GIRT is the brainchild of architects Monique Woodward, director of Melbourne firm WOWOWA Architecture and Nic Brunsdon, principal and creative director of NIC BRUNSDON based in Western Australian.

Formed as a series of podcasts, GIRT delves deep into all things architecture and design, as well as entrepreneurship, legacy and life. Hosted by Woodward and Brunsdon the ‘fireside chats’ are warm and without pretence and the interviewers also bring their own particular perspective to each and every episode.

With a variety of the ‘not so usual’ guests Brunsdon and Woodward manage to laugh, listen and learn their way through each session and as entertaining as they are, there is also an opportunity to be educated.

Season One of the series consists of nine episodes and much can be learned from the guests that includes, Reg Matthews and Ben Wright, Georgie Birks, Quan Yeomans, Chris Binns, Jo Hook, Anna Ross, Simone Harding, Andrew Davies and Dave Sharp.

These podcasts will delight architects and designers and Woodward and Brunsdon speak about some of the highlights from the series below, starting with Woodward.

“Quan Yeomans spoke about working within the cracks as a create parent and that it’s normal and ok. This really resonated with me, I find myself so desperate sometimes to take just one more call, or respond to just one more teams chat while trying to be fully present for Cleo (Ed. Woodward’s daughter). I love it when he said “If there’s one thing that defines me it’s when I meet adults and see they’re buried under a rubble of adulthood, I just want to dig them out” – So much joy in this, loved it. At the time of the interview, I felt like I also needed to dig myself and my team out from beneath the weight of pandemic heaviness.

“That’s where the conversation with Anna Ross was so powerful. We chat through WOWOWA’s transition from working regular hours to smashing five days in four to give our full timers an extra day to rest and reclaim themselves during a tough collective moment.

“I’ve also had my team listen to Jo Hook’s episode to garner excitement and contextualise our WOWOWA Christmas Goals.”
Monique Woodward.

And Nic Brunsdon’s favourite moments:

“I love Simone Harding’s story about the man on the street and the idea that our inner stories become the way we project out into the world. A good reminder about the power shaping your personal reality.

“Ben and Reg from Pretty Soon spoke about using an assessment tool for assessing clients and opportunities objectively. As creatives we have a tendency to be overly optimistic about what a project could become. This was a good reminder about keeping things unemotional and looking carefully at the people and projects that come towards you.

“The talk with Andrew Davies was affirming to our practice and more broadly about the uptake and alignment of BCorp principles with the way we can conduct contemporary business. That business can be a force for good. There is so much scope for new thinking about how we go about our practice and this left me with much hope.”
Nic Brunsdon.

These podcasts view architecture through a different lens that many practitioners will identify with and understand. GIRT has attitude but conveys a unique picture of design in Australia today. As the dynamic duo, Woodward and Brunsdon, say “GIRT is the warm hug everyone needs.”

You can find GIRT here.