Five Mile Radius is a Brisbane-based practice whose approach to architecture centres around the use of locally-sourced building materials in construction. Clare Kennedy founded the studio alongside a group of architects and students, working on a range of building and art projects, as well as various workshops, educational events and other public engagement programs.
Shingles at Jungle Love, design by Five Mile Radius. Photo: Markos Huges
“Responding to the growing need to move away from globalised supply chains to more self sufficient models, we are working on a future where Australians can build using ethically sourced resources from their own shores,” explains Clare Kennedy from Five Mile Radius. “Our practice begun with hands-on material experimentation for art commissions. We tested our ideals by making things then quickly realising our limitations. Although we are now working on larger projects for commercial and private clients, every project still involves this process of hands-on prototyping and testing.”
Sydney-based designer Trent Jansen takes a research-led, anthropological approach to his work that often involves delving into the history of materials, movements and mythologies, and also includes cross-cultural collaboration.
Shaker Family Home by Trent Jansen. Photo: Romello Pereira
His most recent work, which is being exhibited as part of Local Milan at the Milan Furniture Fair in April 2019, is the Shaker Family Home. This piece is simultaneously a single work, and also a collection of works, with each part folding away into the structure of the main piece.
Architecture students from a Melbourne School of Design intensive have created eight intricate miniature sets from the Harry Potter world by J.K. Rowling in a new exhibition called “Smoke and Mirrors”.
The Burrow, Harry Potter project, Melbourne School of Design architecture students. Photo: Jannette Le
Teams were tasked with designing and fabricating an animated set model based on sourced material, with different models showing Gringotts bank, Ollivander’s wand shop, the Shreiking Shack, the Burrows (home to the Weasley’s) and parts of Hogwarts itself, including The Chamber of Secrets. Students built character profiles from source materials, then designed the spaces to reflect how the characters would have used the space.
High Tea with Mrs Woo was a proponent of slow fashion before the term was even invented. The label is run by three sisters from Newcastle – Rowena, Juliana and Angela Foong – who began their careers in fashion running a second-hand clothing store while they were at university. Right from the beginning, the trio were all about recycling, remaking and making the most of existing fashion. “We were upcycling pre-loved garments, sourcing vintage fabrics and using deadstock fabrics from a remnant warehouse,” explains Rowena Foong, “but we weren’t making enough money to pay the rent!”
Rowena, Juliana and Angela Foong from High Tea with Mrs Woo. Photo: Alexander McIntyre
The next step was to create their own fashion label, High Tea with Mrs Woo, which was launched in 2004. And it’s fair to say that it has been a remarkable success – not only has the brand received awards and acclaim, it has achieved longevity in a field that’s all about what’s new. All three sisters are still based in Newcastle, still in the same retail store and manufacturing from their studio workshop 15–18 years on. They are also still producing garments by their own hands using high quality natural fibre fabrics.
A five-metre high pig made with a criss-crossing three dimensional structure fitted with LED lights is one of a number of lighting installations created this year in Sydney to celebrate the Chinese year of the pig.
3-D pig lantern by Justin Qian. Image: supplied by City of Sydney
The sculpture is by Chinese-Australian artist Qian Jian Hua (Justin) and its exoskeleton is made of steel. Justin Qian was born in Nanjing, China and moved to Australia in 1991 after Tiananmen Square.
Located at Breakneck Gorge, less than two hours from Melbourne, this house for short stays features a distinctive folded exterior that is clad in Corten steel. The dwelling is part of a group of buildings on the property that include a homestead, another short-term rental and agricultural outbuildings.
Oikos at Breakneck Gorge by Robert Nichol & Sons. Photo: Jack Lovel
Designed by multi-disciplinary Melbourne firm Robert Nichol & sons, the house was dubbed Oikos (meaning “home” in Ancient Greek) thanks to its owner’s Greek heritage.
Design duo Jonathan Biet and Sophie Bain from So Watt in Sydney’s Marrickville have put out a beautiful timber Christmas tree decoration this year that also supports a good cause.
So Watt Smith Family Christmas Tree. Image: Supplied
The So Watt Smith Family Plywood Christmas Tree features a simple slot-together design paired with the quality of a beautifully-finished Birch Plywood. It works well as an ornament to complement your main tree, or can serve as a small Christmas tree with lights for those of us who sometimes prefer a more minimal Christmas. Read more →
Julia Drouhin is a performance artist with an unusual way of hearing the world. She finds radio static ‘relaxing’, makes records out of ice and chocolate, and delights in recording the ‘mundane’ noises that surround her. Born in France, Julia’s art practice changed significantly when she moved to Tasmania in her adult life.
The landscape, soundscape and community of the isolated island inspired Julia to expand her art practice to incorporate her body, a new circle of collaborators, as well as the new sounds she encountered. Julia’s art is fuelled by a curiosity, playfulness and desire to open people’s ears to hear the world a little bit differently.
Thank you to Women of the Island for permission to publish this incredible film here.
Guest contributor and European correspondent Lara Chapman visits ‘GEO-DESIGN – Alibaba. From here to your home’ at the Van Abbe Museum in Eindhoven as part of a collaboration with the Design Academy Eindhoven (DAE) for Dutch Design Week.
Wednesday, 7:39pm: Click. A new tab is opened. Tap tap tap. A few keys are pressed. Enter. Scroll. Select. Click. Tap tap tap. A query is typed. Ping, a reply is received. Click. An Item is added to the basket. Click. Details are autofilled. Click. *Ping*. Confirmation email is received at 7:47pm.
Friday, 10:19am: *Ding Dong.* A Door is opened. A “pen” scratches on glass. A package swaps hands.
This scenario seems unremarkable, possibly even mundane. The cycle of search, browse, purchase, repeat, is constantly taking place online. However, for research designer Martina Muzi, e-commerce is an “incredibly urgent topic”. The ease of our interaction with e-commerce platforms belies a complex and sophisticated infrastructure that is entangled with areas such as political diplomacy, psychology, logistics, algorithms and new forms of labour. E-commerce is shaping our everyday behaviours in subtle but undeniable ways. Furthermore, its forces are invisibly shifting and re-defining contemporary geopolitics.
‘Live Streaming’ by Jing He. Photography by Tommy Köhlbrugge, courtesy of Design Academy Eindhoven
At the exhibition ‘GEO-DESIGN – Alibaba. From here to your home’, nine multidisciplinary design researchers examined China’s largest e-commerce website Alibaba.com from diverse angles. Held as part of an ongoing collaboration between the Van Abbe Museum and the Design Academy Eindhoven (DAE) as part of Dutch Design Week, the investigation-led project was conceived and curated by Martina Muzi and Joseph Grima. The selected designers, who are all alumni of DAE, had just two months from their briefing to the exhibition and undertook an intensive process of research, concept development and realisation. Read more →
A large metallic facade has been installed stretching over the curved surface of the first floor podium of a new building at 300 George Street in Brisbane. Kinetic artist Alexander Knox worked with Urban Art Projects (UAP) to realise the work, which is called The Sound That Light Makes.
The Sound that Light Makes by Alexander Knox. Images: UAP
Spanning 2660 square metres and comprised of over 2500 pieces of press-formed and 3D-laser-cut-aluminium, the work is designed to emulate the reflections of light on water. Read more →
