Adelaide Festival Centre celebrates its 40th birthday
It's not as well known as the Sydney Opera House, but the HASSELL designed Adelaide Festival Centre has had as great an impact on its home city as Jørn Utzon's harbourside masterpiece has on Sydney.
The Opera House budget was $100 million – a huge amount at the time it was designed and built. The Festival Centre cost $8 million.
The Festival Centre this year celebrates its 40th birthday, as HASSELL celebrates its 75th.
John Morphett, one of the most influential people in the history of HASSELL, led the design team. His contribution is marked this week in a four page article in The Adelaide Magazine.
As the magazine noted, it is hard to imagine the Torrens riverfront in Adelaide without the shimmering white geometric shells of the Festival Centre.
John Morphett was Managing Director of HASSELL from 1978 to 1992 and Chairman from 1978 to 1997. He won the Royal Australian Institute of Architects Gold Medal, his country's highest award for architecture.
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Ningbo New City showcased on News Asia TV
Channel News Asia recently featured the New City of Ningbo as an example of urbanisation in China. As part of the feature, HASSELL Chairman Peter Duncan was interviewed.
The rapid pace and scale of urbanisation in China means that cities will have to accommodate an additional 10 million people every year over the next three decades. This means that building new towns will be a key focus.
Click here to view the TV news coverage on the New City of Ningbo.
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Burnley Green Roofs project opens today
Australia's first green roof research, demonstration and teaching facility opened today at the University of Melbourne's Burnley Campus. It is one of only a few similar centres in the world.
The Burnley Green Roofs project is a true collaboration between the University's School of Land and Environment and HASSELL. Ongoing research and the design lessons from the Burnley Green Roofs will provide technical knowledge for architects, landscape architects and public policy makers to install green roofs in Australian cities.
The project consists of three areas. The first is a large demonstration roof with 14 different green roof types made up of distinct planting zones, irrigation and growing treatments. The second is a research roof, dedicated to quantifying the environmental benefits of green roofs and plant performance. The third area is a biodiversity roof, comprising a range of habitat features to encourage and sustain local wildlife.
The Burnley Green Roofs will enable small group teaching activities and demonstrate the variety of green roofs available to the building industry. The facility will determine the best plant species and soils to use on city roofs. It will also demonstrate how green roofs can use storm water, reduce building energy use and showcase how visually attractive and multifunctional green roofs can be.
Green roofs have a range of environmental benefits that can help adapt Australian cities to climate change, as well as social and economic benefits that can make denser cities more liveable and attractive. However, they are still not common in Australia partly because it has taken time to research which plants will be most successful in the Australian climate. This facility aims to show what is possible in the local climate and context.
John Rayner from the University of Melbourne said, "Planning and design are key components to successful green roofs and the Burnley Green Roofs are an example of this."
HASSELL provided innovative design solutions to assemble the roofs. "Many elements were pre-fabricated and test assembled off-site, then transported and reassembled on the living rooftop." said Stephen Tan from the HASSELL design team. "This represents an innovation in design, research and construction process." The project has been designed with the ability to evolve with changing technology and in response to new research developments.
Photography courtesy of Les O'Rourke
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HASSELL to deliver key public realm project for Croydon Council, London
HASSELL has been appointed by the London Borough of Croydon to design and deliver an important public realm project for the Borough. Supported by architecture practice We Made That, engineers Buro Happold and graphic designers Objectif, our team will deliver the South End Public Realm, which is one of a number of co-ordinated projects to enhance Croydon's high streets as part of the Connected Croydon program.
The £2.8m South End scheme will transform the streetscape of a key gateway into central Croydon and the heart of the Borough's restaurant district. It will create a coherent, high quality and welcoming place. Works are expected to start on site in early 2014 following extensive consultation with stakeholders and community groups.
Jon Hazelwood, Head of Landscape Architecture for HASSELL in the UK said, "This is a fantastic opportunity. We will be working closely with residents and traders to make this a vibrant stretch of high street, all in the context of Croydon's plan to transform its centre."
Holly Lewis, Partner at We Made That commented, "We will improve the streetscape and building frontages, and activate and promote the area to make it more attractive to residents and visitors. We'll be thinking about how different activities can shape our high streets and how we make South End High Street a place where social and civic functions attract commerce and activity.
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Year of the Snake
See how the HASSELL studios in China and South East Asia welcomed the Lunar New Year in a video message to our clients and collaborators.
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Parkroyal Darling Harbour
HASSELL has been working on the Parkroyal Darling Harbour and the new lobby was recently unveiled
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Scott Walker reflects on IDEA
Scott Walker, Head of Interior Design at HASSELL, reflects on his time as jury member for this year's Interior Design Excellence Awards (IDEA) on Australian Design Review
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ArchDaily on Bjarke Ingels' visit to Sydney
ArchDaily covers the news of Bjarke Ingels' visit to Sydney, sponsored by HASSELL
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Designing for integrated education and research
How HASSELL designs for integrated education and research
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Rundle Mall in Adelaide
Ben Willsmore, HASSELL Senior Associate, discusses the Rundle Mall redevelopment in Adelaide that he is working on as project design leader
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Open plan offices - the pros and cons
Steve Coster, Head of Knowledge and Sustainability at HASSELL, discusses the pros and cons of open plan offices
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Developing Australia's regional towns
The SuperTowns initiative in Western Australia is discussed on Design Build Source
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Palm Island on IndesignLiveAsia
The Palm Island project takes its inspiration from the unique geography of Chongqing where the Yangtze River and Jialing River converge into one
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We Love Perth profiles young architect Carly Barrett
Young HASSELL architect and Creative Director of Open House Perth was profiled on We Love Perth
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Common Ground Sydney featured on Inhabitat
The World Architecture Festival award-winning Common Ground Sydney project features on Inhabitat with a special emphasis on its sustainability features
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Changing the face of Perth through architecture
Design Build Source looks at how the Perth CBD is changing with developments like the HASSELL-designed Brookfield Place
