The latest National Gallery of Victoria’s Winter Masterpieces exhibition is here. But while no one can doubt the exquisite artistry and consummate skills on display, how well does it sit to have a commercial brand as the title of the annual cultural draw card? Full disclosure, I’m one of those for whom an interest, knowledge […]
At this year’s 3daysofdesign festival in Copenhagen, family-owned Italian design company Arper is presenting a new exhibition, (RE)CONNECTING, built around themes of returning to the present moment and the people around us. Taking place this year from 10-12 June, 3daysofdesign is Denmark’s official design festival and represents one of the key events of the global […]
The new Powerhouse Parramatta is bringing over 50 designers from across Australia together to shape the spaces and experiences of the new museum in Sydney’s west. Ahead of the museum’s opening later this year, the collective of emerging and established Australian designers will be crafting the fabric of the building as well as its public and exhibition […]
Back for its 17th year, Brisbane Open House has announced its biggest line-up yet. Taking place over the weekend of the 18 and 19 July, this year’s event features 93 buildings, including a record 16 private homes and various government institutions, commercial towers and heritage gems. Many of the buildings are joining the ranks for […]
Carmelo Nastasi is a Sydney-based designer at Tzannes and sessional academic who was inspired by both his parents and the creative video platforms of his formative years. As a member of Australian Design Review‘s 30UNDER30 for 2025/2026, he tells ADR how a love of Sims was one of the pathways that led to a career in […]
Designed by Billard Leece Partnership (BLP), the Children’s Hospital at Westmead in Western Sydney has opened the doors of its new Wattle Building. Alongside the new Sydney Children’s Hospital, Randwick (Stage 1) and the Minderoo Children’s Comprehensive Cancer Centre, which opened at the end of 2025 and were also designed by BLP, the new building […]
Anny Benjamin, as founder and creative director of Studio ab, created a diverse perspective for design and creativity. As part of the 2025/2026 cohort of Australian Design Review‘s 30UNDER30, she reflects on community, collaboration and building a meaningful design practice. Australian Design Review: Why did you enter the 30UNDER30 program? Anny Benjamin: I entered the […]
Shalini Rautela is a Melbourne-based architectural designer who uses a multidisciplinary approach in practising architecture and design. Joining the cohort of Australian Design Review‘s 30UNDER30 for 2025/2026, she shares her views on instinct, collaboration and the evolving role of architecture in a changing world. Australian Design Review: Why did you enter the 30UNDER30 program? Shalini […]
Dasha Tolotchkov is a Melbourne-based exhibition designer at the National Gallery of Victoria. Australian Design Review‘s 30UNDER30 for 2025/2026, she brings a playful and detail-driven approach to creating spatial experiences that evoke emotion, curiosity and quiet surprise. Australian Design Review: What do you enjoy doing in your spare time? Dasha Tolotchkov: In my spare time, […]
With a slew of projects recently completed and several more announced, Australia’s build-to-rent (BTR) sector is entering a phase of accelerated development. The national pipeline of apartments (operating, under construction or in planning) has increased from 39,300 in Q2 2025 to 51,000 in Q1 2026. The sector value has increased from $30.1 billion to $40.1 […]
There’s a reason the best studios in the country clear their calendars for June. While the daily work happens in the studio, Design Show Australia is where the industry solves its biggest project challenges. It is the definitive platform for discovering new brands, latest product releases, and the emerging trends that will shape Australian projects […]
Marlo Lyda is a Sydney-based designer and a multidisciplinary practitioner focused on material experimentation. As a member of Australian Design Review‘s 30UNDER30 for 2025/2026, Lyda talks about the need for community, her insights on sustainability and how she uses overlooked materials. Australian Design Review: What do you hope to get out of the program? Marlo […]
Three remarkable artists have claimed Australia’s most celebrated art prizes, reaffirming the enduring power of paint, place and cultural story. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders are advised that the following article contains references to a deceased person. There are years when Australia’s most storied art prizes feel like a collective exhale, a moment when the […]
Twelve works, three Dharug artists and one curatorial agency are transforming a Western Sydney motorway into a living testament to Aboriginal story and place. When the brief calls for public art along a motorway interchange, the expected outcome can be often decorative, something that softens the roadside concrete and signals some semblance of civic effort. […]
From sculptural furniture and glowing glassware to First Nations storytelling and radical material reuse, this year’s Melbourne Design Week 2026 (MDW) arrives with an expansive program that pushes design beyond object making and into culture, community and conversation. Across 11 days and more than 400 events, exhibitions and installations, the festival will transform galleries, warehouses, […]
Having recently joined Grimshaw, following a stint at AJC Architects, Simone Carmody continues to be driven by her passion for the environment, for promoting regenerative and sustainable design, and for designing spaces that connect people, place and the planet. As a member of the 2025/26 cohort for Australian Design Review‘s 30UNDER30, she says she’s proud to […]
London studio NÃall McLaughlin Architects (NMLA) and local design practice Hayball are planning to build the core of the new cathedral precinct in Broken Bay, Sydney, marking Australia’s first new Catholic cathedral development in over 100 years. Located in the 7.7-hectare suburb of Waitara, 50 kilometres north of Sydney, the new Catholic Cathedral project will […]
Senior architect and urban designer at Brisbane City Council, Ben Hovav, studied in Milan and Delft, and founded a design research collective in Rotterdam before returning to Brisbane, where he also currently teaches at Queensland University of Technology. As a member of the 2025/26 cohort for Australian Design Review‘s 30UNDER30, he’s relishing the opportunity to […]
When buildings go from products to homes, everything about the architectural design changes. As institutional money settles into long-term residential ownership, architects are finding the brief itself has subtly changed in ways that alter how they think, who they talk to and what quality actually means. For decades, multi-residential design in Australia has been calibrated […]
A Sydney-based architect at Grimshaw, Awkar Ruel’s projects focus on spatial and human-centred design. As a member of Australian Design Review‘s 30UNDER30 cohort for 2025/2026, he contributes to forging connections between people and the environment they inhabit. Australian Design Review: Why did you enter the 30UNDER30 program? Awkar Ruel: I’ve never really seen architecture as […]
The US architect, designer and scholar is set to draw from his own research and practice to illustrate how emerging AI technologies are already reshaping design. According to Joshua Vermillion, the current discourse surrounding artificial intelligence runs along a continuum between two extremes. “At one end is, I think, some folks who are very contrarian, […]
The Robin Boyd Foundation offers a veritable treasure trove of architectural treats through its events, screenings, guided tours and more. Are you a neighbourhood wanderer? Do you amble along the streets where you live and gaze up at the buildings wondering about their provenance? Perhaps you are curious as to who built them and why? […]
A historical sacred meeting ground for the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung people has returned to its roots as a modern gathering place, now welcoming visitors from around the world in Melbourne’s Seafarers precinct. Ten thoughtful years of regeneration along the Birrarung (Yarra River), opposite South Wharf, have resulted in the $600 million Seafarers project by Riverlee. […]
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