To celebrate Dulux’s long involvement with the design world and the DIA, the third series of the DIA podcast Design Talks, spoke to six winners and nominees from around Australia.
Hosted by Zwei’s Katherine Kemp and Lex Design’s Renee Ballard, the Design Talks series takes the opportunity to talk peer to peer with six leading Australian designers; Adam Haddow - SJB, Sarah Jane Pyke - Arent&Pyke, Danielle Brustman - Danielle Brustman Studio, Neil Cownie - Neil Cownie Architect, Susannah Waldron - SXWA and David Welsh - Welsh + Major.
Adam Haddow is the Director of Architecture, SJB, Sydney. As a studio, SJB is acclaimed nationally and internationally for their work and their approach is that the activities buildings facilitate are just as important as the physicality of the buildings themselves. Adam believes buildings should subtly embody ambitions of beauty, delight, joy and surprise.
Arent & Pyke is a Sydney-based design practice, formed by Juliette Arent and Sarah-Jane Pyke, encompassing interior architecture and design with a unique focus on the decorative arts. Since the formation of the practice in 2007 Arent&Pyke have fine tuned their philosophy around what it means to make a space sing. While they have created a multi-award winning practice and earnt the respect of their industry peers, the value they bring remains in the emotional connections they create and how those, in turn, drive aesthetic and practical decisions.
Starting her career as a theatre set designer, formalising her degree at RMIT in Interior Design, and yet carrying this theatrical thread through in the creation of experiential and immersive spaces, and developing a reputation as an innovative yet pragmatic designer that is fearless with colour, Danielle’s approach is singular, creating richly layered interiors that are inbued with character, warmth and elegance. With her studio based in Melbourne at Collingwood Yards, we introduce Danielle Brustman.
David Welsh is a founding director of Welsh Major Architects with Christine Major, established in 2004. Calling themselves modern-ish architects, Welsh Major consider their work with a broad modernist sensibility, responding rather than reacting to programme and context, looking to playfully create the unexpected yet with a considered clarity.
Searle X Waldron is a practice based in St Kilda, Melbourne. The firm was co-founded by Nick Searle and Suzannah Waldron in 2007, with a focus on projects ranging from small scale residential to larger scale urban master-planning. Some of their notable projects and design competitions include the MoCAPE (Museum of Contemporary Art & Planning Exhibition) and Art Gallery of Ballarat Annexe. They have been recognised with various awards from the Australian Institute of Architects, including the 2012 Colorbond Award for Steel Architecture and 2012 Architecture Award for Public Architecture Alteration & Additions. Their designs have been exhibited across Australia and throughout Asia and Europe.
Neil Cownie is the Director of Neil Cownie Architecture, a multi-disciplinary practice that spans across residential, commercial, interiors and product design. Neil’s signature touch is not a signature at all, but instead each project is approached from a unique perspective, each project resulting in an individual design response.
All six episodes are also available Soundcloud.