Finalists Announced for National Sculpture Garden Design Competition

The National Gallery of Australia has announced a shortlist of five finalists for the National Sculpture Garden Design Competition. Five Australian multidisciplinary teams will progress to the final stage of the design competition with the winning design to be announced in October 2024.

The largest investment into the garden since its creation, the $60 million Sculpture Garden project is set to revitalise one of Australia’s most significant and distinct sculpture gardens, creating a globally renowned destination for visitors, art and artists.

National Gallery Director, Dr Nick Mitzevich said: ‘Revitalising the National Sculpture Garden is a project of ambition that will create a world-class artistic experience within a unique Australian landscape setting.’

‘We look forward to seeing the shortlisted concept designs develop further over the coming months,’ he said.

The two-stage competition launched in April 2024, calling for innovative designs to revitalise the three-hectare garden as a place for experiencing art, education, and cultural and social events. Entrants were required to form multidisciplinary partnerships including a Landscape Architect, an Australian First Nations practitioner, artist, architect and botanist or horticulturalist, and honour the garden’s original design intent and heritage values.

Entries were assessed by a Jury of distinguished experts chaired by architect and Chair of the Heritage Council of Victoria Philip Goad, along with National Gallery Director Dr Nick Mitzevich, Barkandji artist and curator Nici Cumpston OAM and renowned Chilean landscape architect Teresa Moller.

The finalists will proceed to the second and final stage of the competition, where they have been invited to provide a further submission for the Jury’s consideration. The outcome of the second stage is expected to be announced in October 2024.

SHORTLISTED TEAMS (in alphabetical order)

CO-AP Holdings Pty Ltd (New South Wales)
The CO-AP team comprises First Nations consultant Bradley Mapiva Brown (Bagariin Ngunnawal Cultural Consulting), landscape architect Johnny Ellice-Flint (Studio JEF), artist Leila Jeffries, horticulturalist Robert Champion (TARN), architect William Fung (CO-AP), architect Phillip Arnold (Plus Minus Design), PMI Engineers and Heymann Consulting.

Emergent Studios Pty Ltd T/A Bush Projects (Victoria)
The Bush projects team is a collective of landscape architect Matthew Hamilton (Bush Projects), architects Louise Wright and Mauro Baracco (Baracco Wright Architects), First Nations representatives Christine Phillips, Jock Gilbert and Sophie Pearce (Yulendj Weelam Lab), artists Mel George and Daphne Banyawarra (Bula’bula Arts), ecologist Dr David Freudenberger and Plan Cost Australia.

Hassell Ltd (Victoria)
The Hassell Ltd team is a collaboration between architect Alix Smith (Hassell), landscape architect Sharon Wright (Hassell), artist and descendant of the Yawuru people from the Rubibi/Broome area in Western Australia’s Kimberley Region Robert Andrew, artist Tess Maunder, architect Ben Duckworth (Hassell), landscape architect John Hazelwood, horticultural ecologist Professor James Hitchmough and quantity surveyor Runil Gannoo (Slattery).

McGregor Coxall Australia Pty Ltd (New South Wales)
The McGregor Coxall team comprises landscape architects Adrian McGregor and Fraser Halliday (McGregor Coxall), Australian Waanyi multi-media artist Judy Watson, Indigenous engagement specialists Lea Gage and Dr Annie Burgess (Murawin), botanist / horticulturalist Neil Marriot, architect John Choi (CHROFI), and heritage consultants Rachel Jackson, Anna Leeson and Edward Robbins (GML Heritage).

SBLA Studio Pty Ltd (Victoria)
The SBLA Studio-led design team brings together Aboriginal design consultant Troy Casey (Blaklash), landscape architect Owen Café (Blaklash), poet and artist Jazz Money, creative director Simone Bliss (SBLA Studio), landscape architects Georgia Aldous and Matt Wakelin (SBLA Studio), horticulturalist Jac Semmler (Super Bloom), architects Aaron Roberts, Kim Bridgeland and Oskar Kazmanli-Liffen (Edition Office), experience designers Rae Perks and Dan Koerner (Sandpit), regenerative architect Jane Caught (Heliotope), architectural assistant Samuel Torre and quantity surveyor Vincent Lau (Prowse).

More information: nga.gov.au