NT Architecture Awards reward community engagement

The winners of the Australian Institute of Architects’ 2016 NT Architecture Awards were announced in Darwin on Friday 24 June.

Community engagement was a strong theme across the winning projects particularly the overall winner of the night, Anbinik Kakadu Resort by Troppo Architects which received the Tracy Memorial Award and the Peter Dermoudy Award for Commercial Architecture.

Djabulukgu Association owns and manages the resort, which provides sustainable employment opportunities for the local Indigenous development team, and have worked with Troppo Architects since they purchased the site in 1996.

Built on a shoestring and incorporating recycled and scavenged materials, this project forms stage two of the resort’s expansion, providing a more distinctive visitor experience for tourists and a strong return on investment to support the owners ongoing community development initiatives.

The Michael Long Learning & Leadership Centre by Hames Sharley, another example of a project focused on community benefit, received the Indigenous Community Award and an Award for Educational Architecture.

‘Michael Long’s vision to use the power of AFL to provide young Indigenous Territorians the same opportunities as their non-Indigenous peers has certainly been realised in the Michael Long Learning and Leadership Centre, with the architect taking the concept “to educate and elevate students to positive pathways in life” to drive the form and interior of the design,’ the jury noted.

The iconic 1984 Raffles Plaza by Graeme Whitford for KROMA was recognised with the Enduring Architecture Award, as a trail blazing multi-residential development in the Territory.

‘With the plethora of apartment buildings recently completed or underway in Darwin, it’s easy to take for granted the notion of high density living within the city. In fact the early prototypes for this way of living were trail blazers – the opposite of the ubiquitous “product” now feeding the market,’ the jury said.

NT Chapter President, Andrew Broffman, congratulated the award winners and entrants on their commitment to design quality, while urging the broader industry to invest more in the areas of multi-residential housing and remote Indigenous communities.

‘Architecture at its best depends upon well considered briefs, open conversations with clients and occupants, and the time necessary to achieve quality design. This year’s entrants have demonstrated the possibilities of good architecture, with exemplary work in the commercial sector, in research and education, in sport and recreation, and in community development and residential renovations.

‘A number of this year’s winners have proved the importance of community engagement, but more needs to be done to widen the reach of quality design in Indigenous communities and in inner-city multi-residential areas. The enduring architecture award to the Raffles Plaza illustrates the timeless nature of quality design. Indeed all of our work should be worthy of enduring recognition in generations to come.’

Full list of winners:

Commercial Architecture

Peter Dermoudy Award – Anbinik Kakadu Resort by Troppo Architects

Award – Charles Darwin Centre by dwp|suters + Pei Cobb Freed

Educational Architecture

Award – Michael Long Learning & Leadership Centre by Hames Sharley

Enduring Architecture

Award – Raffles Plaza by Graeme Whitford for KROMA (1984)

Interior Architecture

George Chaloupka Award – Paspalis Business Centre, Darwin by Georgina Wilson Architect

Public Architecture

Award – Menzies School of Health Research Royal Darwin Hospital by Hames Sharley

Small Project Architecture

Commendation – Hardiman Residence Reworked by in4d

Sustainable Architecture

Award – Charles Darwin University Trade Training Centre by MODE

COLORBOND® Award for Steel Architecture

Award – Menzies School of Health Royal Darwin Hospital by Hames Sharley

Additional Prizes

The Tracy Memorial Award – Anbinik Kakadu Resort by Troppo Architects

The Indigenous Community Award – Michael Long Learning and Leadership Centre by Hames Sharley