2018 Dulux Study Tour Report - Joseph O’Meara 1.

2018 DULUX STUDY TOUR Post Tour Report Joseph O’Meara

INTRODUCTION

You cannot learn through books what you can through experience. I think architecture in particular can only be fully understood and appreciated when experienced. The unique opportunity that the Dulux Study Tour offered to learn through first-hand experience and to become completely immersed in the architectural culture of the cities we visited was truly transformative.

The study tour fostered an intellectual stimulation which was both educational and rewarding. The intensity of architectural reflection generated by the tour has inspired and influenced me personally and professionally in countless ways. I am very grateful to all the architects and guides we met on the tour who generously offered us their time. I am incredibly grateful to the Australian Institute Tin House - Henning Stummel of Architects and Dulux Australia for giving me this opportunity. Special thanks go to Richard Hansen, Alison Mahoney and Helen Fitzpatrick from Dulux Australia, Mai Huynh and Joshua Morrin from the Australian Institute of Architects and Kaitlin Butler from Architecture Media who joined us, organised us and documented this incredible journey.

I feel extremely fortunate to have shared this experience with fellow winners Leah Gallagher, Kim Bridgland, Dirk Yates and Jason Licht. Each brought something unique to the table and our conversations in taxis between tours, over dinner (or an Aperol spritz) developed my way of thinking about architecture. The opportunity to observe architecture through their eyes enhanced my appreciation of what we do. The laughter shared, the stories told and the new friendships formed has been the most rewarding aspect of the trip for me. I am excited to continue developing this friendship and to become part of the growing Dulux Study Tour alumni. There is no way I can capture all the learnings from the 2018 study tour in this report. I think I’ll still be processing the experience for years to come. Instead, this report intends to document some key themes and findings that interested and inspired me in each city we visited. Fondazione Prada - OMA 2018 Dulux Study Tour Report - Joseph O’Meara 2.

DATA:

PEOPLE ITINERARY ITINERARY / VERONA / VENICE ITINERARY

2018 Dulux Study Tour recipients: PROJECT VISITS PROJECT VISITS PROJECT VISITS Leah Gallagher Kim Bridgland Tin House Frizz23 MILAN Jason Licht London Design Museum New Media Headquarters for TAZ Newspaper Porta Nuova District Dirk Yates ze05 (Big Yard) House of Memory Joseph O’Meara Tate Modern Extension (Switch House) Australian Embassy Berlin Bosco Verticale St Paul’s Cathedral Brandendurg Gate Piazza Gae Aulenti Dulux representatives: Wren churches The Schlossplatz Corso Italia Richard Hansen Mansion House The Altes Museum Torre Velasca Alison Mahoney 1 Poultry Duomo di Milano Cathedral Helen Fitzpatrick 30 St Mary Axe (Gherkin) James Simon Gallery Castello Sforzesco Leadenhall Building (Cheesegrater) Reichstag Building City Life District Australian Institute of Architects representatives: Lloyds Building (Inside-out-building) Konig Gallery Fondazione Prada Joshua Morrin Willis Building Jewish Museum Mai Huynh 20 Fenchurch Street (Walkie Talkie) Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe VERONA 20 Farringdon Street Castelvecchio Media representative: Woodblock House PRACTICE VISITS Banca Popolare di Verona Kaitlin Butler RIBA Palazzo Giardino Giusti Architects PRACTICE VISITS ACME Berlin VENICE Deadline Architects Fondazione Querini Stampalia Carmody Groarke GMP Architekten Negozio Olivetti Architects Realities United 2018 Architecture Biennale - Giardini - Arsenale Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners AL_A Ash Sakula PRACTICE VISITS WilkinsonEyre Foster + Partners BE.ST (Stefano Belingardi) Studio Octopi Piuarch arcHITects srl Progetto CMR Park Associati 2018 Dulux Study Tour Report - Joseph O’Meara 3. LONDON

Our first stop on the Dulux Study Tour was London. This contemporary, progressive city is currently in the midst of economic boom and is rapidly expanding outward and upward with tall buildings dominating the skyline. London’s population is at an all-time high and as a response to the continuing housing crisis, the pace of development will continue in the near future with copious high-rise towers in the pipeline.

On our walking tour of London, our learned guide David Garrard lead us through the cluster of high-rise icons in downtown London’s CBD. As we passed Fosters ‘Gherkin’, Rogers, ‘Cheese grater’ and ‘inside-out building’, Grimshaw’s ‘Walkie Talkie’ and KPF’s ‘Scapel’ we looked up in awe and speculated the nickname of the next impressive trophy on the skyline.

London’s skyline

THE DIGITAL AGE

There appears to be no shortage of work on London’s horizon. This is likely Forster + Partners, which is one of the largest architectural practices in part of the reason why this city is home to so many internationally the world (employing over 1200 staff) have a whole building on their renowned ‘starchitects’ such as Fosters + Partners, Rogers Stirk campus designated to a permanent material and finishes display library Harbour + Partners, Zaha Hadid Architects and Wilkinson Eyre, which are and another just for model making. A designated Specialist Modelling Group but a few of the large practices we visited on the tour. I think the scale of (SMG) carry out research and development in a project driven these studios was foreign to some of my study tour companions, most of environment with top of the line 3D printers, CNC router stations and which are running their own emerging studios and practicing at a much laser-cutter chambers to rapid prototype. They proudly suspend a smaller scale. I was the only architect on the tour who is practicing in a stunning 1:1 test model within the open-plan space of their main studio. large-scale organisation (BVN). While this in a way set us apart, I think it added another layer to conversations and observations. Visiting some of Located in an industrial warehouse in London’s inner North, the natural the fantastic small-to-medium scale practices such as Carmody Groake, light-filled office of AL_A had a beautiful blush red carpet with a ‘no-shoes’ Studio Octopi, Ash Sakula and Henning Stummel further revealed a diverse policy. This facilitated a calmer, more relaxed atmosphere which was spectrum of architectural values and different ways of working. welcomed by the group, particularly coming straight from visiting ZHA. Foster + Partners While the scale of AL_A was smaller (around fifty staff), the value they de- The changes brought about by globalisation, new technologies and the scribed in the process of material exploration and the experimental inves- Information Age have had a monumental impact on societies, cultures, tigation of complex geometries was extremely high. politics and economies across the globe. This has brought one of the greatest recent changes in architectural practice. Most, if not all of the Interestingly this level of research and exploration also translated into large, forward-thinking practices we visited in London were exploring small scale product design and several practices we visited were these issues along with an appropriate architectural expression that fabricating furniture, lighting, fittings and fixtures and jewellery along with captures our current digital Zeitgeist. their architecture. AL_A had a beautiful furniture line on display in their office and ZHA had a whole gallery at the street frontage of their office Research and development, new material exploration and digitally-driven designated to furniture and jewellery design. processes of designing to augment and add value to space were recurring themes in the offices we visited. The sheer magnitude of We visited some exceptional buildings in London which were both inspiring physical 3D printed, CNC machined and lazor cut models and prototypes we and memorable. The exquisite latticed brickwork at the Tate Modern Switch witnessed played testament to the value of innovative exploration through House by Herzog de Meuron, the stunning Lloyd’s building by Richard research and development which each company aspired. Rogers and partners, the beautiful Tin House by Henning Stummel and the joyful Woodblock House by dRMM were all highlights. However, it was the architectural practice visits that were most memorable for me on the first Wilkinson Eyre leg of the tour in London. 2018 Dulux Study Tour Report - Joseph O’Meara 4.

Carmody Groarke AL_A AL_A - No shoe policy

Roger Stirk Harbour and Partners ZHA Gallery

Ash Sakula House Ash Sakula Studio Studio Octopi 2018 Dulux Study Tour Report - Joseph O’Meara 5.

Switch House - Herzog & de Meuron Tin House - Henning Stummel

‘The Gherkin’ - Foster & Partners Lloyds Building - & Partners Leah Gallagher at the Tin House - Henning Stummel

London Design Museum - RMJM (fitout by John Pawson with OMA) 1 Poultry - Sir James Stirling WoodBlock House - dRMM 2018 Dulux Study Tour Report - Joseph O’Meara 6. BERLIN

Our next destination was Berlin, Germany. Unlike London, skyscrapers are not a feature of this cities built environment. A twenty-two meter high eaves datum above street level was regulated back in the 19th century and while this has been loosened in recent years due to the population increase and urbanisation it remains today the predominant datum. This has generated a human scale to the urban fabric with spacious, open areas allowing views and light.

What interested me most about Berlin was how the architecture was irrevocably tied to and influenced by its history and culture.

Berlin skyline

THE INFLUENCE OF HISTORY

Berlin is the capital and the biggest city in Germany and yet it has been, in imitating it. This theoretical standpoint was maintained and nurtured the last century, a broken city. The Second World War resulted in the vast throughout construction with an extraordinary level of craftsmanship. ruin of Berlin with almost 80 per cent of buildings being damaged or The marriage of old and new in this building is respectful and subtle and destroyed in the centre of the city. The Berlin Wall then divided the city, the narrative of the twentieth-century history of Berlin can be clearly read East from West, until it’s fall in 1989 which brought together the in the architecture. Layers of remaining old brick, render, paintwork and architecture of two competing ideologies into the one city. original frescoes were carefully conserved alongside a considered, refined and elegantly detailed palette of concrete and marble. Reminders of WWII Our architectural bicycle tour of Berlin, led by Richard Ollig from Ticket B are present with some columns and cladding strategically left charred with (an architectural tour company made by architects) commenced bullet holes from the final shootings. outside the Schlossplatz on . This building exemplifies Berlin’s debate around an appropriate architecture for a reunified city and Chipperfield’s authentic approach, careful consideration and fundamental the role of history in the creation of architectural form. The Schlossplatz understanding of space, light and materials has resulted in this exceptional was the palace of the Hohenzollern dynasty, a baroque building that was piece of architecture. Schlossplatz - then and now badly damaged during the Second World War. It was demolished in 1950 and replaced with the Palace of the Republic, a multifunctional modernist After we left the Neues Museum, we passed the new reception building, building which housed parliament. During the reunification of the early 90s also by Chipperfield, which is nearing completion. Eventually, all five the German government decided to demolish this modernist building and museums on the island will be linked by an underground walkway, which return it to its original state in an attempt to heal the wounds of history. sets off from this new ticketing/reception space. This will be quite a feat, The rebuilding of the Schlossplatz is due for completion at the end of 2019 given museum island is on water. with the exterior looking as it did back in the 18th Century, it’s violent past erased from history. Another great example of a building intervention was at the Konig Gallery. This heritage-listed, brutalist church designed by Werner Duttmann in the The Neues Museum, which is only a short walk from the Schlossplatz, 1960s has been recently transformed into an art gallery by architect Arno reveals a very different architectural approach to intervention in historic Brandlhuber. The intervention didn’t change the building exterior however buildings. The Neues Museum was also bombed and severely damaged dur- it radically changed the interior. In the main gallery, slits in the façade at ing the second world war and was left a charred ruin, without a section of corners and linear sky lights fiood the vast volume with natural light. The roof, until it’s restoration which was completed in 2009. light and shadow accentuates the rooms raw stucco wall finish. This gallery is far from the typical gallery ‘white cube’. David Chipperfield Architects won the design competition in 1997 based on their approach to conserve, restore and recreate the existing without

The Neues Museum - David Chipperfield Architects 2018 Dulux Study Tour Report - Joseph O’Meara 7.

Konig Gallery - Werner Duttmann (intervention Arno Brandlhuber) Jewish Museum - Daniel Libeskind Ze05 ‘BIGyard’ - Zanderroth architekten

Claudia Comte’s temporary installation, When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth, BAUGRUPPEN Berlin has the greatest proliferation of baugruppen in the world. Around currently occupies the main space. Twenty spruce trees are suspended 200,000 apartments are part of housing cooperatives, which represents from the ceiling with each tree revealing a carved void in which wood, mar- Housing affordability in Australia is highly topical at present. Home about 10% of the housing stock. Today in inner Berlin, approximately ble, and bronze sculptures are placed. ownership rates have been declining across the country as house price 10% of new housing and a required 30% on government land is delivered The immersive installation was perfectly suited for this space. growth has outpaced wage growth. This has resulted in a greater demand through the baugruppen model. for private market rental housing and yet rental prices have skyrocketed. The architecture of Daniel Libeskind’s Jewish Museum, which opened in My home state of NSW is by all measures unaffordable even to those on We visited an outstanding example of Baugrauppen in Berlin called Ze05 2001, also reveals an historic narrative. The Jewish Museum explores the decent incomes. Interestingly Sydney is facing this housing affordability ‘BIGyard’ by Zanderroth architekten. The project is an assembly of violent history of the Holocaust by using architecture to overtly affect crises in the midst of a construction boom. There is no shortage of forty-five family homes, including the home of architect Christian Roth, who through experience. Libeskind’s zigzagging promenade leads you through supply, however the clear majority of new residences in Sydney are one gave us a tour around the development which was completed in 2010. galleries, dark empty chambers and dead ends. The building reveals the or two-bedroom apartments which are predominately being purchased by Twenty-three narrow townhouses face the street and are over four split spatial experiences of absence and great emptiness. The most powerful local and international investors to rent. This has created a climate where levels. Behind these, ten three-storey ‘garden houses’ with twelve 2 space was in the Memory Void room with the artwork Shalekhet (Fallen design decisions are being made by the developer or investor and not the penthouses above are accessed via the huge 1,300m communal courtyard Leaves) by Israeli artist Menashe Kadishman. The walk-in installation is resident. Development speed is paramount to returns and this can lead which has been raised a level, above the underground carpark, to link the dedicated to the victims of the holocaust and genocide everywhere and to poor design quality, low environmental ambitions, lack of diversity and development and maximise sunlight to the shared green space. The consists of 10,000 heavy iron plates cut to resemble faces. When you walk innovation and less than desirable construction standards. While regulation separate, yet overlapping building access along with the rooftop terrace over the plates, the faces crack and scream under foot, which echo loudly can go some way towards improving our living environments, there are and shared cooking facilities further emphasis the communal, village in the cold concrete void. This left an eerie, uncomfortable feeling, inherent limitations to a reliance on a speculative model of development to character. somewhat like the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe by Peter deliver affordable, high-quality housing. Eisman which we visited straight after. While these bold moments From the room layouts to bathroom tiling, the seventy-two partners and undoubtedly left an impression, I couldn’t help but compare them to the In Berlin, and a number of major cities in Germany and other European cit- owners could customise their own interior requirements within a struc- subtler spatial experiences which we shared earlier that day at the Neus ies, development of multi-unit housing is not the sole domain of tured framework. The base build and facade was designed by Zanderroth Museum, which for me, were more architecturally significant. investors and developers. Baugruppen, which translates to “building Architeckten in coordination with the group. This process enabled the group” is the coming together of a community, both ideologically and architects to achieve the high design quality across the diverse range of financially to co-create a development, removing the developer and the risk dwelling types within Big Yard while achieving great comparative associated with speculation from the process. While inevitably increasing affordability. the exposure to risk for individuals involved, it can save up to 30 percent of the total cost of a speculative development through the removal of prof- While the physical and cultural context of Berlin and the subsequent it margins, marketing and real estate costs. The ability to work with the genesis of baugruppen are place-specific, there are a great number of client group enables the creation of housing specifically responsive to the direct lessons we could use to enhance the emerging collective housing needs of known residents, with an emphasis on environmental models in Australian cities. performance and architectural quality. 2018 Dulux Study Tour Report - Joseph O’Meara 8.

The Neues Museum - David Chipperfield Architects David Chipperfield Architects Berlin Studio

The Altes Museum ‘Old Museum’ - Karl Friedrich Schinkel Brandendurg Gate

Konig Gallery - Werner Duttmann (intervention Arno Brandlhuber) Ze05 ‘BIGyard’ - Zanderroth architekten Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe - 2018 Dulux Study Tour Report - Joseph O’Meara 9. MILAN

In the last decade, Milan has refashioned itself as a global financial capital and undergone massive urban regeneration resulting in a new contemporary architecture skyline.

Milan is Italy’s undisputed capital of design and fashion. With the headquarters of Prada, Versace, Dolche and Cobana and Armani, Milan is perhaps even the fashion capital of the world. The fashion and design industries account for a large percentage of Milan’s total economic output and also contribute to Italian culture generally. All Milanese architects we met on the practice visits embraced this and were proud of their sophisticated culture and style.

Milano skyline

ARCHITECTURE AND FASHION THE PILGRIMAGE

At our practice visit to Piuarch Studio, an architectural practice known for Can an architect/s have an inherent ‘style’ and their work still be its work with Dolce and Gabbana, communications director Beatrice Vegetti timeless? I think an architect which demonstrates that this is possible is described how there are many similarities in the Italian approach to archi- Carlo Scarpa. One of my favourite experience on the Dulux Study Tour was tecture and fashion. Both disciplines shelter the body, focus on materials when we went off script and took the short train ride from Milan to Verona and need to be detailed well. This discussion raised several questions in the on a pilgrimage to see Carlo Scarpa’s Castlevechio and Banca Popolare. group which followed us for the rest of our tour. Should architecture be Most of us studied Scarpa at university but I don’t think his work can be stylish, like fashion, or should it be timeless? Can it be both? fully understood or appreciated from pictures in books. Castlevechio needs to be experienced, you need to move through space with all senses alert On our architectural bicycle tour, our city guide Carlo Berizzi (assistant and working together. The unfolding of spaces and vista, the sounds of architecture professor at the Universita di Pava) described how the urban water, the movement of light on texture, the delight in the discovery of fabric of Milan has radically changed over the last decade. According to details and the touch of the richly layered culture of materials facilitates a Carlo, the government’s strong desire for stylish, international rich sensory experience. development in Milan has resulted in the erection of “odd-shaped skyscrapers and an array of purposeless luxury housing” for the sake of Castlevechio is a historic building intervention, completed in 1975, which Piuarch Studio attracting tourism and more foreign investments. The example he gave contains the largest collection of Scarpa’s celebrated detailing. Staircases, was City Life Milano which is a massive new neighbourhood masterplanned doors, windows, handles, junctions – all can be seen in abundance. by celebrity architects Daniel Libeskind, Arata Isozaki and Zaha Hadid, which is due for completion late 2019. As we rode our bikes Unlike fashion, I think the real test of a great work of architecture is if you past the high-density multi-unit residential, commercial and retail can come back in fifty years’ time and can still think it’s beautiful and want buildings of City Life Milano we listened to stories from Carlo about how to visit it. Castlevechio has achieved this and I think Carlo Scarpa’s style is several of these completed buildings have failed to attract tenants due to timeless. their extravagant layouts and exorbitant prices which were designed for an international market yet to arrive. A few of us from the Study Tour were lucky enough to visit Fondazione Querini Stampalia and Negozio Olivetti at Scarpa’s home town of Venice A more successful new neighbourhood in Milan is Porta Nuova, one of the straight after the Dulux Study Tour concluded. Finishing the Tour in Venice, largest urban regeneration projects in Europe. This area contains several at the opening of the 2018 Architecture Biennale was an excellent end to a interesting new buildings linked by pedestrian friendly public spaces, green fantastic trip. parks and squares. The most notable landmark in Porta Nuova is Bosco Verticale, designed by Boeri Studio. The two sustainable, green residential towers host hundreds of trees and thousands of plants to respond to the heat island effect of the dense urban center. From below, the impressive towers appear to continue the ground level park environment into the sky. Citylife Masterplan - Zaha Hadid Architects, Studio Libeskind and Arata Isozaki 2018 Dulux Study Tour Report - Joseph O’Meara 10.

Castello Sforzesco Duomo di Milano Cathedral

Corso Italia - Luigi Moretti

Alison and the Arata Isozaki Tower Fondazione Prada - OMA Bosco Verticale - Boeri Studio 2018 Dulux Study Tour Report - Joseph O’Meara 11.

Castlevechio - Carlo Scarpa Castlevechio - Carlo Scarpa

Banca Popolare Carlo Scarpa Fondazione Querini Stampalia - Carlo Scarpa

Castlevechio - Carlo Scarpa Negozio Olivetti Carlo Scarpa ‘Repair’ - Baracco & Wright Architects