A new refurbishment of the Devonport Surf Life Saving Club and facilities has been honoured at the 2014 Think Brick awards, taking out the Bruce McKenzie Landscape award. Locally referred to as “The Bluff”, the club is situated at the Mersey Bluff Plaza on the North West coast of Tasmania, a well-known hub for swimming enthusiasts, sunbathers, picnics and surf life saving.

The revamp is a welcome addition to the local area, with the introduction of family friendly spaces including barbecues, a new playground, a public plaza and car park encouraging community engagement in Devonport. Hansen Partnership, a Melbourne-based urban design and landscape architecture firm, were awarded the $10,000 prize for their considered response to the redesign of the Surf Life Saving Club. Their creative use of hexagonal pavers reference the gradual fade of colours in the coastline, taking inspiration from the natural landscape.

The club’s plaza space and paths comprise 6,500 square metres of Adbri Masonry’s Trihex® and Quartz Stone pavers, in a range of colours simulating the earthy tones of The Bluff and surrounding geography.

The Think Brick awards were established in 2005, as an initiative asking architects to innovate their use of the common brick. The awards acknowledge excellence in design and promote architectural originality in the use of clay brick and concrete masonry.