Australian Design Review’s February 2026 round-up of appointments and practice news in Australian architecture and design.

DKO

International architecture and interior design studio DKO began 2026 with a string of appointments across Australia, New Zealand and Southeast Asia.

Within its Australian studios, DKO has elevated three new directors, including Isabel Munro, Michael Fouché and Sam McCubbin.

DKO says Munro brings more than two decades of experience in leadership and design, with work spanning hospitality and residential sectors in DKO’s Melbourne studio. Part of the DKO team 11 years, Fouché leads complex project teams across hospitality, multi-residential, commercial, mixed-use and retail projects in Melbourne, Perth and Brisbane. Meanwhile, McCubbin has been at DKO since 2017 and currently works across Sydney and Melbourne. As a multidisciplinary designer, McCubbin has led DKO’s architecture team while establishing its landscape architecture department.

Three team members have been promoted to senior associate at DKO, including Southeast Asia in the Sydney studio, Lionel Mawhinney, a founding member of DKO’s WA studio, and Rene Garcia in Melbourne.

Eight team members have been promoted to associate across the Australian studios: Alicia Duggan, Campbell Corney-Lauder, Dylan Rodan, Jayden Cronon, Josie Chong, Nicola Traise, Maha Mustafa and Rafaela Medeiros.

Warren and Mahoney

ANZ architecture practice Warren and Mahoney has appointed Kate Roach as studio head of design in Melbourne. Both an architect and interior designer, Roach joined the practice as a principal in April 2023 and has worked across range of both interior design and architecture projects. In addition to her residential work, Roach also co-leads the studio’s experience sector – and recently worked on the redevelopment of the John Gent Stand at the Mission Whitten Oval to create a dedicated Women’s Health and Leadership Hub at the Western Bulldogs.

“Our studio heads of design play an important role in advocating for and leading our creative processes, and mentoring and developing our next generation of design talent,” Warren and Mahoney’s Melbourne studio principal Daryl Maguire says. “Kate has an incredibly warm energy and a collaboration style that injects enthusiasm and effortlessly enhances any project.”

Carr

Carr has welcomed Carolyn White as associate director within its interiors team. According to the Australian architecture and interior design studio, White’s experience spans high-end mixed-use, residential, hospitality and commercial projects.

“At Carr, we are always looking to evolve our national design thinking while staying true to our principles of craftsmanship and thoughtful restraint,” CEO Nick Carr says.

White says she plans to guide “with a calm confidence developed through many years of delivering projects”.

“I maintain a continued curiosity and a lasting appreciation for both function and design, and I am drawn to the impact that good design can have on how people feel and live,” she says.

GroupGSA

Multidisciplinary design practice GroupGSA has appointed principal Jenna Keyes as national sector lead for cities and places, bringing together its urban design and landscape architecture disciplines under a single national strategy.

Building on her existing role as principal of urban design, Keyes brings more than 20 years of experience in strategic urban design and masterplanning of major public and private sector projects nationally.

GroupGSA director Lisa-Maree Carrigan says Keyes’ expanded national remit reflects the practice’s evolution towards a sector-based model aligned to its growing pipeline of large-scale urban and landscape projects.

“Jenna’s leadership of our cities and places sector reinforces a long-held strength of GroupGSA: urban design as a catalyst for meaningful change,” Carrigan says.

Architectus

Architectus recently announced senior appointments across its Defence and Infrastructure teams.

In Defence, Andrew Magub has been named a principal in Brisbane, while Simon McKeown takes on the role of associate principal in Melbourne.

“Our clients are in good hands with Andrew and Simon, who between them have some six decades of design expertise in defence,” sector leader defence Ralph Williams says. “They’ll be leading key Defence projects for us across the east coast.”

In Infrastructure, associate principals Janine Graves and Paul Trinchi recently arrived in Architectus’ Sydney and Melbourne studios, respectively. Graves has designed and delivered data centres, industrial facilities and commercial developments, as well as defence and asset renewal projects. Meanwhile, Trinchi has experience delivering major transport projects and, more recently, critical facilities such as data centres.

Following the news that Perth architecture practice Carabiner joined Architectus in late 2025, Architectus has announced several other strategic appointments in Perth. They include associate principal Michael Hardman, senior associate Paul Empson and principal Toni Neck on the Health team.

“It’s such a pivotal, exciting time for our team in Perth,” WA studio leader Mark Black says. “As we expand and change to meet the needs of our growing market, our focus always stays the same: working with clients to achieve design excellence while making a positive, lasting impact on our city and our state.” 

Woods Bagot

Also in February, Woods Bagot appointed Mena Kubba as its Australian and New Zealand Regional transport leader – Rail.

The urban designer and architect brings to Woods Bagot two decades of experience in transport infrastructure, civic and cultural projects. She was part of the winning bid team on the Melbourne Metro Tunnel project with Weston Williamson + Partners and Hassell. Kubba then went on to lead the design of Arden Station and oversee the architectual fitout across all five of the new underground stations, says Woods Bagot.

From there, Kubba moved to Architectus as Rail market leader, working with government on the Suburban Rail Loop East across six station precincts. 

“Rail is civic infrastructure,” Kubba says. “It serves everybody equally. It allows you to tap into networks outside of those metropolitan areas, to communities that really need that connection, which rolls into better housing, better schools.”

Before joining Woods Bagot, Kubba ran her own consultancy, working directly with government on transport and urban design, while collaborating with the Melbourne practice on infrastructure pursuits. After relocating to Sydney, formalising the relationship felt like a “natural next step”.  

JCB

Earlier this month, JCB announced the promotion of Jon Liow and Anja Grant to the roles of senior associates.

“Jon and Anja have significantly advanced our interior design leadership and project expertise since joining the practice, and their new positions recognise their proven capabilities as both design and project directors,” JCB said in an announcement on LinkedIn.

In their new roles, Grant and Liow will support JCB’s senior leadership team and drive the growth of its interior design capability across its Melbourne and Brisbane studios.

Carter Williamson

Sydney-based studio Carter Williamson Architects recently announced a bout of its own staff appointments.

This includes Christina Banks, who stepped into the role of director of people and finance. Thu Zaw was appointed senior associate, leading the practice’s houses team, with Josh Fair and Chloe Goldsmith stepping into associate roles.

The announcements came during the studio’s celebrations of 21 years of practice.

Zebra Global

Zebra, an international interior design and architecture consultancy, has opened a studio in Sydney, marking its first permanent base in Australia.

Established in London more than 25 years ago, Zebra has become a global business employing more than 250 people across offices working out of London, New York, Dubai, Mexico City, Phoenix, Toronto, Hong Kong, Riyadh and, now, Sydney. Its services span the full design and architectural spectrum, including brand strategy and design, conceptual interior design, design implementation of existing concepts, and being able to act as Architect of Record in all 50 US states.

Recently appointed, Tim Bradbury will lead the new Sydney studio. Zebra describes Bradbury as a design leader with more than 20 years of experience and a global portfolio of projects across the retail, hospitality, entertainment and leisure sectors. He has held design leadership roles on the client side, including Jurlique International, the HOYTS Group and Fitness First.

Arup

Global built environment consultancy Arup has appointed Amanda Yeates as roads and streets leader in Australia and New Zealand. Her prominent former roles include CEO of SunCentral leading one of Australia’s largest greenfield city centre developments; and deputy director-general, infrastructure management and delivery for Queensland’s Department of Transport and Main Roads, overseeing the state’s multibillion-dollar transport infrastructure program.

“I’m energised by the opportunity to work with talented and values-driven teams across Australia and New Zealand to influence strategy at the early end of the pipeline, ensuring that the infrastructure we deliver leads to the right outcomes,” Yeates says. “There’s a huge opportunity to have a more nuanced approach to the roads and streets business, ensuring we have a systems-wide view of mobility and place to support the needs of regional freight, heavy vehicle movements and the growing logistics needs of industries such as defence, energy and large-scale renewables.”

Canberra Glassworks

Canberra Glassworks has announced the appointment of Aimee Frodsham as its new chief executive officer. This newly combined role brings together CEO and artistic director responsibilities, marking a new chapter for Australia’s leading centre for contemporary glass.

Frodsham brings more than 25 years of experience working closely with artists and craftspeople, alongside an international career shaped by 12 years at the Victoria and Albert Museum and Tate in London. Since returning to Australia in 2015, she has become deeply embedded in Canberra’s glassmaking community and, since 2018, has served as artistic director at Canberra Glassworks, working alongside a dedicated team to strengthen the organisation’s artistic program, partnerships and public profile.

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