Creative Hub

Along the backstreets of Surry Hills, the new Hill Street Precinct has been steadily evolving into one of Sydney’s most vibrant creative hubs.

February 22nd, 2011

TEXT PATRICIA NELSON
INTERVIEWS NICKY LOBO
PHOTOGRAPHY ROGER D’SOUZA

Through the many laneways behind Taylor Square, a collective of businesses, art spaces and stores are carving out a lively identity for the area.

This community heralds a new response to urban growth for the city, with small and bespoke solutions trumping standard corporate formulae to stimulate development. Part of the beauty of its evolution can be attributed to the organic nature of its growth alongside a diverse blend of buildings and space.

This started back in 1998, with the purchase of the St Margaret’s Maternity Hospital on Bourke Street by Michael Teplitsky’s Tepcorp Developments. Sydney has long been criticised for poor urban planning and civic architecture.

The St Margaret’s scheme looked toward re-energising communal spaces by introducing the idea of a thriving public square.

Read the full story on page 114 of Indesign magazine issue #44, in stores now.

INDESIGN is on instagram

Follow @indesignlive

The Indesign Collection

A searchable and comprehensive guide for specifying leading products and their suppliers

Ceto Chandelier

Stylecraft

Composition®

Autex Acoustics

Giravolta

Pedrali

Magnolia Home by Joanna Gaines Wall Vinyl

Materialised

Indesign Our Partners

Keep up to date with the latest and greatest from our industry BFF's!

Dale O’Brien on sitting easy with Herman Miller’s Verus Chair

Dale O’Brien on sitting easy with Herman Miller’s Verus Chair

In the first instalment of our three-part series exploring what it means to sit your best, we pose the question to Gray Puksand’s Dale O’Brien, who discusses the importance of ease and majority rule when it comes to sitting and reveals why specifying a task chair is not unlike choosing a Volvo.

A collective vision: The whimsical workplace with Intuit, COX and MillerKnoll

A collective vision: The whimsical workplace with Intuit, COX and MillerKnoll

Stepping into Intuit’s Sydney workplace certainly doesn’t feel like walking into an office. Why? In this film, we discover that, when joy takes precedence as a design driver, even a high-performing commercial CBD headquarters can feel like an intuitive wonderland that invites employees to choose their own adventure.

Material integrity at SJB’s Billyard Avenue

Material integrity at SJB’s Billyard Avenue

Natural stone shapes the interiors of Billyard Avenue, a luxury apartment development in Sydney’s Elizabeth Bay designed by architecture and design practice SJB. Here, a curated selection of stone from Anterior XL sets the backdrop for the project’s material language.

Matter meets design in mineral magnificence

Matter meets design in mineral magnificence

The newest brand to emerge from Cosentino’s creative crucible is Ēclos, a next-generation mineral surface that embodies the organic beauty and tactility of marble in a precision-mineral surface or material.

Related Stories

SJB writes a new chapter for UNSW Bookshop

SJB writes a new chapter for UNSW Bookshop

SJB transforms the UNSW Bookshop into a dynamic retail space that encourages people to spend time in a setting that fosters ideas and discussion.

Retro flavours at Piraña

Retro flavours at Piraña

This South American-inspired bar and diner in London is all kinds of delicious with a distinctly retro vibe, designed by Sella Concept.

Here are Victoria’s Polytec Design Winners 2017!

Here are Victoria’s Polytec Design Winners 2017!

As polytec’s Design Awards 2017 visited Melbourne, those present were able to see some of the greatest Residential, Commercial and Retail/Hospitality projects awarded yet!

BELOW THE SURFACE: WHO IS 2TEC2?

Ideas

BELOW THE SURFACE: WHO IS 2TEC2?

Introducing 2TEC2. This Belgian-born, global cult textile brand are masters of the nexus between traditional weaving and modern techniques. But there is far more to this material design house than is on the surface.

While you were sleeping

The internet never sleeps! Here's the stuff you might have missed

Michael Leeton on crafting place, protection and poetry in residential design

Michael Leeton on crafting place, protection and poetry in residential design

In this interview, Michael Leeton reflects on his philosophy of placemaking, connection to landscape and the importance of designing homes that balance intimacy with scale, using his award-winning project House on a Hill as a central reference point.

EOIs open for Adelaide Design Week 2026

Home

EOIs open for Adelaide Design Week 2026

Adelaide Design Week returns in October 2026 with the theme every*one, inviting designers, makers, studios, collectives and creative thinkers to submit expressions of interest.

Celebrating regional voices at the 2026 INDE.Awards

Celebrating regional voices at the 2026 INDE.Awards

Celebrating three countries from our region and their respective Architecture Institutes at the 2026 INDE.Awards.

Four things we learned as Saturday Indesign evolves

Home

Four things we learned as Saturday Indesign evolves

Our recent exhibitor session showed a renewed SID moving towards hospitality, process and more meaningful showroom experiences.