MSD students continue hands-on design work with regional community
Graduate students from the Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning travelled to Kalkaringi in the Northern Territory in April 2023 to continue the embedded community design work of the long-running Bower Studio program.
The relationship between the University of Melbourne and the Gurindji people of Kalkaringi and the neighbouring town of Daguragu stretches back to the late sixties, when students from the University travellled to the area in support of the famous Wave Hill walk off from 1966.
This was followed by several return visits from 2014 focused on a range of design projects led by the work of students who had previously visited and consulted with the community.
Throughout semester one 2023, students built on the research of former studio participants Gina Dahl and Alice Woods, who proposed an extension to the exterior of the Karungkarni Arts Centre that enabled better heat and dust protection and provided a visual link to the surrounding landscape.
According to student Mel Ivelja who participated in the trip this year, being on Country is critical to understanding the design needs of a community.
“There are so many things you can’t learn from lectures and textbooks, in terms of designing but also just experiencing what the weather is like. When you’re watching the sunset every day, learning how the shadows move around certain buildings, and you’re sleeping on the dirt and understand how hard it is.”
She also appreciated the opportunity to get hands-on construc i tion experience working on the extension. “As an architecture student it’s so important to know how to actually fix two pieces of metal together and how to pour concrete - those design tectonics that you don’t really experience in day-to-day life.”
Hugh Foster another student involved with this year’s program, is currently working on a design prototype for a masonry evaporative cooling wall, with the final version to be installed at the Karungkarni Arts Centre.
The vernacular system uses water and wind, drawing on methods that have been used since 2500 BC. The design will feature the earthy tones and textures of the natural landscape, particularly inspired by the Victoria River which flows through the area. Local company Brickworks are supplying materials for Hugh to complete his project.
One of the key takeaways for students in participating in the projects is to understand the logistics of building in remote communities; particularly the complex process of transporting materials and how these materials can then be incorporated into the existing environment.
Mel noted that the containers used to ship materials for the 2023 upgrade would stay on the site in future.
“It required thinking about how we would add to the container to make it look like part of the context, and also how we can design things that won’t require maintenance over time. A lot of the design proposals for the next project considered how the leftover materials can be repurposed into the next design,” she said.