climate breakdown and deepened disconnection between children, learning and place. There is an acute demand for new learning-centric spaces in the city's dense urban fabric.

"Can we build smaller, closer, or must we build at all?"

This studio will examine the complexities of early childhood, moving beyond traditional formats to embrace new typologies of playful, informal, and collaborative learning. Projects will weave climate responsiveness, learning, and play into the urban context – generating curiosity to connect children with the community and its surrounds.

The site for inquiry is the Flagstaff Gardens precinct, rich in historical significance and programmatic diversity. Working within a selected block of existing buildings, each project will engage in adaptive reuse and retrofit to address whole-of-life cycle carbon impacts. Students will look at these remnants with curiosity and playfulness, questioning ‘How might these spaces be adapted for a child?’ Turning away from demolition, and instead towards regenerative design methods of decarbonization, up-cycling, and material invention, each project will illuminate the future of adaptive schools.

Studio Outcomes

Through a process of blending two parallel streams, “Forms of Imagination” and “Forms of Reality”, the tangible urban context and intangible cognitive condition will inform a strategy for new school typologies.

Within "Forms of Imagination," students will engage in an introspective analysis of childhood memory. Through experiential drawing, analogue and digital model making, students will examine the complexities of the human condition associated with growth in the formative years.

Within “Forms of Reality”, they will critically assess the current site with decarbonization in mind. To understand material and construction method implications, students will work through site mapping, material research, and whole-of-life cycle carbon analysis. Using existing site materials, fragments, and buildings, they will explore processes of adaptive reuse and material reconstitution.

Through targeted design tasks, site visits, readings, and group discussions, the studio aims to equip students with the intellectual framework to craft climate-active primary schools that spark playful, indelible memories.

Run from Wardle Studio in Collingwood, Outpost immerses students in the practice environment. Leveraging their extensive experience and industry expertise, Wardle studio leaders will hold technical workshops and lectures, mentoring students in the development of environmental strategies and detail resolutions.

Studio Leader

KRISTINA LEVENKO is a Senior Design Architect at Wardle with a diverse set of skills, strong spatial intelligence, and an eye for detail. Her curious nature and focus on the social and cultural impacts of architecture allow her to create innovative design outcomes tailored to the individual needs of the client. She has contributed to numerous award-winning projects across major sectors in Australia and Asia. Kristina is driven by the process of finding resolutions to complex ideas at all scales, from masterplans to small pieces of joinery, placing human experience at the core of the design process. She values collaboration and believes that the best way to develop ideas is through conversation with others.

MICHELLE GAN is a passionate and driven designer at Wardle. As a key player in the design team, Michelle’s design philosophy is deeply rooted in storytelling and ideas that push the envelope of critical thinking. She places emphasis on small scale detailed interventions grounded in narrative, to create connections between person and architecture. Michelle's professional experience in Australia and the Philippines spans diverse typologies, from cultural to commercial projects. Graduating with Bachelor and Master of Architecture degrees from RMIT, she received multiple honors for her work. Michelle remains actively involved in research as a studio leader at Melbourne School of Design. Michelle is also engaged in art and installations internationally, most recently working on Tripa de Gallina: Guts of Estuary for the Biennale Architettura 2023.

Readings & References

Education and Pedagogy

  • Emerging Practices in Architectural Pedagogy: Accommodating an Uncertain Future, Laura Sanderson and Sally Stone

Reuse, Climate Change and Sustainability

  • Emerging Ecologies: Architecture and the Rise of Environmentalism, Carson Chan
  • Circular Buildings Toolkit, Arup
  • Building Better - Less - Different: Circular Construction and Circular Economy, Felix Heisel and Dirk E. Hebel
  • Manual of Recycling, Annette Hillebrandt, Petra Riegler-Floors, Anja Rosen and Johanna-Katharina Seggewies
  • UnDoing Buildings: Adaptive Reuse and Cultural Memory Sally Stone

ABPL90439 Design Studio E is an Early start subject. An in-person Studio Presentation Day event will be held in the Laby Theatre (L08), David Caro Building from 1pm-2pm on Tuesday 16th July followed by one-hour Q&A Session with Studio Leaders and Subject Coordinators in the MSD building. The Studio Ballot will be held online at the beginning of O-week, opening from 3pm Tuesday 16th July and closing at 3pm Wednesday 17th July. The outcome of Studio Allocation will be announced on Canvas before the end of Friday 19th July. There will be subject preparatory online work to be completed during this period before the semester commencement.

Schedule:
Monday 5:30pm-8:30pm @ Wardle Studio
&
Thursday 5:30pm-8:30pm @ Wardle Studio

Contact Handbook

Need enrolment assistance?

Stop 1 provides enrolment and other support to Bachelor of Design, Bachelor of Environments and Melbourne School of Design students.