Rolling Out the Welcome Mat

Melbourne School of Design
18 students engaged to date

SUBJECT OVERVIEW

The Melbourne School of Design studio subject, open to Master of Architecture, Landscape Architecture and Urban Planning students, emphasises how successful architectural designs express ideas based in well-grounded, critical thinking. Through design projects and analysis of influential works, students develop design ideas for projects and architectural expressions of those ideas.

ASSIGNMENT OVERVIEW

In Semester 2 2017, students undertaking this studio subject were tasked with designing a new arrival landscape at Gate 8, Grattan Street, a crucial entry point to the Precinct and interface with the City of Melbourne.  Students were asked to consider how the design of the new entry landscape could enhance a sense of arrival and draw people into the Precinct from the south, how this space might be utilised and activated through programming and events, and how their designs might improve traffic flow in response to proposed changes of the site and surrounding buildings. In response to the Project’s principle of revealing the history of the site, student’s design responses were required to consider the site’s historical narratives including the retention and protection of heritage-listed trees.  Students worked autonomously to develop and present their design responses, some of which are shown below.