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There’s no shortage of moves, promotions and changes across architecture and design as we pass the half-way mark for 2023. Find out who’s going where with On The Move July.
Museum of Contemporary Art Australia and Power Institute staff: Lara Strongman, Suzanne Cotter, Mark Ledbury, Marni Williams, Nick Croggon, Jane Devery, John Saxby, photograph by Marcus Wright.
August 2nd, 2023
The MCA Australia and the Power Institute at the University of Sydney are forming a new research partnership on contemporary art and visual culture, with the new appointees pictured above. The aim of the project is to establish a new way of conducting and presenting research on the topics and, over three years, the two organisations will identify a set of discrete research projects. The work will be aided by a local and international network of curators, artists, and scholars from across the humanities and sciences.
“This new partnership is a natural fit – our two institutions have a shared history through the vision of J.W. Power who believed in the power of art to broaden horizons and inspire artists and the broader public,” says Suzanne Cotter, Director at MCA Australia. “We are thrilled to be able to bring together what MCA Australia and the Power Institute do best in making contemporary art a visible and accessible catalyst for research and understanding.”
In some wide-ranging international news, Woods Bagot has promoted six people to Principal across its Dubai, Singapore, Brisbane, Sydney and Adelaide studios. In Brisbane, both David Lee and Studio Chair Kirsti Simpson have moved up to the position while the other changes are Tim Davies (Dubai), Edwina Bennett (Adelaide), Neil Hill (Sydney) and Rosie Oliver (Singapore).
“These leaders bring a wealth of experience, creativity, and passion that will continue to elevate our global studio and strengthen our position as a global leader in the industries within which we work,” says CEO Nik Karalis. “We are confident that our newly appointed Principals will provide exceptional leadership, inspiring our teams to push boundaries and deliver extraordinary results.”
Sydney studio Tzannes has five changes across Associate level. Yi-han Cao moves up to Associate Director having joined Tzannes in 2017 and led work ranging from city-making projects to product design. Lily Tandeani, with extensive experience delivering a diverse range of projects of varying complexity, becomes Senior Associate – as does and Marc Micuta who, having specialised in commercial and public projects, will lead the technology strategic group.
Rounding out the promotions are Jason Goh and James Marrinan, who both move to the position of Associate. Goh balances his work on commercial, residential and hospitality projects with his role as chair of the practice’s internal Design Review Panels. Marrinan, meanwhile, has experience in single residential, multi-residential, commercial and higher education projects, and will provide strategic input into Tzannes’ design culture focusing on optimising project delivery.
Having stepped down from his role at Futurespace 22 years after founding the business, Stephen Minnett is launching a new one. Next Workplace is a consulting business based on the statement: ‘The world of work is changing – what should your next workplace be?’ We recently spoke to Minnett about that and all things workplace design.
Next Workplace sets out on the premise that many organisations’ workplaces are broken and do not function effectively after the COVID pandemic. “An effective workplace is not a one-size-fits-all solution, and things will never go back to the way they were pre-COVID. Evolution does not work like that,” Minnett says. “We believe that to gain an advantage you have to break away from the herd, follow your own unique path with all the risks and rewards that entails to deliver a unique solution that has been co-created with your best people.”
Art Fairs Australia has announced Zoe Paulsen as Fair Director for Sydney Contemporary. Paulsen has experience delivering multiple contemporary art fairs in Australia, including The Other Art Fair (Sydney and Melbourne), Can’t Do Tomorrow (Australia’s largest street art festival, Melbourne), the Affordable Art Fair (Sydney) and the Incognito Art Show (Sydney). “I am pleased to be working with a very experienced team who will no doubt continue to make their valuable contributions to all the components which make up the special character of Sydney Contemporary,” she says.
“We are delighted to announce Zoe as Fair Director. I have known Zoe for a number of years and have always had huge respect for her professionalism and understanding of the Australian arts community. I’m confident future editions of Sydney Contemporary will continue to thrive under Zoe’s leadership and vision,” says Sydney Contemporary Founder, Tim Etchells.
ClarkeHopkinsClarke Architects has announced the promotion of ESD specialist Sindy Bowlen (Education) to Associate. A certified Passive House designer and sustainability leader at the carbon neutral BCorp, Bowlen regards learning environments as “ideal spaces to demonstrate climate responsibility and create healthy communities in harmony with the natural environment”. Among other recent appointments, Andrew Amos has been promoted to Senior Urban Designer and six architects have taken on Senior Architect roles: Victoria Dragas (Mixed-Use), Tanya Banagala (Health), and in Education Han Chua, Michael Litton, Karin Allen and Phil Ng.
In Sydney, Cameron Martin has recently been announced as a new Director at DesignInc, in which role he will continue to provide leadership in health, education, marketing and business development teams. Martin joins fellow Directors, Richard Does, Mary Anne McGirr, Ian Armstrong and Cathryn Drew-Bredin, who together state: “As our organisation continues to grow, we welcome Cameron’s experience across large and complex projects, as well as his skills in research, training and mentorship. Combined with his ability to develop partnerships and identify opportunities, Cameron will help us continue to build a practice where people are able to realise their personal and professional potential while fostering exceptional design.”
Cameron adds: “It sounds like a cliché, but my mission is to drive every project and every team member to design excellence. I believe this is only achieved through a solid company culture – it is the backbone of great design. Workplace culture should always be number one. Architecture is more than just delivering projects: it’s how you deliver them.”
Amena Reza takes up the newly created role of Head of Strategy and Operations at the Brisbane-based practice. Having served as a member of the bureau^proberts Advisory Board for the past five years, the promotion is a natural step for Reza. Previously, she was Managing Director at ML Design and has built up experience consulting to commercial and not-for-profit sectors.
“I’m excited to bring my drive, strategic leadership and governance experience to the table to help bureau^proberts build on its great platform to take its passionate and dedicated team of design leaders to the next level,” says Reza.
With six offices across Australia, New Zealand and south-east Asia already, DKO is launching another studio discipline – DKO Landscape. Sam McCubbin and Daisy Richmond-Smith are driving the new venture with an emphasis on the spaces ‘in between’ the built form, part of a wider approach that seeks to blur the distinction between architecture and landscape.
“We design landscapes and gardens for living, to enrich daily lives and enhance a sense of connection to each other and to the natural world,” explains Richmond-Smith, Senior Landscape Architect. “We use plants and other design elements to create evocative environments that connect people with nature and focus on creating a sense of refuge and comfort within the landscape. Creating spaces for people, we are thinking long term and considering the concepts of refuge and comfort foremost.”
Georgie Torrens has been named as the new Interim CEO at Xenian, a firm focused on providing high-end front-of-house architectural lighting solutions. “I am thrilled to join Xenian and be part of its remarkable journey,” says Torrens. “With my extensive global experience, I am inspired by our reach and the opportunities to connect with clients and partners worldwide. I look forward to learning how they utilize Xenian’s products to bring their creative visions to life.”
Launched in 2016 and supported by Forest and Wood Products Australia (FWPA) and University of the Sunshine Coast (UniSC), the Centre has announced Tripti Singh as new Director. Dr Singh is currently a senior scientist at New Zealand’s Scion, a government-owned company that conducts research to drive innovation and growth from the nation’s forestry, wood products and wood-derived materials. Meanwhile, the Centre has over the past six years collaborated across the sector with the aim of providing Australia with access to world-leading research while building strong links between industry, academia and customers. It is currently home to 20 associated researchers and students.
“Industry collaboration on vital research projects will be key to ensuring the ongoing success of the Centre,” says Dr Singh. “At its core, I believe nurturing relationships with industry and strengthening linkages with research groups in the domestic and global durability community will help align centre research with industry needs and result in practical solutions ready for implementation in real-world settings.”
We think you might also like last month’s On The Move column from June 2023.
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